James Tucker in Cov

I went to Derbyshire for some less-civilised exploration, hiking the first few miles of the Penine Way, a trail that goes to Scotland from the mid-North of England. We started in Edale, which has about 8 houses and a pub, and then through some valleys with occassional farms and rather more sheep, and then headed up the side of Kinder Scout, which I'm told was about 2000 feet elevation. From the top, you can see to Manchester (and maybe Wales). The top wasn't the moor I expected it to be, but more a moonscape of rocks and peat. The way down went through a series of river valleys and ended at a resevoir we'd been able to see from the top-- well, kinda. In the picture at left, we walked all the way across the top, and down and around the left side. The rocky bit there is a waterfall I've shown panoramically below. We still had to walk into town, which was a nice little place called Hayfield. With a pub.

So I went to Belgium last week, as noted below, and spent 4 days in Brussels. I knew very little about the city, except for its reputation as a rather concrete and grim centre of the European Union bureaucracy. Whatever the truth of that impression (I sure didn't see it, but I never went to the 'EU Quarter'), Brussels is first and foremost the longstanding capital of an historically prosperous and important country. It has absolutely everything you could want from a European city-- medieval churches and town hall, palaces, its own style of architecture, art galleries, waffles, and beer. The Grand Place is the standout part no-one misses, a square with the medieval Hotel de Ville surrounded by 17th century townhouses (below) used by guilds. It's the centre of the city, and the spire of the Hotel's spire can be seen from anywhere-- that's it in the picture above left A real highlight for me was visiting the ruins of the palace used by the Holy Roman Emperors that's now buried in the basement of the Royal Palace-- there's even an old street still down there. (The picture above right is of the square outside the palace.) Almost every private building in Brussels is a townhouse (like in Amsterdam), so there is a huge variety of architecture (more on this later). I was also really impressed by the art gallery, which had Bruegels and Bosch's more bizarre paintings on display, which was a nice touch. I didn't know a thing about Brussels until I went there, but I liked it a lot-- it's a lot friendlier than Paris or London. Especially Paris. Their city's mascot is 'Le Manekin Pis'- an example of the 'small boy peeing' school of sculpture. They frequently dress it up in leiderhosen, uniforms, or whatnot. Next week, it's due to be dressed like Nelson Mandela. Seriously. And of course, they have an Atomium, and not every city can say that. Also, say what you will about cheap flights, I love taking the train when I can. Random castles! Accessable stations!
Below is a bigger shot of the Grand Place, and the Place Grand Sablon- the antiques district.

I went to Brussels for the last weekend, and, amongst other things (Belgian beers, art nouveau, waffles), went to go and see the Atomium. It's part of the 1958 World's Fair site on the edge of town, and can be seen from most rooftops and hills in the city. When I went on a saturday morning, it was incredibly busy, and there were long lines just to get in, and then to get up to the top. It's in the shape of a giant iron atom, with each of the balls a two-level building, and the connecting tubes containing stairs or elevators. Most of the rooms are dedicated to telling people about the creation and building of the Atomium itself, though one is full of glowing sculpture, and others display more general exhibits about 1950s modernism-- there are Minis and other cars (including that old BMW where the whole front of the car opens), as well as all the fridges and such being classic examples. One of the spheres even has a bunch of spherical beds-- children can stay in the building as part of school outings. At the very top of it all is a restaurant and some good views across all of Brussels. Although you can't really see much from up top, the Atomium is more than just a celebration of 50's modernism (there isn't much in the way of kitcsh)-- a lot of people really seem to regard the Atomium as one of the symbols of the city, if not the country. A CN tower from another era, I guess. The recent renovations probably also account for how busy it was...

Wherein I make Birmingham look like a refined European city. To its credit, Birmingham did an awful lot of building during its prosperity, especially during the late victorian period when Joseph Chamberlain was perhaps the most progressive mayor in the UK. To the left is the cathedral, which was built as a church and upgraded much later, when Birmingham was made its own Bishopric. The square around it (right) is probably the most 'old-world' view in the city, but looks are deceiving. Behind those buildings is the 'Gun Quarter', home of dozens of arms manufacturers in sprawling factories-- some of which are still there. Also, the kids at the bus shelter were engaged in some kind of gang war along the entire edge of the Cathedral Close. The huge Council House (a view of the side, left) which is now a pretty good museum and art gallery, is next to the City Hall (sadly under renovation), home to the country's biggest pipe organ. The Council House was damaged in the war, but most of the exhibits had been moved out by then. The stores on the right are a good example of the sort of architecture that can still be found in the commercial areas of the city-- there may be plenty of concrete boxes from the 60s along these streets, but more of these survive than we give credit for. Not are there some gracious old piles still around, but all of the buildings in this post are in a large downtown pedestrian zone that includes the main shopping areas as well as the cathedral and city government buildings. Which is nice. I have no idea what the building to the left is for, but it is in a corner of the huge public square at the front of the Council House. And I like it. [Update- Apparently it's the old Post Office building. Thanks!]