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Published: October 25th 2014
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Brussels, with its untidy streets and messy construction sites, reminded me a lot of home. I was nevertheless disappointed by the shabby state of the city's public places. 'Had I made a mistake in coming here?' - the question rang through my head for the first few hours of a bleak saturday morning. But soon, the question was forgotten as I was immersed in the city's unique traditions, monumental tourist attractions and its addictive food.
First off, I went straight to the jewel of Brussels, its Eiffel equivalent - the Atomium. Or so I thought. One thing I found very different and unhelpful in Brussels was the lack of tourist signage and in some places, the lack of simply any signs. It is almost impossible to find your way, even to a major tourist spot, without a map. Having spent the previous week in London, where there is tourist information on every street corner, I found the sudden change frustrating. What I had assumed as the marker of the location of the Atomium was infact an arrow pointing me towards it. Thankfully, a friendly local helped me get on to the right tram (& I finally found use for my
limited French).
Just as the Eiffel was constructed for the Paris World's Fair exhibition in 1889, the Atomium was completed for the 1958 exposition in Brussels. It was designed to serve as a symbol of the peaceful uses of atomic energy. Its nine interconnected giant spheres represent atoms arranged in an iron crystal. The spheres house exhibitions, panoramic view points and a restaurant. Very easy to spot from the Atomium was my next stop, the 'mini Europe' park.
The idea of being in several places at once immensely appealed to me. Judging by the crowd, so it did to a lot of other people. Mini-Europe contains miniature versions of most of Europe's famous monuments, right from the Eiffel tower to the canals of Venice, all in one place. Given the amazing expanse of historical structures present, I had to whizz by many of them to keep within my time budget. But it was definitely worth its price (a quality that is becoming more of a holy grail in tourism). Unexpectedly, lunch turned out to be the high point of my day so far. Nothing fancy - just a bowl of fries and a burger. But the fries were
Belgian! The combination of the crispy potato slices and the sauce - it was unlike any fries i had tasted. They were so good that I had them for lunch for the next 3 days (& vowed to never call them 'French' fries again).
Next, I proceeded to the parc de Bruxelles (the Brussels Park), which was the main venue for the 3 day, annual comic fest. I arrived just in time for the balloon parade and watched various Belgian comic characters bobbing through the streets, accompanied by a costumed band. I managed to take pictures of Tintin and the rest as they disappeared beyond the park in to the city. The park itself was submerged under a number of tents, filled to the brim with comic enthusiasts of all ages. Once I squeezed myself into the main tent, I was taken aback to see Superman and Spiderman and even some well-mannered storm troopers. But as I moved along the stalls, they were quickly replaced by reams and reams of Belgian comic books. I stopped at the Herge stand where I met one of the authors of the new American edition of Tintin, Stuart Tett. He has contributed to
the extra pages of 'Tintin in America', explaining the backstory. We chatted for a bit and he also happily signed a copy for me, before I bid goodbye.
I then made my way to the city centre, the famed 'Grand Place'. On the way, I stopped over at the Brussel's comic musuem, that provides an in-depth coverage of the process of creating a comic. A shop selling comics merchandise, a haven for comics geeks, is located right below the musuem. I spent more time at the shop than the musuem, a reflection of the array of merchandise on sale. A few hundred meters down the main street, in stark contrast, was the cathedrale of St.Michael and St.Gudula. Remarkably, the remains of a Roman church have been discovered and preserved beneath the cathedrale. Close by, in plain view of the cathedrale, again in severe contrast, was the street leading to the Grand Place. Large crowds were present and several parties underway in tented areas.
The whole area was a maze of tiny streets lined with shops. This time around, I did not care about getting lost since there was something to enjoy on every street. The Manneken pis, the
statue of a urinating boy, was surrounded by a huge crowd. The statue, also a symbol of Brussels, is a relic of an era past. Many food sellers had cleverly set up shop next to the statue, selling Belgian chocolates and waffles. I tried to take a picture (of the statue) above the heads of the crowd with one hand, while I ate a waffle with my other hand. I strolled through the market place, chewing on my waffle, when I spotted huge comic strip murals on the walls of some buildings. Brussels even has a designated comic strip walk that takes you on a tour of these wonderful murals.
Like any European city, Brussels has big musuems for art and history but the most enjoyable and unique one is the Musical Instruments Musuem. Part of the Royal musuem, it has a collection of varied musical instruments from all over the world. The highlight is being able to listen to an instrument when you step near it, via headphones and a programmed ipod. I spent two hours literally lost in world music, almost missing my next appointment.
I had no intentions of visiting the Palace of Brussels until
a friend, who had visited it the day before, told me about it. Besides, entry to the palace was free. It had the usual expensive furniture, gilded interiors, glittering chandeliers and other glamourous articles. But it also had an absorbing section on the tale of Brussels and its monarchy during the second world war. Original video footage shot during the war provided a compelling narrative. I found this segment both interesting and enlightening. Almost at the end of the palace tour, I noticed the 'heaven of delight' artwork by Jan Fabre. The ceiling and chandelier 'have been covered with the wing cases of 1.4 million Thai jewel beetles'. giving an eerie glow to the room.
My last stop in the city was at the Museum Of Original Figurines, located at Galerie Horta. At the entrance, I was welcomed by a huge statue of a smurf. There were glass cases filled to the brim with comic figures and posters. Walking from the entrance to the ticket counter took me a good ten minutes as I goggled at all of the stuff on display. The dimly lit reception room even includes a reading area for comic book nerds. The musuem is
divided into sections, one for every major comic book - smurfs, asterix, spirou, tintin and others. I spent a fantastic one hour looking at all the figurines, of which there are many. At the end, I went back to the reception, where I met the proprietor. He was a nice man who advised me against going to the Herge musuem (my next planned port of call), since it contained hundreds of drawings by Herge that would be of interest only for the expert (and also difficult to reach by public transport). I took his advice. Besides, making the MOOF my last stop let me finish my visit on a high.
Not to be missed - Musical instruments Museum, Museum Of Original Figurines
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