I was delighted to come upon this enchanting forest of artistic trees in Brussels’ Place du Grand Sablon. The beautiful, creative objects were designed by students at Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts, La Cambre, Brussels’ visual arts school, and each tree was sponsored by a local retailer. Each sculpture is so original. I took photos […]
Tag Archives | Belgium
Plaisirs d’hiver, or Winter Wonders, Brussels
The Brussels Christmas Market is one of the largest in Europe. Over 250 stands spread over 2 kilometers vie for your attention and your wallet. Since it is one of the well-regarded markets, I had high hopes but was disappointed with the offerings. Some of the usual suspects are here: jewelry, scarves, Christmas ornaments, candles […]
Christmas in Brussels
The Electronic Fir is the best fake Christmas tree I’ve ever seen! If you’re going to forgo the real thing, you might as well go big. The 24-meter tall light installation that currently adorns Brussels’ Grand Place was created by Paris-based architects Pier Schneider and Francois Wunschel. The structure’s steel frame is covered with wood […]
Saint Nicholas Parade, Brussels
En route to the Brussels Christmas Market, we happened upon the staging area of what turned out to be a very entertaining parade. The stiltwalkers hanging out on second-story window ledges caught my attention, even before the giant cartoon heads and the oompah band (which, in this part of Europe, is called a bunch of […]
Maison Antoine
For over 3 years, Maison Antoine has been serving up some of the best frites in Brussels. A few € gets you a generous cone of double-fried frites, and for a little bit more you can chose a variety of dips. This step is a must. My favorite is the poivre, which I get on […]
St-Pauluskerk
This church is only open from either April–October or May-November (live in Europe and you’ll get used to these sorts of uncertain schedules) but supposedly has a baroque interior and over 200 sculptures and 50 paintings, including works by Jordaens, Rubens, Teniers and Van Dyck. I say supposedly since our March visit did not enable […]
Rubenshuis, Antwerp
Rubenshuis is, as you can imagine, the house and studio that Pieter Paul Rubens and his family inhabited. Rubens bought the property in 1610, upon returning from an eight-year stint in Italy, and spent the next eleven years turning it into a stunning Italian palazzo. Then came the fun part: decorating! The enormous house was […]
Museum Plantin-Moretus, Antwerp
Museum Plantin-Moretus was my favorite museum-house in Antwerp. It was one of those places that sounded so-so, but ended up knocking my socks off. I really should say “our socks” since my husband also really loved it. So what makes it so great? The museum takes you through 300 years of printing activity. As in, […]
Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp
This museum houses Fritz Mayer van den Bergh’s extensive and eclectic art collection. Who was Mayer van den Bergh? He was an avid art collector who lived with his mother until he died unexpectantly at age 43. After his death in the early 1900’s, his mother built this museum next door to their residence. If […]
Grote Markt, Antwerp
Like any good medieval Flemish city, life in Antwerp revolved around the market. Although the vendors have disappeared, ornate guildhalls and the gorgeous 16th century Italo-Flemish Renaissance-style stadhuis flank the square. And is that a baroque fountain? With a man throwing a…hand? Why yes, yes it is! The baroque fountain in the middle of the […]
