Brussels, the Capital of Europe

Brussels is truly a world city. And like Luxembourg, it is also many different cities. There are the historic areas, like the Grand Place, which I think is without a doubt one of the most impressive spaces in the world. There are also the cathedrals, palaces, and fabulous galleries.

But, as the principal capital of Europe, it is also a modern city, with a lot of glass towers designed by some of Europe’s top architects. We stayed in Brussels on two different occasions, in two different hotels in two very different neighbourhoods. For our first visit, we stayed at Le Plaza, a grand hotel on a major street near the main shopping and historic areas. For our second visit, we stayed in a smaller boutique hotel (with the same sound track as John Evan’s Opus Hotel) on Louisa Avenue, a more upscale shopping, office and residential area with many parks.

Highlights of our time in Brussels were tours of the buildings including the many Art Nouveau structures; the museums, including the new Magritte Museum; and somewhat surprisingly, the Atomium, which was the Belgian Pavilion at the 1958 Brussels World Fair.

Sally thought Brussels was a city where we could live. It is very cosmopolitan, centrally located to many parts of Europe, and while there is too much graffiti in some areas, there are lots of magnificent areas, beautiful parks and very good restaurants. Many very good restaurants.

Antwerp, Antwerpen, Anvers

One of the highlights of our trip to Belgium was two days in Antwerp. I could spend a lot of time describing the city and its sights, but I won't. However, I do want to include some photos of its main square, and the statue that refers to the unusual legend that supposedly gave the town its name, as well as some of the buildings that surround it.Antwerp is known for its focus on the arts and design. One of my favourite buildings was the train station. I had never seen it, but read about it in one of my book club selections...Austerlitz. The station, built by King Leopold II is considered one of the 10 most impressive train stations in the world. I would like to see the others if they are anything like this one.Along the riverfront, many areas are being redeveloped with some striking new buildings. This was just one of the many architecturally adventurous buildings being built in the area.We spent a lot of time visiting some of the many art museums. They are impressive, both for the works, but also the quality of the galleries themselves. As I wandered around the velvet covered rooms of one museum, I could not help but compare it with the VAG.Antwerp is a major port city, and a centre of commerce. It is also famous as the centre of the world's diamond trade. One of the remarkable things about this industry is its predominance of Chassidic Jews. One interesting aspect of their involvement in the business is the importance of trust, rather than written legal agreements. I was surprised to learn that approximately 10% of Antwerp's population is Jewish. But do you think i could find a decent delicatessen?

White, brown and fruity

When we think of Belgian beers, most of us think of Stella Artois. But in fact, there are approximately 250 different beers, and they are indeed DIFFERENT. For one thing, the alcoholic content can be very high, approaching that of wine. For another, there is a great variety of beers from ‘white beer’ to ‘red beers’ (Rodenbach was my favourite) and many dark beers, some of which are quite sweet. During my trip, I tried many different beers, but for me the most interesting were some of the fruity beers, yes FRUITY beers.At first, the idea seemed very odd, but I started to develop a taste for them, especially Kruik. I also enjoyed some of the trappist beers from the Abbeys, which have been made since the middle ages. The most famous include Chimay, Rochefort, Leffe and Affigem and I am keen to see3 if they are readily available in Canada…although I suspect they'll be at a greater price.Beer in a Belgian cafe or tavern generally costs around 2.50 euros…however, a typical serving is smaller than what we are used to.... 25 cl or 33 cl.However, one evening in Brussels, my new best friends at the next table convinced me to start the evening off with a 750 cl bottle, and afterward we tried some of their other favourites Fortunately, it wasn’t a long walk back to the hotel.

Belgium's seaside resorts

I was born in Blackpool England, a seaside town and perhaps for that reason have always been attracted to other seaside resorts.

Belgium has very limited oceanfront (less than 60km) but a lot of Belgians want to have homes by the sea. Earlier, we visited Knokke-Heist, the most fashionable of Belgium's seaside towns, and were very impressed. We subsequently visited some of the other resorts spread from the French border (de Panne) to the Dutch border.

The largest (although by no means the best) seaside resort is Ostende, where the ferry lands from UK. Here one finds wall to wall high-rise buildings along the sea front that have replaced what were probably very attractive older buildings.

I did come across this development, however, which I thought was a creative integration of the old and the new.

While I was disappointed in the look of the waterfront, I was even more disappointed with the seafood that is sold in stalls along the beach. IT’S ARTIFICIAL…that is to say, you find shrimp and crab claws molded from pollack. You can also buy herring and other fresh food, but it’s the image of artificially shaped and coloured shellfish that will remain with me.

