The last rays of the Benelux: Brussels and Luxembourg (continued).
To paraphrase Leonid Gaidai in his famous comedy, my impression of Brussels is “Brussels is a city of contrasts”.
On the one hand, it is the administrative capital of Europe and the Kingdom of Belgium, where the European Parliament is located, i. e. business center of the European Union. On the other hand, it is a medieval city of artisans, merchants and brewers, which has long been famous for the production of lace and tapestries, chocolate truffles and many types of beer. Therefore, the story of such a two-faced city is not an easy task. But since Brussels greeted us favorably - with bright sunny weather and a chic hotel, we will also be favorable to him and we will survey this city from the most beautiful angle. Although many ignore Brussels, arguing that there is absolutely nothing to do there. I will try to debunk the generally accepted opinion a little, and somehow combine a slightly strange and peculiar, but still charming mixture of the Middle Ages and Art Nouveau in its own way.
The most beautiful landmark in Brussels is the magnificent Gothic square Grand Place or Market Square. It can surprise and delight you at the same time.
The old square appeared in the 12th century, it is surrounded by amazingly beautiful buildings with rich ornaments, elaborate carvings, beautiful statues and columns. Each house has its own name, and if you have some detective abilities, you can easily find them by name, for example, "Star", "Little Fox", "Wolf".
Three centuries later, i. e. in the 15th century, the symbol of the Belgian capital appeared on the Market Square - the stunningly beautiful Town Hall, that has survived to this day. In general, all the buildings on the Grand Place are eye-catching and delightful, whether they are the old houses of trade guilds or the King's House. The whole ensemble of this square is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one can hardly argue with the fact that this is one of the most beautiful squares in the world.
The tower of the Town Hall is 96 meters high, at the top there is a statue of St. Michael, who is the patron saint of the city. The building was built in the Brabant Gothic style, which implies the presence of multiple different decor.
The facade of the Town Hall is decorated with arched windows, carved columns and sculptures of all the Dukes of Brabant, who ruled from 580 to 1564.
Access to the Town Hall is open to visitors, but we had a misfortune, at that time a wedding ceremony of some dark-skinned couple was being held there, naturally we were not invited to this event, and therefore we could not see all the luxury and beauty inside, but we watched all the preparations for the ceremony and luxurious convertibles and horse-drawn carriages.
If you have the opportunity, be sure to go up to the observation deck to admire the whole panorama from above, the entrance to the Town Hall costs 3 euros.
And this lace-like building on the Grand Place is King's House (in Dutch it sounds like Bread House).
Throughout history, this building has had many looks and purposes. It was built in the 13th century and initially served as a warehouse for a bakery, then it turned into a prison in an incredible way, then the Duke of Brabant transferred the tax service there (we also need to do this). And later the rulers of Brabant began to live there, and this house was called the House of the Duke. Then Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Brussels, and the House of the Duke was renamed the House of the People. But in the House for the People, for some reason, as rulers always settled, who began to enjoy royal privileges, well, the House of the People, by the will of strangers, turned into the House of the King, although there was no king in it. Well, at present, the city museum is located here, where there are expositions of works of Belgian art from different eras, and 650 costumes are stored here, which guests gave the statue of Manneken Pis.
Well, from the point of view of the erudition of a banal concept, you should definitely see this famous symbol of the city "Manneken Pis", which means " Manneken Pis. This is the oldest, smallest and most famous inhabitant of Brussels. Of course, I won't say where it is. You have to find the statue yourself, but the symbol is so small that I don't understand why there is such a huge interest in it? It seemed to the Belgians that one violator of the order was not enough, and at the end of the last century they created two more such "masterpieces" - "Peeing Girl" and "Peeing Dog". I think this is overkill.
In the center of Brussels there is the Brussels Park, it did not seem to me either luxurious or beautiful, it is too traditional park. But walking along it, we came to a huge building - this is the famous Royal Palace, which is the official residence of the monarch. But the Belgian royal family lives in another palace - Laeken, and this Royal Palace is used as a residence for receptions and special events.
After the patterned lace buildings on the Grand Place, the palace looks too monumental and ascetic: classic decor, brownish-gray color, no decorations, just strict lines. True, it was built in the era of classicism - the end of the 18th - the beginning of the 19th centuries. The building of the Royal Palace is a reflection of the history of the state and its great past.
Currently, the country is ruled by King Philip, who changed the history of royal marriages in his country, as he married Countess Mathilde d Udekem d Acoz, who was a Flemish Belgian (before that, only foreigners were Queens of Belgium). Therefore, the Belgians do not have a soul in their queen, who managed to reconcile two peoples - the Flemings and the Walloons. Although, all the same, there are very strong contradictions between these two ethnic groups. The royal couple got married in the Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula.
Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula.
About this cathedral, Victor Hugo said that it is the only true Gothic cathedral. The temple is located on Trorenberg hill. Here, back in the 11th century, there was a church where, by order of the Duke of Brabant, the relics of St. Gudula were transferred. Since then, the temple has been considered the central Cathedral of Brussels.
Inside the Cathedral seems huge, 12 magnificent columns, decorated with statues of the Apostles, lead to the altar.
The temple is decorated with magnificent statues and paintings. Here you can wander for hours, like in a museum. The cathedral houses a genuine masterpiece of the 17th century - a carved wooden pulpit depicting episodes from the Book of Genesis by the sculptor Verbruggen.
Another historical object of Belgium is located in Brussels.
These are the Royal Galleries of Saint Hubert. The passage opened in 1847, and was the first European passage, which is still considered one of the most beautiful in Europe.
There are memorable monuments in Brussels. For example, I liked the Infantry Memorial, which was erected in memory of the Belgian infantrymen who fought in the First and Second World Wars.
The Memorial is located right in front of the Palace of Justice.
Many tourists call Brussels boring, this is a paradox, since the walls of many houses are covered with quotes from comics, so Brussels is considered a city of jokers, they say here that if you don’t like humor, then after reading all the comical inscriptions in the city, you will start joking too.
A trip to Brussels is another great opportunity to get acquainted with the ancient craft of the Belgians - lace weaving.
And in Brussels, the most delicious chocolate truffles, as well as numerous beers brewed according to special recipes with various spices, fruits and additives.
Having collected a whole bag of chocolate truffles, we sat on the theater steps to enjoy a delicious treat and watch the city.
In general terms, I can say that Brussels is a vibrant and multinational city, where architecture of various styles and directions is harmoniously combined. Here they love humor and laughter, but even more they love flowing beer, delicious waffles and great chocolate
Accommodation: NH Brussel Louise Hotel, Chaussee de Charleroi 17. The hotel is just great, the breakfast is amazing.
Well, in the final review of the Benelux countries, I would like to tell a little about its smallest state, Luxembourg, which is also called the balcony of Europe. From these bridges - balconies really offer stunning views.
Luxembourg is a duchy of about 500.000 inhabitants ruled by his Royal Highness Duke Henri.
He exercises control from his official residence, where receptions and audiences are held, called the Palace of the Grand Dukes. It was built back in the 15th century, when a powder warehouse exploded in the city (just like we have now) and the entire Upper City was destroyed.
And from this balcony, Duke Henri addresses the people with his proclamations. They call it the Royal Balcony.
The entire territory of Luxembourg is divided by the Alzette River into Upper and Lower Towns. All the old quarters are located in the Upper Town.
And right in front of the Palace of the Grand Dukes, we see black pillars, it is impossible not to notice them, inside the pillar there is a mask on someone's face. This is the so-called “Mask Lantern”, which is the original special attraction of Luxembourg.
In the very center of Upper Luxembourg, on Constitution Square , there is a military monument "Golden Lady". It was erected in 1923 in memory of the volunteers who went to fight in the First World War.
Next to the monument is the most famous bridge and the national symbol of Luxembourg - Adolf Bridge. It is named after the Grand Duke Adolf, who laid the first stone for its construction in 1900 .
Walking around Luxembourg is a pleasure, there are no special sights in it, but this is not a metropolis, the city is perfectly clean and almost deserted. And you can slowly wander through its streets, just looking at the scenery. There are also a lot of cafes and restaurants in the city, so we stumbled upon one Tureen where you can eat a good soup soup for 5-8 euros. (an ordinary diner, but the soup was delicious, I must have been very hungry, so I forgot to take a picture of the soup itself).
While walking around the city, we came to a small square Claire Fontaine. Here on the square, there is a famous monument to the honored Duchess Charlotte, who ruled the duchy for a very long time from 1919 to 1964. Therefore, the heavy burden of two world wars fell on her lot, with which Duchess Charlotte coped with honor. Until now, flowers are brought to the pedestal, which indicates that she is still valued and respected for her huge contribution to the development of the state.
And along the perimeter of the monument, there are some modern avant-garde sculptures, which probably mean something.
We had very little time to explore Luxembourg, so we got to know the Duchy very superficially, although Luxembourg, of course, deserves more attention. But nothing can be done, such is the Selyavi, as they say. So our tour ended with the Benelux countries. And one more gap in my knowledge is closed and painted with bright colors of travel. And three countries will remain in memory - Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, geographically located nearby, but in fact very different and dissimilar, and at the same time, combining royal dignity and historical traditions.
