Places of interest in Brussels, Belgium

Brussels is considered the chocolate capital of the world - there are many factories that produce this sweet product, and even more shops that sell it. One of the famous chocolate manufacturers is the Leonidas company, founded in 1913. Sweets are prepared according to recipes created by the company's founder Leonidas Kestekides over 100 years ago. Chocolatiers use the best varieties of cocoa and selected ingredients for fillings: Morello cherries, Italian almonds, Grenoble walnuts, oranges brought from Valencia. And also - fresh herbs, spices and even vegetables. Leonidas chocolate makers offer more than 100 different types of confectionery, as well as ice cream, which is served in waffle cones drizzled with melted chocolate.

In the city museum, you can explore the history of Brussels, illustrated with sculptures, engravings, paintings and other works of art. In total, its collection contains about 7,000 exhibits. Two large paintings tell about the first settlements on the site of modern Brussels and about the life of the city in the 16th century. The painting collection includes paintings by Peter Paul Rubens, Charles Meunier, Pieter Brueghel and Art van den Bosch. The museum is located in a building called the Bread House or the King's House.

Despite the fact that Belgium has never been a warlike country, the Royal Museum of the Army and Military History has one of the largest weapons collections in the world. In addition to firearms and edged weapons of various eras (starting from the Middle Ages), the halls display artillery equipment, tanks, helicopters, aircraft and military vehicles. There is a separate hangar for aviation. The museum is located in one of the pavilions of the Ciftieth Anniversary Park.

The Museum of Natural Sciences has Europe's largest collection of dinosaur skeletons, including 30 iguanodons, and a well-preserved mammoth skeleton. No less interesting are the "Gallery of Evolution", which takes you through billions of years of the history of the Earth, and the "Gallery of Humanity", which allows you to trace all stages of the development of Homo sapiens. Interactive exhibits make visiting the exhibition like a game.

The "sweetest" museum of the city is located in a small house near the Grand Place. Thanks to him, unusual aromas soar around the neighborhood. The museum immerses visitors into the world of history of the main gastronomic symbol of Belgium. Here, the secrets of chocolate production from the time of the Mayan Indians to the present day are revealed. The most interesting part of the collection is chocolate figurines of famous cartoon characters - Asterix, Obelix, Scrat the squirrel, Remy the rat and others.

In this museum, you can not only look at the musical instruments of different peoples of the world, but also listen to how they sound. The beginning of the collection, which now has more than 7,000 exhibits, was Indian folk instruments donated to Leopold II in 1876. The most interesting sections of the museum introduce the musical traditions of the peoples of the world. Ethnic instruments such as Welsh lira, Basque alboca and Chinese stone bells are exhibited in these halls. Also among the unique exhibits is a copy of the piano played by Maurice Ravel (Composer) and there is a bicentennial orchestra. The museum is located in the building of the former department store "Old England", built in the Art Nouveau style. Its top floor offers a beautiful view of the city.

In the center of Brussels there is a small but very beautiful garden Petite Sablon. It has a perfectly symmetrical layout, traditional for that time, and all elements of the landscape carry not only an aesthetic, but also a symbolic meaning. 9 bush hedges in the form of rings reflect the historical provinces of Belgium. 48 statues represent all the craft guilds of Brussels, and another 10 were erected in honor of people who played a special role in the history of the city. The central element of the landscape composition is a sculpture-fountain depicting Counts Lamoral Egmont and Philip Horn going to execution.

This popular two-Michelin-star establishment was founded in Brussels in 1926. At that time, former miner Georges Cuvelier decided to open a small restaurant, and called it Chez Georges ("At Georges"). One day, one of the guests of honor told the owner that he felt at home in the restaurant, after which Georges decided to change the name to Comme Chez Soi (“Like at home”). Thanks to the delicious cuisine, the institution quickly became popular, and in 1953 the institution received the first Michelin star. The menu is based on classic Flemish cuisine, complemented by Belgian and French recipes. Through the transparent wall you can observe the sacrament of cooking. Great attention in Comme Chez Soi is paid not only to food, but also to service, so every visit to the restaurant turns into a holiday.

The Autoworld Vintage Car Museum is unique in the world. His collection includes more than 250 cars of European and American brands, from the 19th century to the 70s of the 20th century. The museum is located in one of the exhibition complexes of the Cinquecentenary Park, on the right side of the Arc de Triomphe. The museum began with the collections of two Belgian collectors, Gailein Mahi and Charles de Pau. Among the exhibits there are many unique ones - for example, cars of Presidents Roosevelt and Kennedy, Bentley - released in 1928, Bugatti 1930.

