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The Belgian Center For Comic Strips
The visit to this museum is a must for two reasons. First of all, the museum is situated in the beautiful Art Nouveau setting of the Waucquez Warehouses. Secondly, one can see here the history of a very typical art form in Belgium: the comic strip. The Waucquez Warehouses are considered to be one of the masterpieces of the most famous Belgian Art Nouveau architect, Victor HORTA. Horta built the house in 1906 for the Waucquez family who used it for a wholesale cloth business. The building displays beautifully the principles of Horta’s architectural style: sunlight filters from the glass ceiling into the central hall, thereby illuminating the rest of the warehouse in a natural way. The Warehouses were restored between 1987 and 1989.
An art nouveau building houses the world’s first Comic Strip Museum which exhibits over 400 original Tintin plates created by Hergé, as well as 25, 000 other cartoon works. The Waucquez warehouses are considered to be one of the masterpieces of the famous Belgian art nouveau architect, Victor Horta. Horta built the house in 1906 for the Waucquez family who used it for a wholesale cloth business. The building illustrates the principles of Horta’s architectural style: sunlight filters from the glass ceiling into the central hall, lighting the rest of the warehouse in a natural way. One of the most popular new art forms for Belgium is the comic strip. Since World War II, most Belgians have grown up with Belgian comic strips. Herge stands out as the most important writer He is the father of the best known Belgian comic strip: Tintin. Tintin has been delighting children since 1929, when he began his adventures as a boy reporter traveling the world and setting wrongs to right. Tintin’s adventures became one of the greatest early examples of the European strip cartoon. Willy Vandersteen is the best known name of the Flemish school. His most important creation is Suske and Wiske (in English known as Willy and Wanda). Since the 1950’s, however, the entire comic strips scene has boomed in Belgium. This museum illustrates this “9th Art” in Belgium, with sets of enlarged drawings, three-dimensional recreations, etc. One can also learn everything about the birth and the development of a comic strip series. The Museum also has a shop with albums and memorabilia of the different Belgian comic strip heroes.
One of the most typical new art forms for Belgium are comic strips. After World War II, most of the Belgians have grown up with Belgian comic strips. One can say that there used to be two schools : the French-language comics ( = Bandes Dessinés) and the Flemish ones (= stripverhalen).
This beautiful museum illustrates this “9th art” in Belgium, with sets of enlarged drawings, three-dimensional recreations, etc. One can also learn everything about the birth and the development of a comic strip album. The museum also has a nice shop with albums and gadgets of the different Belgian comic strip heroes.
Museum Autoworld Museum
The AUTOWORLD museum in the Cinquantenaire Parc is really a ‘must’ for fanatics of old-timer cars. The more than 400 cars in this museum came mainly from the automobile collections of Ghislain Mahy and Charly De Pauw.
The more than 400 cars in this museum comprise one of the world’s top collections of vintage and classic cars. On display also is the history of the automobile from 1886 up to the 1970’s. There is, first of all, an exhibit of Belgian automobiles. Belgian car manufacturers no longer exist, but names such as Minerva, FN, Imperia, Nagant, Germain and Vivinus are names that are familiar to those who are lovers of the automobile. These cars came out of Belgian factories in the pre-world war II era. There are also cars from the United States, Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom. There are also special models which belonged to the Belgian royal family and to US presidents Franklin Roosevelt and J.F.Kennedy.
Even if you’re not a car fanatic, you’ll find this display of 500 historic cars set in the hangarlike Palais Mondial fascinating. The collection starts with 1899 early motorized tricycles and moves on to a 1911 Model T Ford, a 1924 Renault, a 1938 Cadillac that was the official White House car for FDR and Truman, a 1956 Cadillac used by Eisenhower and then by Kennedy during his June 1963 visit to Berlin, and more.
This is the one for all motor fanatics. This dusty old place has an amazing collection of old European and American autos from across 3 centuries, including a lot of models you have never seen before. There are five main permanent exhibitions, The Collection Mahy, The Motorcycles of Marcel Thiry, The Gallery Pierre D’Ieteren (Horse Coaches), Evocation of the car show of 1902 and Exhibition Auto Design Story.
Strictly for the car mad there are rare pre-World War II models on show as well as cars from all over the world.
The Grand Place Grote Market - Market Square
“One of the most beautiful town squares in Europe, if not in the world”, is a phrase often heard when visitors in Brussels try to describe the beauty of the central market square. French-speakers refer to it as the ‘Grand-Place’, whereas in Dutch it is called ‘de grote Markt’. The tourists of the 20th century are not alone in their admiration . Archduchess Isabella, daughter of Filip II of Spain wrote about the square during her visit to Brussels on September the 5th 1599: ” Never have I seen something so beautiful and exquisite as the town square of the city where the town hall rises up into the sky. The decoration of the houses is most remarkable “.
The Grand-Place is an outstanding example of the eclectic and highly successful blending of architectural and artistic styles that characterizes the culture and society of this region. The scene of various markets and events throughout the year, The Grand Place is the focal point of the city of Brussels and the heart of its social and civic life.
