Walking Through Brussels

Brussels is the capital and the largest city of Belgium, and is also the place where the main administrative organs are located.

Brussels is considered as the crossroad of Europe. In addition to being an international trading city, Brussels’s medieval culture cannot be ignored. Lots of cultural relics can be found in downtown Brussels, including the battlefield of Waterloo and Baroque artistic buildings. Everything in the city gives you the feeling like you are transported back in time and walking through a city in the Medieval Period.

Exiting from the train station, tourists can take a walk around the major scenic spots, which include the Town Hall of Brussels and buildings around it, cathedrals, a royal palace and its garden, major national institutes, all kinds of museums etc. The roads of the city are always winding to nowhere, and you may easily get lost even if you are following a map.

Belgium is the most famous city of chocolates, and many tourists visiting the city will buy a few boxes of chocolates. St. Hubert Galleries, located near the Grand Place, Brussels, was built in 1847. Inside the corridor, visitors can see various brands of exquisitely made chocolates including Godiva.

The Grand Place was listed among the UNESCO World Heritage sites. The Town Hall of Brussels, built in 1402, is located in the center of the Grand Place. This is a Gothic architecture surrounded by pubs, restaurants, and chocolate shops.

The famed urinating boy’s statue, named Manneken Pis, is the symbol of Brussels and Belgium. When each festival comes or foreign guests visit, the statue will be dressed with various costumes to celebrate.

In addition to chocolates, the Belgium beers are also known to the world. Belgium has begun brewing beer since the Medieval Period. Not only do they add barley into their beers, but they also add different kinds of fruits and spices to them, and this makes each pint of beer tastes unique. Now there are more than 140 breweries in Belgium.

The city center is overwhelmed with the atmosphere of art. Even though it does not have romance of Paris, it has its dynamism, uniqueness, and self-discipline. Leopold II, King of Belgium in the 19th century, has left us the luxurious places and other buildings of different sizes. Many streets are lined with houses built during different centuries, including houses of the Renaissance, French New Art Period (Art Nouveau), neoclassical, and the 1970s.

Walking along the road is like walking through time. If you love paintings, you may find the artworks of many renowned artists of the Medieval and Renaissance periods. It really is a world of arts!