School trip to Brussels

Most people will know Brussels. Some won't know it is the capital of Belgium, but who cares???

I must admit I don't know a lot about Brussels either. Living in Flanders, most of us don't feel a lot of affinity for a town where mostly French is spoken. So the only times I go to Brussels are those occasions when we make a trip with the school.

This way I have been on a tour of the Marollen - a part of town where the poor lived (and still do, I suppose) and which has its own traditions. I also went to see the museum of Tervuren (the museum for our Congolese heritage) and another time we did the Rue de Namurs, where all the Moroccan shops are situated.

Actually, there is a lot to see in Brussels, when you are a tourist. The place to be is the Grand Place - the central market place. It is dominated by the town hall, which is gothic in style. The market place is mostly crowded with tourists, speaking all kind of languages.

Not far from the Grand Place you can find Manneken Pis, the statue of a young boy who is urinating. I don't know why this is such a thing to see, as I should think most people would be disappointed if they see the little guy, even when dressed is one or other fancy costume.

Also close to the Grand Place you can find the Rue des Bouchers (the butchers street) which is filled with lots of restaurants and typical cafés selling the famous Gueze - a typical beer from the region.

Of course there are other things worth seeing for a visitor to Brussels. You can go and see the Palais de Justice, which in the late 19th century was the biggest building built in the world (and that for a country which is among the smallest). It is built on top of the Kunstberg, which is the highest hill in Brussels. Standing before the Palais de Justice you can see all over town.

Then there are churches and cathedrals, lots of musea and shops - for antiques, go to the Grand Sablon. There are the poshest shops in town, also lots of chocolatiers like Witamer and Marcolini. As Brussels housed a world exposition many a time, there are remainders left, like the Atomium, which can be seen even from out of a plane.

Yesterday the students had a day off, while we teacher made a city trip to Brussels. We were lucky with the weather - a full blown storm, causing a tree to fall over the road, which made our ride last two full hours! And then rain and wind while we were walking around town...