The reserve is located near the Abbey of Cambrai, thanks to which it got its name. The park is made in the English style, the main idea of which is a landscape that is as close to natural as possible. Bushes and trees are planted not in a strict order, but randomly, which creates the feeling of walking through the forest. Plants were delivered to the reserve from all over Belgium. In the center of the park there is a lake with an island that can be reached by boat.

Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium - an association consisting of six museums: art of the late XIX century; ancient art; contemporary art (XIX-XX centuries); Constantine Meunier; Rene Magritte; Antoine Wirtz. Their collections contain more than 20,000 exhibits. The first director of the Royal Museum, Guillaume Jacques-Joseph Bosschaert, made great efforts to return works of art stolen by Napoleon's army. Now the collection contains paintings by Rubens "The Adoration of the Wise Men", "The Fall of the Titans" and "The Coronation of the Virgin Mary". The museums also feature works by Hieronymus Bosch, Salvador Dali, Pieter Brueghel, Vincent van Gogh, Jacob Jordaens, Anthony van Dyck, Dirk Bouts.

The Royal Palace in Brussels was founded in 1826; its modern classicist façade did not appear until 1900. Attention deserves not only the facade, but also the interior of the palace chambers. The majestic throne room delights with its size and huge crystal chandeliers. The ceiling of the Mirror Room is decorated with decorative wings of scarab beetles. The 11 flowers planted in the Imperial Room symbolize the Belgian provinces. The Bellevue Mansion, which is part of the complex, has a historical museum. Now the Palais Royal de Bruxelles is used only for official events, and the royal family lives in the Lanken Palace, located in the Brussels district of Laeken.

The favorite vacation spot for citizens and tourists was ordered to be founded by King Leopold II for the half-century anniversary of Belgium's independence in 1880. The entrance to the park is the Arc de Triomphe, similar to the Arc de triomphe de l'Étoile in Paris. It is crowned with a rushing quadriga, which symbolizes the province of Brabant. Other Belgian provinces are reflected in the form of statues at the foot of the arch. The arch has a height of about 50 meters. Now on the territory of the complex, which covers an area of ​​30 hectares, there are the Royal Museums of Art and History, the Autoworld Museum, as well as the Royal Museum of the Army and Military History of Belgium.

In preparation for the International Exhibition of 1910, King Leopold II ordered the creation of a park between the Upper and Lower Towns. It was designed by the famous landscape architect Pierre Vachrot. On the selected site, all the old houses were demolished and a hill was poured on which a French park was created. It is surrounded by neoclassical and postmodern buildings. The architectural lines are emphasized by the strict geometric shape of the park alleys and flowerbeds. This place was called the Mountain of Arts due to the fact that there is a complex of museums and art galleries, including the Royal Museums of Fine Arts. At the top of the Mountain there are monuments to King Albert I and Queen Elizabeth. From here you can see the Grand Place and the Brussels City Hall.

The Atomium is one of the main attractions of Brussels; it was designed for the opening of the 1958 World's Fair by the Belgian engineer André Waterkeyn. The grandiose stainless complex, 102 meters high and weighing about 2,400 tons, is made in the form of an iron molecule magnified 165 billion times. Each of the 9 spheres of the Atomium symbolizes not only an atom of the crystal lattice, but also a Belgian province. It was originally planned to demolish the monument after the end of the 1958 World's Fair, for which it was built. But the creation of the architect Andre Waterkeyn was so liked by the townspeople and tourists that the authorities decided to leave it. Now the Atomium has become a full-fledged entertainment center. Exhibition halls, a small hotel and a cafe are equipped in six accessible areas of the complex. In the uppermost "atom" there is a panoramic restaurant, from the windows of which the whole city is visible.

The Grand Place is adorned with one of the most beautiful Gothic buildings in the city - the Brussels City Hall. This is the only medieval building that has survived here to this day. The tower has a height of 96 m, its facade is decorated with carved columns and 137 statues, including sculptures of all the Dukes of Brabant. Everyone can go inside, walk around the luxurious halls, admire the tapestries and paintings. Two fountains in the courtyard symbolize the Meuse and the Scheldt, the main rivers of Belgium. From the balcony of the town hall, the entire Market Square is visible.

Grand Place, Market Square or the Great Market (Grote Markt) is not only the main attraction of Brussels, but also a reflection of its history. The surrounding buildings are masterpieces of Gothic art. All significant tourist sites are located here - the majestic medieval Town Hall, the King's House, which houses the Museum of the City of Brussels, and so on. Since the city government was located on this square, all the merchant guilds built houses here. Each of them has a special symbol and name. At the workshop of candle merchants, the house was called Wheelbarrow, among archers - She-wolf, among coopers - Sack. Every two years, a huge carpet of thousands of multi-colored begonias (ornamental plants) is created on the Grand Place, which is best admired from the balcony of the Town Hall.