I am not very original if I say Brussels is the de facto capital of Europe. Brussels is where most EU institutions are based. Most people travel to Brussels just for business. In fact, since Brussels is well communicated with the rest of Europe, most people return home on the same day or the day after. In many cases, people travel to Brussels a dozens times but they hardly know the city or the country. I cannot blame them. Brussels is not a beautiful city: too much traffic, too much noise, not so many things to do or see.

Brussels airport is not much impressive, but it is functional. It is always crowded, but things seem to work most of the time. If you travel often to Brussels you will soon learn to avoid taxis and come to the downtown by train. Taxis are far too expensive and traffic is terrible. Taxi drivers are not very polite either. The best way is to take the express train connecting the airport terminals to the center of the city. They call it “express train”; but it is, in fact, an old train with not much comfort. However, it is cheap and very convenient, since it only takes 20 minutes from the airport to the Central Station. You will soon discover Belgium railways do not rank among the most modern in Europe, but service is reliable and trains frequently arrive on time.

No matter how you arrive into the city, sooner or later you will end up at the Central Station. The Central Station is a horrible building where two of the three metro lines and most trains converge. The station is partially underground. It is dark and dirty. It is also rather oppressive due to the extremely high number of trains that get squeezed into such a small space. Train traffic is so dense it is not uncommon to see convoys waiting one after the other with only a few meters between them. When you are in the platform you will better be alert and watch the schedules monitor very often. Trains passing by the platform may go to any destination and since delays are not uncommon, you may get the surprise that their order is reversed. Also beware where you sit in the train. Some trains are divided into two parts before arriving at destination and you may end up in the wrong part of the train. I first meet the Central Station in 1995. It was under restoration. I have traveled to Brussels dozens of times since but the Central Station always seems to be under construction. The funny thing is once works are finished, I cannot tell the difference.

Brussels’ metro is not particularly modern or clean, but it is fast, it is reasonably cheap and it takes you to the most important places in the city; including the EC quarter. Anyway, the city center is not big and most destinations can be reached on foot. Brussels is an expensive city; much more expensive than any other Belgium city. Hotels are expensive, restaurants are expensive, taxis are expensive. Most multinational Hotel chains are present in Brussels and their prices are usually astronomical. However if you take your time and surf through the internet, it is still possible to find some charming, reasonably priced, hotels very close to the city center. My recommendation is to stay close to the Grand Place; the place where city life converges.

To be continued.