Between Ostende and Knokke is Blankenberg, another large resort. It too has a very dense waterfront, although in places between the high-rises, one finds older properties (sort of like missing teeth) that provide a clue of what the place was once like.

Along the waterfront are numerous private beach areas where one can own or rent a 'cabana' and enjoy meals and refreshments. There are also numerous activities including a Velodrome where kids of all ages can race their bikes.

Another feature of Blankenberg is its pier, the only pier along the Belgium seafront. It is not a very attractive structure, and when we walked to the end, I thought how sad that it was not a wonderful old wooden pier. That's when we saw the photograph....the photograph of the wonderful old wooden pier that had caught on fire, leading to the construction of the current structure. What a shame.

Fortunately, we decided that we could resist the fellow inviting us to a party at the end of the pier.

Leaving Blankenberg I stumbled upon a restaurant where a very large lady was eating an even larger platter of real seafood. I have always loved these platters, and while Sally doesn't really enjoy some of the snail-like creatures they contain, we thoroughly enjoyed this assortment of Belgian delights. There was nothing artificial about it at all.

Art Nouveau in Belgium

Starting around 1890, and for the next two decades, Belgium was the European centre for the development of Art Nouveau. I spend many days traveling around different neighbourhoods in Brussels and Antwerp in search of good examples.

In Brussels I went to the home of Victor Horta, generally considered to be the countries premier architect working in this style. Sadly, some of his greatest works have been demolished, but his home has been retained and turned into a museum.In Antwerp, I was directed to Zunenberg, a district of very well preserved townhouses built in revival, eclectic and Art Nouveau styles. While I was impressed with a number of the streets…I was particularly intrigued by four houses built on the four corners of an intersection, each decorated with a different scene representing THE FOUR SEASONS!





Further down the street I came across this house with decorations illustrating DAY and NIGHT. I could not help but wonder about the discussion between the architects and builders that led to these projects!Looking at this housing, with its wonderful integration of architecture and art, I was motivated to come back and try and do a bit more with my future developments, especially those built with brick. With a little effort, and yes, a bit more money, one can really do something very special. In fact, I think it is more a question of ATTITUDE, rather than just MONEY. We in Canada do not think about the integration of art and architecture as much as the Europeans. Pity.

Open, half open and closed: housing in Flanders

Whenever I travel to another country, I am always interested to see what the housing looks like. In Belgium, one finds streetscapes and housing types that are unique in the world...especially the medieval buildings in Bruges, Ghent, Brussels and Antwerp. But it is not just the older housing that is unique. Over the years, many different styles of housing have been built, often with a very creative use of brick. Even the newer homes offer something quite different.

In and around Zomergem where we were staying, there appeared to be a much greater interest in contemporary design compared to what I was used to in Canada. Almost all the new homes, regardless of their size, seemed to be designed by architects.

Above (top) is our neighbour Tomas and Martine's elegant, contemporay home, built right next door to a house with a thatch roof! I thought the other home was noteworthy for the manner in which it combined some historic elements in a contemporary home.

The new subdivisions were interesting both for the variety of architectural styles, but also the different forms of housing. In discussing this with Tomas, he told me that only in Belgium did one refer to this housing as open, half open and closed housing.

Open housing refers to detached housing, or as my British mother used to say 'homes standing on their own grounds'. Half open housing is what we would call semi-detached housing. However, unlike most North American semi-detached housing, each half is often designed by a different architect and built by a different owner. Closed housing is what we would call townhouses, or row housing. However again, each house could be designed by a different architect and built by a different owner. And each would be individually owned, not part of a condominium.

I found these ‘asymmetrical semis’ in Zomergem. While unusual, each half seemed quite sympathetic to the other, especially when compared with some of the other housing in the town, as evidenced below.

I was particularly impressed with this effort to combine the old with the new in Antwerp, while I am sure we might all have done it differently, it is a striking example of what is happening around many of the cities.

I wondered whether these semi-detached houses, often built on very large lots, might be developed in response to some special tax considerations. However, I was told that this was not the case. Rather, by not leaving side yards on both sides of the lot, one could build a larger home. (I need to check this out.)

The Belgiums are becoming increasingly concerned with environmental issues, although these two 'green homes' were perhaps motivated by something else...

In general, I was very intrigued with what I found. If I had to summarize Belgian design, I would have to say the housing in Belgium seems to be somewhat representative of the people, who are often non-conforming, individualistic and proud.