|
There’s so much more to Belgium than Brussels, why not visit another Belgian town for a day or an overnight stay. Flanders has plenty to offer – whether it’s fashion in Antwerp, old-world charm in Bruges, modern art and medieval splendour in Ghent or Gothic architecture and reliving your carefree student days in Leuven. Renée Cordes reports
Antwerp
Antwerp is Belgium’s fashion capital, it hit the fashion world by storm in 1986, when a group of talented graduates – Dries Van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Dirk Bikkembergs and Martin Margiela – of the Antwerp Academy of Arts wowed the critics at the British Designer Show and they became known as the Antwerp Six. More recent graduates include Veronique Branquinho, Raf Simmons, Jurgi Persoons and Patrick van Ommeslaeghe. Fashion shops are scattered throughout town, but the main district is concentrated in the streets surrounding Groenplaats.
Get your bearings at ModeNatie (Nationalestraat, 28 tel: +32 (0)3 226 1447), which houses the Flanders Fashion Institute, the MoMu fashion museum and the fashion department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. View an exhibition or head to the bookshop for a copy of Antwerp Fashion Walk, a compact red booklet that lists all the designers in town, also available at the local tourist office (on level 0 of the Central Station near the escalators or at Grote Markt, 13 tel: +32 (0)3 232 0103).
Walter (Sint-Antoniusstraat, 12, tel: +32 (0)3 213 2644 is a pleasant, airy, all white space converted from a garage by Van Bierendonck and Van Saene, two of the original Antwerp Six. See Dries Van Noten’s Indian, Moroccan and Chinese-inspired designs for men and women at Het Modepaleis ( Nationalestraat, 16, tel: +32 (0)3 222 9210), an elegant corner building with fancy red leather sofas and marble floors. Shoe fanatics will be in heaven at Coccodrillo (Schutterhofstraat, 9, tel: +32 (0)3 233 2093), featuring labels including Ann Demeulemeester and Martni Margiela, while A. Boon (Lombardenvest, 2-4, tel: +32 (0)3 232 3387) specialises in gloves. Fashion-conscious teenagers flock to the oh-so-cool Fish and Chips (Kammenstraat, 36-38, tel: +32 (0)3 227 4372).
For refreshments soak up old-world atmosphere at Den Engel (Grote Markt, 3, tel: +32 (0)3 233 1252) or sit among the trendsetters at the sleek Zuidterras (Ernest Van Dijkkaai, 37, tel: +32 (0)3 234 1275) overlooking the Scheldt river. For lunch, Lombardia (Lombardenvest, 78, tel: +32 (0)3 233 6819, serves organic fare, from the ‘Mexican Boy’ chicken and guacamole whole-wheat pitta sandwich to the too-good-to-be-true-sounding cholesterol-free tiramisu. Hoffy’s Take Away (Lange Kievitstraat, 12, tel: +32 (0)3 234 3535) is a bustling local institution in the Jewish district that serves up matzaball soup and other hearty kosher fare. For an overnight stay, try the new Astrid Park Plaza (Koningin Astridplein 7, tel: +32
(0)3 203 1234), a sprawling 228-room establishment just steps from the central station.
Bruges
Bruges is a magical place suspended in the Middle Ages, with its cobblestone streets, canals and medieval architecture, it’s no wonder that it became a Unesco’s World Heritage site in 2000. Bruges attracts some two million tourists annually, most of whom come for the day. It can also be nice to stay overnight and see what Bruges is like after the sun sets, for a city of this size (about 117,000 in habitants) it has a fair amount of hotels in all price ranges.
Start your visit on the Markt, or Market square, marked by the 83-metre-tall Belfry tower, one of the symbols of the city, whose 366 steps reward you with a remarkable view. On the way up stop and see the treasury, where the town’s most valuable documents are kept, and the 47-bell carillon. The Belfry rises from the Hallen, a covered hall which was a bustling centre of cloth trade in the 14th century, today it’s used mainly for temporary exhibitions. To observe locals in action visit one of the many markets – Wednesdays on the Markt square, Saturday and Sundays on the Dijver and Saturdays on the Beursplein.
The Gothic Stadhuis, also on the square, is Belgium’s oldest and finest city halls. Among the city’s numerous churches, the Basilica of the Holy Blood is a highlight. Built in the 12th century and elevated to a basicilia in 1923, it gets its name from the relic of Christ’s blood brought back from the Holy Land by St. Basil the Great in 1099. The vial is displayed every Friday, and paraded around in the famous annual Holy Blood Procession on Ascension Day. The Church of Our Lady (Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk) boasts Bruges’ tallest tower as well as Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child, one of his few sculptures outside Italy. Bruges’ most revered art museum is the Groeninge Museum, also called the City Museum of Fine Arts, located on the Dijver canal-side street. The collection spans the 14th to the 20th centuries and pays homage to painters who lived and worked in Bruges; the museum’s most famous work is Madonna with Canon Joris van der Paele, painted by Flemish Primitive, Jan Van Eyck, in 1435.
