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To promote the new Brussels - London Eurostar service some advertisements have gone up all around Brussels which have caused a stir - the dream of every advertising agency.

The one that has most tongues wagging is one of a football thug relieving himself in a cup of tea.



Other advertisements include an Alfred Hitchcock and a John Cleese impersonator. While the football thug might not be in the best taste, the ads show how universal these British characters are. There is no parralel ad campaign in London for Brussels. After all that old saying Name a Famous Belgian still rings true.

I thought this ad though sums it up positively for Britain. Apart from the USA, how many other countries could have their last three leaders so easily impersonated and recognised?

Labels: advertisement, belgians, belgium, british, brussels, eurostar, london

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Labels: belgium, brussels, coffee, horse

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If I have learnt one thing about Belgium it is they have cornered the great Grote Markt market. Belgium has some of the best preserved Town Squares (Grote Markt) in Europe.

Labels: belgium, bruges, brussels, kortrijk, leuven, mechelen, town square

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I found myself at the Grote Markt (Main Square) of Mechelen on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Much of the trench war of WWI was fought in Belgium.

Labels: belgium, mechelen, war

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Belgium is a land that takes their beer seriously. There are over 1000 types of beer in Belgium. They even have beer in regular vending machines on the street. That would never work in any of the binge drinking Anglo-Celtic lands.

Labels: belgium, ghent

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Halfway between Bruges and Brussels is Ghent (Gent). Like Bruges, much of Ghent's medieval architecture remains intact. Like Brussels, it has a lively nighlife and arts scene. Ghent is like having the best of these two great cities in one, which is why I don't understand why Ghent isn't as well known as it should be. To compare, there is one hostel in Ghent, and at least six in Bruges.

Labels: belgium, ghent

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Ostend (Oostende) on a windswept November day is not the first place you would think of visiting, but these are the things you sometimes find yourself doing when you have a railpass.

Being a major port it was bombed during the Second World War. Wandering around the streets you can see small hints that this place was once grander than it is now.

There is a large sandy beach here which is popular in the summer.

Labels: belgium, ostend

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Bruges (Brugge) was an important trading Port from the 12th to the 15th Century. When its estuary silted up, Bruges lost its trade to other cities.

History has conspired in favour of Bruges though. The city was not involved in the theatre of war during WWI and WWII so the old city buildings remain intact.

Today Bruges is one of the best preserved Medieval cities in Europe, making it the most popular destination in Belgium.

Labels: belgium, bruges

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These bike hire stations can be found in locations all over Brussels. You have to register and pay to use this service. While it is only a small fee, I prefer the system in Copenhagen where you you only need to put a coin in a deposit slot, like in a supermarket trolley.

cyclocity.be

Labels: belgium, bicycle, brussels

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An anti-war message in front of a war memorial at Place Poelaert near the Palace of Justice in Brussels.

If Swedes are wondering why Belgians have singled them out it is because the installation is by Swedish artist Fia-Stina Sandlund.

Labels: belgium, brussels, war

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Manneken Pis is one of the most well known places of Brussels. Some say it's also the most disappointing tourist attraction of Europe. But as it is one of those things you "have to see", people crowd around this diminutive statue.



Manneken Mascot

Manneken Pis is the unofficial symbol of Brussels. Every tourist shops contain Manneken Pis related items.




Other Pis Statues

Continuing the toileting statue theme, there are two more statues to see, the Jeanneke Pis and this one of a dog.

Labels: belgium, brussels, statue

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Belgians are master chocolatiers. There are chocolate shops all over Brussels. They also claim the waffle as their own, so if you have a sweet tooth then you will enjoy wandering around Brussels.

Labels: belgium, brussels, food

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The Grand Place (French: Grand Place, Dutch: Grote Markt) is the main square of Brussels, Belgium. Most of the European Union's institutions have headquarters in Brussels, giving Brussels its title of European Union capital. It is fitting then that the "Capital of Europe" has the grandest town square in Europe as well.

