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Often featured in the media as the seat of government of the European Union (EU), Brussels is much more than a city of officials. It is a meeting point all the diverse cultures in Europe, and exudes a unique multicultural richness.

Brussels is not only the heart of the European Union. The Belgian capital is a diverse and wonderful city in its own right, a town rich in history and full of places to see. Designated the cultural capital of Europe in 2000, Brussels is no mere town of faceless bureaucrats. It has its own story to tell.

A fortress in the middle of a river.
The name Brussels (Bruocsella) is first written about in the year 966. It means “chapel in a swamp”, and likely refers to its location on the banks of the Senne River. The settlement itself had probably been founded between three and four hundred years previously. The earliest stronghold on Brussels Island dates back to around the end of the 10th century.

Central Brussels.
The story of Grand Place (in French, or Grote Markt in Dutch), the town square located at the centre of Brussels, leads us on a journey through the city’s history. Grand Place was created as a market and business square, but soon attracted the trade guilds and city administrators.

They erected magnificent guildhalls and government buildings as a demonstration of their power and affluence, Brussels became one of Europe’s most important trading and banking centres during the High Middle Ages and would remain so until 1695, when French cannons bombarded the city for three days, levelling Grand Place and reducing much of the city to soot and ashes. It was rebuilt quickly, and the guildhalls that currently stand on Grand Place bear witness to the city’s renewal.

Grand Place remains a favourite gathering place for residents and tourists alike. Many of its countless restaurants, cafes and taverns are open around the clock.

Brussels city hall.
The Hotel de Ville (Brussels city hall), completed in 1450, is an architectural crown even among the grandiose guildhalls and structures surrounding it. Its facade was one of the few structures to survive the French bombing of 1695. With its 96-metre-tall tower topped by a golden statue of St. Michael and the dragon, the Hotel de Ville is Brussels’ most recognizable landmark, visible from every part of the historic old city.

A different kind of city emblem.
Most tourists consider the statue called Manneken Pis (literally, “the boy peeing”) at the corner of the Rue de l’Etuve and Rue des Grands Charmes to be the symbol of Brussels. Just who the little boy in this work by sculptor Heironimus Dusquesnoy is supposed to be is an unsolved mystery. In any case, the brazen lad is certainly one of the city’s main visitor attractions. Meanwhile, his female counterpart, the Jeanneken Pis, can be found at the end of a cul-de-sac called Impasse de la Fidelite just off La Grand Place. The habitants of [the city~Brussels} have always been in favour of equal rights, and if that meant commissioning a statue of a similarly brazen little girl, so be it. The statue was dedicated in 1987.

The giant molecule.
The 102-metre-high Atomium is another favourite installation in Brussels. It began its existence as an exhibition hall built for the 1958 World Fair. It represents a crystalline iron molecule, magnified 165 thousand million times. The tubes connecting the nine atomic particles are actually conduits containing escalators and walkways.

Due to its use of futuristic materials and interesting design, it has long been considered both an architectural masterpiece and an impressive piece of grand monumental sculpture.

Within, the Atomium still houses the occasional exhibition on topics related to nuclear technology, aeronautics, astronomy and meteorology. Inside the uppermost sphere is a restaurant that affords a beautiful view of the entire city, weather permitting.

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