Unbeknownst to us, the May Day celebration apparently extended into a four day weekend. So not many of the tourist attractions were open. Not to be daunted, we made the best of the situation by wandering around to see what could be found. Amazingly, Lori and I discovered some pretty interesting sites, as attested to by the following pictures;
Located in the Place Royale, the Church of St. Jacques sur Couldenberg (built between 1776-1780) became the official church of the Governors of the Hapsburgs Netherlands. Leopold I, became the first king of the Belgians on the front steps in 1831.
Walking across the square from the previous picture, we came upon these beautiful gardens leading to the Grand Place.
Nearby was this chapel of the "Madeleine". Originally built by the Saccites monks in the 13th century, it was destroyed by Calvanists in 1580. The church was rebuilt in the1600's.
The statue of Mary Madeleine.
Time to enjoy a famous Belgian waffle.
City hall along the side of the Grand Place.
This building along, with those in the next three pictures, create the perimeter of the Grand Place.
Just for our children, this museum on the edge of the Grand Place called to us, and, yes, we did go in!
...but there was no beer in the barrels.
Manneken Pis is the quintessential symbol of Brussels. The original bronze statue was created in 1388 but was stolen many times. The current statue was cast in 1619. There are many legends attributed to the symbolism of Manneken Pis, the most popular, which was created at the time of the original casting, states that a little boy named Julianske urinated on a bomb fuse and saved the city. The statue is decorated with clothing several times per year.
RSS Feed
