Something About Belgium And His Capital Brussels

The heart of Brussels is the Grand'Place. This historic square, lined with exuberantly ornate guild houses and focused on the Gothic heights of the Hotel de Ville, is widely held to be one of Europe's finest..

At the corner of the Rue de l'Etuve and the Rue du Chene, stands the fountain of Manneken-Pis. The statue has long been a beloved figure in Brussels, having come

to be regarded as an honored citizen of the town.Kings, Presidents, and celebrities have given costumes to the Manneken-Pis. He now has a wardrobe of more than 250 outfits which are housed in the Musee Communal.

The Atomium

Since its creation in 1958, the Atomium has become a symbol of the 20th Century, the century during which the atom was fully mastered and became widely used by man, profoundly

affecting the development of our society.
In 1958 Brussels undertook the hosting of the World Fair. A little less than 4 years before the crucial date, i.e. November 1954, the engineer André Waterkeyn, who wished to celebrate scientific progress, hit upon the idea of the Atomium. This was to represent the atomic lattice of iron crystals, magnified 165 billion times linearly, according to the "cubic body centered" system. The Atomium is thus the visiualization of microscopic molecular structures on a great enlarged scale.

The Atomium : Height : 102 metres Weight : 2.400 metric tonnes.
The escalators : Length of the longest escalator in an Atomium tube: 35 metres.
Capacity: 3.000 people per hour.
The elevator : One of the fastest elevators in Europe.

Mussels in Brussels are a must! They are prepared in a variety of ways and are a bargain in season. All Belgian food is of course delicious. Proportions are huge, so try to save room for dessert. Chocolates, waffles and cookies are everywhere.