Labels: belgium, brussels, europe, grand place, grote markt, town square

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Brussels is a real surprise packet of a city if you don't know anything about it other than being the so called capital of Europe. It's a cosmopolitan city with a mix of old and new Europe. Belgians don't seem to be a boastful lot, perhaps this is why Brussels isn't as visited as it should be.

Language

Belgium is split into three linguistic divides. Flanders, the northern half of the country is Flemish (Dutch) speaking, Wallonia in the Southern half speak French, and there is a German speaking pocket in the east of the Country. Brussels is in the Brussels-Capital Region, which is in the Dutch speaking Flanders region, but officially Brussels is bilingual, French and Dutch. This is why all the street signs in Brussels are in both languages.

Labels: belgians, belgium, brussels

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It is said that there is a thin line between art and porn when it comes to nudity in movies. So too with graffiti and its thin line between art and vandalism.

I saw this piece of graffiti though which I think sums up the reason for most of the rubbish graffiti in the world. It's usually done by young men who just need to get laid.

Labels: belgium, graffiti, liege

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Drunken men are going to take a leak in corners no matter where it is. So this church has installed an open urinal in this prominent corner.

Labels: belgium, liege, urinal

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Dinant sits between a rock and a river, which makes for a scenic little town.

Dinant's two main buildings dominate the view, the Cathedral of Notre Dame and the Citadel, which is perched over the town on a cliff.



Dinant is famous for being the home of Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the Saxophone.

Labels: belgium, dinant

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The combined size of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg (Benelux) is relatively small, less than the size of Austria or Czech Republic for example. Size is relative though, and being Australian you are asking the wrong person if you think this region is big. Australia has cattle stations the size of Belgium and I lived on a sheep station the size of Lichtenstein (though it sadly lacked castles and private banking facilities).

So having 3 coffees isn't as difficult as it sounds. I started the day in Luxembourg, got the train to Namur and Dinant in Belgium, then finished the day in Maastricht in the Netherlands. If I really wanted to I could have made it 4 coffees in 4 countries as Aachen on the German border is not far away from Maastricht.

I have already done 4 coffees in 4 countries once before though. Lake Constance in Central Europe is bordered by Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, and Lichtenstein is not far away. Using the efficient rail network of that part of the world it is very easy to visit all of them in a day (with a bus trip to Lichtenstein as they have no passenger rail service).

Labels: belgium, benelux, coffee, luxembourg, netherlands, train

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If you are planning to travel in Belgium and the Netherlands then you may want to consider a Benelux rail pass. (Benelux stands for BElgium NEtherlands and LUXembourg).

For European residents there is the Benelux pass from InterRail, and for non European residents the Benelux pass is available from Rail Europe. This pass can be bought at the international ticket department of major train stations, but it may be more convenient to order it before you travel to save time buying it when you arrive.

Plan Your Travel

As with any rail pass you should do some homework beforehand to make sure you will save money from buying a pass.

For example the Benelux pass Adult 2nd class is €139 and is valid for 5 days travels in 30 days. That works out at €27.80 per day of travel. Next you need to look at the map of Benelux to see where you would like to go. If you are only visiting a few places then it will not be worth getting a pass. If you plan to visit many towns and cities then the pass becomes worthwhile.

Next you need to plan how to make the most of the pass by planning your travel days. Making the most of your pass include doing your long distance travel in one day or visiting a few different small towns in one day that require lots of train travel.

Starting your Benelux Pass Travel

People arriving from outside Europe will most likely arrive at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport or Brussels International. If you are coming from another point in Europe then it might work out better to start at on the edges of the region. Some starting points could be:

- Luxembourg Airport
- Charleroi Airport(known as Brussels South)
- Groningen Airport in the north of the Netherlands has flights from Ryanair.
- Maastricht Aachen Airport

visitors from the UK can also get the Dutch Flyer, which is a combined ferry/train ticket from London to Amsterdam for from £25 one way.

Labels: belgium, benelux, luxembourg, netherlands, rail pass, train, train station

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