James Tucker in Cov

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.