Rick Steves - Rick Steves Snapshot Bruges and Brussels. Including Antwerp & Ghent

Including Antwerp & Ghent

Rick Steves & Gene Openshaw

This Snapshot guide, excerpted from my guidebook Rick StevesAmsterdam, Bruges & Brussels, introduces you to Belgiums top destinations.

Brugesonce mighty, now mighty cutecomes with fancy beers in fancy glasses, lilting carillons, and lacy Gothic souvenirs of a long-gone greatness. Brusselsthe capital of Europe with a Parisian ambiencehas a joie de vivre, famous cuisine, a passion for comic books, and the truly grand Grand Place (Main Square), lined with cafs, chocolate shops, and Belgians living the good life. I also cover the funky, fashion-forward port of Antwerp and the thriving urban scene of Ghentsite of the biggest university in Belgium.

Whether youre sipping a beer or sampling a heavenly praline, rattling on your bike over the cobbles, diving into a steaming cone of Flemish (not french) fries, gliding along a tranquil canal under fairytale spires, or pondering the quirky Belgian sense of humor while watching the Manneken-Pis, Belgium delights.

Youll find the following topics in this book:

Planning Your Time, with advice on how to make the most of your limited time

Orientation, including tourist information (abbreviated as TI), tips on public transportation, local tour options, and helpful hints

Sights with ratings:

Dont miss

Try hard to see

Worthwhile if you can make it

No ratingWorth knowing about

Self-Guided Walks of colorful neighborhoods, and Self-Guided Tours of major attractions

Sleeping and Eating, with good-value recommendations in every price range

Connections, with tips on train and air travel

Practicalities, near the end of this book, has information on money, phoning, hotel reservations, transportation, and more, plus Dutch and French survival phrases.

To travel smartly, read this little book in its entirety before you go. Its my hope that this guide will make your trip more meaningful and rewarding. Traveling like a temporary local, youll get the absolute most out of every mile, minute, and dollar.

Thanks, and have a goede vakantie!

Rick Steves

Belgium falls through the cracks. Its nestled between Germany, France, and the Netherlands, and its famous for waffles, sprouts, and a statue of a little boy peeing. No wonder many travelers dont even consider a stop here. But visitors find that Belgium is one of Europes best-kept secrets. There are touristsbut not as many as the countrys charms merit. After all, Belgium produces some of Europes best beer, creamiest chocolates, most beloved comic strips, and tastiest french fries. From funky urban neighborhoods to tranquil begijnhofs, from old-fashioned lace to high-powered European politics, from cows mooing in a pastoral countryside to gentrified Hanseatic cityscapes bristling with spires...Belgium delights.

Ten and a half million Belgians are packed into a country only a little bigger than Maryland. With nearly 900 people per square mile, its the second most densely populated country in Europe (after the Netherlands). This population concentration, coupled with a well-lit rail and road system, causes Belgium to shine at night when viewed from spacea phenomenon NASA astronauts call the Belgian Window.

Belgium is dividedlinguistically, culturally, and politicallybetween Wallonia in the south, where they speak French, and Flanders in the north, where they speak Dutch with a Flemish accentan old sailors dialect thats even more guttural than textbook Dutch (insert your own phlegmish pun here). Theres also a small minority of German speakers, in a far-eastern region that once belonged to Germany. Even though about 60 percent of the population speaks Dutch, French speakers have politically dominated the nation for most of its historya source of much resentment for the Flemish. Talk to locals to learn how deep the cultural rift is.

Though mostly French-speaking, Belgiums capital, Brussels, is officially bilingual. Because of Brussels international importance as the capital of the European Union, more than 25 percent of its residents are foreigners.

Its here in Belgium that Europe comes together: where Romance languages meet Germanic languages; Catholics meet Protestants; and the Benelux union was established 40 years ago, planting the seed that today is sprouting into the unification of Europe. Belgium flies the flag of Europe more vigorously than any other place on the Continent.

That could be, in part, because history hasnt been very kind to little Belgiumsurrounded, as it is, by much bigger and more powerful nations: France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Britain, each of which has at one time or another found Belgium a barrier on its march to empire. After putting up with tyrants from Charlemagne to the Austrian Habsburgs to Napoleon, Belgium paid the costliest price in both World Warsmost notably at Flanders Fields near Ypres (Ieper) in World War I, and at the Battle of the Bulge near Bastogne in World War II. But its crossroads location has also made Belgium stronger: Belgians are savvy businesspeople, excellent linguists, and talented chefs whove learned how to blend together delicious culinary influences from various cultures. I recently asked a local, What is a Belgian? He said, We are a melting pot. Were a mix culturally: one-third English for our sense of humor, one-third French for our love of culture and good living, and one-third German for our work ethic.

Belgium Almanac

Official Name: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgi, or simply Belgique in French and Belgi in Dutch.

Population: Of its 10.5 million people, 58 percent are Flemish, 31 percent are Walloon, and 11 percent are mixed or other. About three-quarters are Catholic, and the rest are Protestant or other.

Latitude and Longitude: 50N and 4E. The latitude is similar to Calgary, Canada.

Area: With only 12,000 square miles, its slightly smaller than the state of Maryland, and one of the smallest countries in Europe.

Geography: Belgiums flat coastal plains in the northwest and central rolling hills make it easy to invade (just ask Napoleon or Hitler). There are some rugged mountains in the southeast Ardennes Forest. The climate is temperate.

Biggest Cities: The capital city of Brussels has about one million people; Antwerp has 490,000.

Economy: With few natural resources, Belgium imports most of its raw materials and exports a large volume of manufactured goods, making its economy unusually dependent on world markets. It can be a sweet businessBelgium is the worlds number-one exporter of chocolate. Its prosperous, with a Gross Domestic Product of $383 billion and a GDP per capita of $36,800. As the crossroads of Europe, Brussels is the headquarters of NATO and the capital of the European Union.