Discover Benelux | Column | Welcome to the crossroads!
Joke Schauvliege, Flemish minister of Environment, Nature & Culture. Photo: Wim Kempenaers
Welcome to the crossroads! “Brussels was incredibly beautiful: an impressive city with wonderful buildings and street names in Flemish and French. For merely 3 franks the hotel thoroughly spoiled me.” I cannot guarantee that a stay will only cost you 3 franks – not even 10 eurocents by current standards – but I sincerely hope you will enjoy your stay as much as dr. Sigmund Freud did, more than a century ago. Magritte, Ensor, Horta or van de Velde don’t roam the streets of Brussels anymore – as they were fond to do. But they have definitely left their traces, so please feel free to visit the Magritte museum, Ensor paintings (Old Masters Museum), and the splendid Horta-buildings. And don’t forget the art centre Bozar, a unique laboratory for contemporary art. And of course Brussels itself, with its array of both big and small galleries and creative input from all corners of Europe.
But there is much more to discover in Flanders, by car, by public transport or even by bike. Our unique, rural landscape, “where only the cathedrals are mountains”, as Jacques Brel famously put it. Visit Bruges with its abundant cultural heritage, or Ghent, the UNESCO Creative City of Music with unforgettable vibes, bars and parties, and its unique triptych Lam Gods of the Flemish Primitive painter Jan Van Eyck. Or Antwerp, fashion city par excellence, and home of the Flemish Ballet, the Rubens house, or the iconic MAS. And there are other lesser known gems such as Ostend, Ypres, Leuven or Mechelen. Each place is a crossroads of the ancient and the new where you can intensely admire
our arts, theatre, dance, music and film. In less than an hour you can hop from city to city. No matter what takes your preference, I’m sure there will be a pleasing offer. As Flemings are heartfelt Europeans, we’d also like to point out that there’s easy access out of Brussels to other cultural hotspots like Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam and London. But we are proud and thankful for every one of your visits. Enjoy your stay! Joke Schauvliege Flemish minister of Environment, Nature & Culture
Issue 3 | February - March 2014 | 27