Victor Hugo and Jacques Cocteau termed the Grand’ Place “a rich theatre”, “a gigantic place”. It is surrounded by the “houses” of the Middle Age Guilds, the magnificent City Hall, the “King’s House” (where no king ever lived!) and more.All these buildings, except for the City Hall were destroyed in 1695 but rebuilt within the next four years. What were wooden façades before 1695 were rebuilt entirely in stone and embellished with statues in gilded copper.The square is lined on two sides with cafe-restaurants providing terraces from sunup to sundown…Every second year the Grand’ Place becomes a huge flower garden. More than 700.000 begonias of every color are used to form a magnificent flower carpet.
Between April and September the town square and its buildings are illuminated at night to the rythm of classical music.
There are two sessions of aproximately 15 minutes each night (between 21.30 h and 23.15 h, depending on the sunset).
Guild Houses
The fame and beauty of the Market Place do not lie only in the Town Hall and the King’s House, but perhaps first of all in the presence of a remarkably beautiful set of elaborately decorated guild houses. The name “guild houses” is most commonly used for the entire set of houses, although in reality they did not all belong to the medieval guilds. Some of the houses were always privately owned. During the Middle Ages and later every city in the Low Countries had guilds or corporations which always had a stake in the city administration. Because they were very wealthy and politically powerful , their importance had to show in their houses in which they regularly met to discuss new rules or regulations within their specific trade or commerce.
The guild houses were rebuilt between 1695 and 1700. Their architectural style is a local interpretation of Italian Baroque. The classicism here seems to be merely overlaid on the traditional architectural design. There is a rich variety of shapes, forms and designs in the grouping of these houses. Although the guild houses are large, they lack the monumentality which comes from a greater simplicity and unity of design. The small scale of the ornamentation, and the richness with which it is applied, give the buildings the intricacy of lace. The individualism of each building prevents the ensemble from being read as a single design. This is not necessarily a flaw, and in fact is characteristic of architecture in Belgium, which almost always emphasizes the individual or small group over the mass.
The MOUNTAIN OF THABOR - The ROSE -The GOLDEN TREE - The SWAN (Now a renowned restaurant “La maison du Cygne (house of the swan). Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels stayed here in 1847 during meetings of the Deutsche Arbeiterverein (the German labourers union) – The STAR (In the Middle Ages this house was occupied by the Amman, the Duke’s representative in the city. Under the arcade is a statue of Everard ‘t Serclaes, a medieval Brussels hero. Legend has it that striking the arm of the statue brings luck. )
Mini Europe Brussels
A miniature world displaying models of major events in the history of Europe. Some are hands-on such as the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the fall of the Berlin Wall. Visitors can make it happen. There are even scaled down replicas of the Channel Tunnel and the Ariane rocket.
Mini-Europe, the exceptional setting for your events and seminars. 4 removable places combined to an original setting located down the Atomium will ensure the success of your events. The incomparable chimes of Big Ben welcome you to the heart of London. The gondolas and the mandolins will invite you to discover the charms of Venice. Follow the T.G.V. from Paris to the other end of France.
Many of the models had sound effects that can be activated with a switch near the model. Some of these included the Big Ben with the familliar bell sound of the clock tower, Mt Vesuvius which erupted steam and the model of the european-built Ariane Rocket. Other models include the famous Eiffel Tower, Pisa, the Arc de Triomphe and a miniature version of the Grand Place in Brussels. As you tour the park, it is obvious that the park is paying tribute to the aspect of unity across the various european nations that have joined the European union. And it is pretty extroadinary that so many countries with distinct cultures and histories as well as past differences can finally unite with each other and solve the problems of the world.
Brussels is an exciting, modern city, yet it is rich in strikingly beautiful medieval and art nouveau buildings. It has outstanding museums and galleries and a vibrant cultural life. The heart of the capital city of Belgium lies inside a circle of main roads. The inner city can easily be explored within this circle on foot, by bus, or by tram. For areas outside it, there is an excellent subway system. Brussels is the perfect example of European culture at its best. Perhaps most famous now for its role as administrative capital of the European Community, Brussels is a lively, cosmopolitan city with a rich history and culture, amazing architechture and great seafood restaurants!
The spectacular Grand Place, which is arguably one of the most beautiful squares in Western Europe, the Baroque architecture, the Museum of Fine Art and the Royal Palace. Brussels is proud of its reputation as one of the gastronomic centres of the world and offers many fine restaurants and bars for you to judge. Brussels has an efficient metro system which is complimented by a network of bus and tram routes. Taxis are plentiful and all major Car Hire companies are represented.
“One of the most beautiful town squares in Europe, if not in the world", is a phrase often heard when visitors in Brussels try to describe the beauty of this central market square. French speakers refer to it as the ‘Grand-Place’, and in Dutch it is called ‘de Grote Markt’. Writers over the years, including Victor Hugo and Baudelaire were struck by the charm of the market square with its rows of guild houses set against the backdrop of the Town Hall and the king’s house.
Brussels has everything from budget to 5* deluxe. If you are planning a weekend vist, many top hotels drop their prices dramatically from Friday to Sunday
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