Refuel with a Bruges Tripel beer at the city’s oldest café, the cosy Vlissinghe (Blekerstraat, 2, tel: +32
(0)50 34 37 37), whose origins go back to 1515, admiring the old portraits on the walls. Learn about traditional brewing methods on a tour of De Halve Maan (which means the Half Moon) (Walplein, 26, tel: +32 (0)50 33 2697), the only active brewery still operating in the centre of town that was reopened in 2005. Its signature brand is the Bruges Zot (translated as “Bruges lunatic”), a reference to Maximilan of Austria’s unforgettable remark that “Bruges is full of lunactics.” The brewery pub also features beer-accented cuisine. Bruges boasts a bevy of restaurants, but one that stands out is Paul Hendrickx’s Aneth (Maria Van Bourgondiëlaan,1, tel: +32 (0)2 50 31 1189), a pleasant one-star Michelin restaurant specialising in seafood. For overnighting, we recommend Martin’s Brugge (Oude Burg, 5, tel: +32 (0)50 445 1111), a large, modern hotel located just opposite the Belfry with on-site parking.
Ghent
Ghent, the capital of East Flanders province and home town of Belgian prime minster Guy Verhoftstadt, is one of Belgium’s oldest cities. It traces its roots to the founding of the St. Baaf’s and St. Peter’s monasteries in the 7th century, but its true glory days were in the Middle Ages when it was an important centre of the cloth trade. Its cobblestone streets, canals and medieval towers pay homage to its rich past. Today, it’s also a bustling commercial and university town – nearly a fifth of residents are students – with abundant cultural offerings.
Start your tour at one of Belgium’s most unusual museums, the Stedelijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, or State Museum of Fine Arts (generally referred to as “S.M.A.K.,” which is pronounced like the Dutch word for “taste” or informal version of “enjoy your meal”), about a 10-minute walk from the St. Peters train station on the outskirts of the 16-hectare Citadelpark, built in English landscape style in 1875, (tel: +32 (0)9 221 1703). The centre of town is a good half-hour walk from the train station, or a 10-minute tram ride. The St. Michielsbrug, or bridge, is a perfect starting point, with a view of Ghent’s three Medieval towers: the St. Nicholas Church, the Belfry and St. Bavo’s Cathedral. All offer splendid views of the city. Don’t leave St. Bavo’s, Ghent’s oldest parish church, without admiring The Mystic Lamb altarpiece by Jan and Hubert Van Eyck.
Ghent’s signature dish is waterzooi, a type of stew made with chicken or fish, served up at most traditional cafés and brasseries. Order a steaming bowl, accompanied by the beer of your choice, at the cosy Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant (9 Groentenmarkt, tel: +32 (0)9 225 0680), whose canalside terrace fills up in warm weather. There are no less than 100 Belgian brews on the menu, including all Belgian Trappists and unusual blends such as honey beer and alcohol-free varieties. Even non-vegetarians will enjoy the hearty fare served up at veggie eatery Panda (Oudeburg, 38A, tel: +32 (0)9 225 0786), attached to a health-food store. For dinner, indulge at one-Michelin-starred Jan Van den Bon (Koning Leopold II Laan, 43, tel: +32 (0)9 221 9085), whose eponymous chef-owner is equally gifted in fish and game as well as desserts.
Leuven
About 20km east of Brussels, Leuven has always been associated with students and beer drinking. It is home to Belgium’s oldest university, founded in 1425, and the headquarters of global brewing giant InBev SA, whose origins go back to the Den Horen brewer in the 14th century. Since 1995, this town of about 88,000 inhabitants has been capital of Flemish Brabant province.
Leuven is at its liveliest during term time, and the students fill the drinking establishments on the Oude Markt, nicknamed “the longest bar in the world,” especially during warm weather. Popular student hangouts include Bierkelder (Oude Markt, 20), open daily from 8pm until 8am, and Farao (Oude Markt, 42), whose DJs spin modern tunes (at a moderate volume) and hits from the ’70s and ’80s. For more luxurious surroundings, head to Leuven’s most famous café, Café Gambrinus (Grote Markt, 13), a local institution since 1896, with enchanting Art Deco décor.
Leuven displays its Gothic architectural gems on the Grote Markt, or the Great Market Square. The pride of place belongs to the ornate Stadhuis (Town Hall), whose construction began in 1439; the statues adorning the building were only finished in 1850. The two rows of the ground floor represent artists, scholars and eminent citizens of Leuven’s past, while the second floor features counts of Leuven and dukes of Brabant. On the other side of the square is St. Pieterskerk (St. Peter’s Church), Leuven’s oldest church. Though the original church was founded in 986, construction on the current edifice began in 1425. Inside, two masterpieces of Flemish Primitive painter Dirk Bouts are on display.
To learn more about Leuven’s No. 1 industry, take in a tour at the Stella Artois brewery (tel: +32 (0)16 24 74 61, www.breweryvisits.com), owned by InBev, or domestic brewer Domus (tel: +32 (0)16 20 14 49, www.domusleuven.be). For lunch or dinner, Zarza (Bondgenotenlaan, 92, tel: +32 (0)16 20 50 05) is an innovative eatery that blends French cuisine with Asian and Mediterranean influences; the passion fruit crème brulee is heavenly.
PICTURES COURTESY FLANDERS TOURISM
|
