Brussels

Capital of the European Union and other criminal institutions such as NATO, Brussels is the biggest city of my little flat rainy country.

The most famous feature of Brussels is the Grand’place, which is at some periods of the year all covered with flowers.

Then we have a lot of “modern” architecture, such as the Atomium, built for the Universal Exhibition of 1958.

More seriously, the most famous architecture style of Brussels is Horta style, from the name of the Belgian architect, whose style is characterised by big round windows, high ceilings, bright colours, flowers, nature elements,… Horta style houses are the most expensive in Brussels.

Jacques Brel, René Magritte, beer, chocolate, French fries and mussels, Tintin, les Schtroumpfs and Jean-Claude Van Damme were either born or lived in that awkward city.

It is not very big (1, 5 million people), not very beautiful (and sometimes even very ugly), but it must be one of the only place in the world (with NY, London and Amsterdam) where you can find a kebab close to a Chinese restaurant, an Italian one, an Indian night shop, a hairdresser from Congo, a Polish or Ukrainian supermarket and a Moroccan phone shop in the same street. Indeed, not less than 128 nationalities are represented in Brussels and it’s one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world.

Thanks to all this, the city is living. It’s full of restaurants, cafes, bars, clubs,…for all tastes, all ages, all origins. It’s also a cultural city, with at least 30 different theatres, operas, museums, 15 cinemas, from the huge multiplex to the little and dark author movie cinema. It has also many art galleries, antique shops, etc etc.

It’s maybe not the best city in the world, it’s maybe difficult to get used to the climate, and to feel the real atmosphere of Brussels in 3 days, but if you get to know it not like a little Japanese behind his camera, spending half an hour on the Grand’Place, it’s a city that you might like.