A curious Swede in Brussels

So it is summer time and the tourists are invading the European capital. Grand Place and all the other famous sight are so crowded. This is also the time of year for festivals. That is the case for Brussels as well. If you are in town next week, the Brussels Film Festival starts and goes on until the 29^th .

Film festival at Flagey

Music Festival at Flagey

There is also a large free outdoor concert, right in front of the Royal Palace, with a lot of well-known Belgian and French artists on Tuesday night June 21^st

Sometimes you stumbled over something quite extraordinary, a hidden jewel in the big city. Concealed behind a huge wall and with large old trees looming behind it, the Jean-Félix Hap Park may very well be one of the best kept secrets of Etterbeek.

Secret park?

It is a special, quite small park but very beautiful. It was originally a family mansion and donated to the commune some 25 years ago. The garden today retains its peaceful quiet picturesque charm and is very inviting to visitors.

Old trees, bushes and a small pond, further away you can see a small pavilion. Perfect for your lunch break.

Jean-Félix Hap Park

This week I tested a nice but slightly upmarket restaurant downtown close to Grand Place (just around the corner from Chez Leon).

Rest. Vincent

Vincent (rue de Dominicains 10-12) is famous for their steaks, you walk through the kitchen before you get to your table.

Try the tournedos with Roquefort sauce, delicious. Their moules are also suppose to be quite good.

Beer, why not another Trappist this time from the Achel brewery or Brouwerij der Sint-Benedictusabdij de Achelse Kluis is one of the smallest of the seven approved Trappist breweries. It is located in the small Belgian town of Achel.

Achel Bruin

They brew 5 different ones and I tested Achel Bruin 8%. This has a lot of carbonation, bottle conditioned as many others and you will find yeast at the bottom. It is a little bit on the sweet side (roasted malt and brown sugar), although not rated in the top, it is still a very good beer, which I enjoyed.

Coming weeks:

• EU continued
• In search for the best beer (an on-going quest for the perfect pint)
• More seafood
• Cheese
• Parks
• Culture
• Markets
• Politics

Facts of the week;

Drink; Achel Bruin 8%.

Location; Vincent (rue de Dominicains 10-12)

Point of Interest: Jean-Félix Hap Park

Food: Tournedos with Roquefort sauce

This week my good wife takes over and writes her first blog ever. Please Karin the space is yours:

Guest blog by the not so snooping wife of the curious Swede

No one meets the standard of my loving and bountiful husband.

As a birthday gift I was given the best ever surprise trip to the Belgian coast and to the famous medieval town of Bruges. I will now try to evoke some of the adventures that took place during the three days away from Brussels.

We sat off early Saturday morning avoiding heavy traffic. Most of the Citizen’s left already on the Thursday due to the extra days off. Anders had it all planned. I just had to lean back and relax; which is somehow quite an achievement for someone with control issues.

The first place of interest on the agenda was Ypres. The town is situated 130 km from Brussels, so the place was soon reached. Only the hardest of hearts are unmoved by Ypres. The town was the last bastion by the Germans in WW1. As such, the region was a barrier to a German advance towards the French costal ports around Calais. More than 300,000 Allied soldiers were killed there during four years of fighting. The place is dotted with cemeteries and memorials. At Grote Markt you can visit the Flanders Fields Museum were you may experience the life at- and behind the front lines.

After a fair share of culture and history it was time for some easy going pleasures to lighten up. The town close by, Poperinge acted as a posting station for soldiers heading to- or from Ypres. To the Belgian mind, Poperinge is associated with beer. Plenty of small breweries operate in the area.

The beer outlet

The town has been the centre of the Belgium´s hops-growing region for centuries.

Fields of hop(e)

Seeing all the hop fields from the car window made Anders yearning for a beer.  Being a very well planned excursion, as expected, the best Belgian Beer comes from this very region.

Walk around the Abbey

It is produced by the monks in the St Sixtus Abbey in Westvleteren. A nice, 7k walk takes you around the grounds and along the hop fields.

Here and there you see storks on the fields and sturdy cattle, Belgian Blue. (We actually bought some of the meat to try back home.)

The beef

In an establishment just outside the Abbey the very famous Westvleteren beers are served.

Westvleteren 12 " Best beer in the world"

From here on I had to drive……

I sat off for the coast and the well-known sand dunes in de Panne.

The Dunes

After another stroll, this time along the dunes we began our search for a place to stay overnight. The Belgian coastline is only 35 k, so you can imagine the high rise! Even so, we managed to find the most adoring little guesthouse, situated completely lonely at the sand dunes close to Westende.

Hotel&Restaurant St-Laureins

And even so, we got the best room with a view over the dunes and the North Sea.  The hotel had ten rooms and we got the only one with a waterbed. Not just any waterbed, but a medical waterbed, the kind of bed that is given to very old persons with bedsores. So very appropriate, that is! You don´t need a vivid imagination for comprehending how good it felt.

Sunset

The next morning, waking up at my 58 birthday I felt reborn! If you wonder, the hotel is named St-Laureins,           www.st-laureins.be , ask for room nr 8. By the way, the restaurant was superb, no need to leave for dinner. We had a very tasty baby lobster.

After the usual early yoga-ritual we headed for a morning run along the beach accompanied by the traditional birthday swim. Regardless were, I continuously try to get a dip in the Sea on my special day. This year it came easy. After a nice breakfast we had some more sightseeing scheduled. Anders had read up upon an extraordinary village, Lissewege, where most of the small cottages were white coated.

Lissewege

And we got to see more of the beautiful countryside.

Skåne? no Lissewege

It looks very much like the countryside of Skåne. Along the narrow roads stood bended willows, the lupines very in blossom and you could hear the Cuckoo through the car window. The only thing different was the lovely tunes from glockenspiel upon entering any adjacent village or town.

The second night was pre booked in Knokke Heist. This town is situated at the far end of the coastline, close to the Dutch border. But after the lovely place we stumbled across the previous night everything looked bleak in comparison. The sight of all the skyscrapers and the commerce didn´t thrill us. But we made the best of the situation, as always. We counted our options and decided to take the broad walk in surge for a pizza and a strawberry cake. It sounds effortless, but let me tell you, it wasn´t. It took more than two hours before we found an Italian restaurant. The pizza was OK, but 18 euro a piece, that´s a little bit hefty even on a Birthday. And strawberry cakes where nowhere to be found. We even jumped on the tram going between De Panne and Knokke to facilitate our pursuit, but in vain. To summon it up; when at the Belgian coast, head for St-Laureins!

Dunes

The next day we went to Bruges. But we made a stop first in the most charming village of Damme.

When in the area, this is a must. The best way to explore the surroundings, though, is by bike or boat.

Damme and the canals

There are plenty of routes along the many canals.

Damme

The distance to either the coast or to Bruges is only 10k, making the village of Damme the better location for an overnight stay, at least far better than Knokke. My bike was, unfortunately stolen the first day in Brussels so we made a lovely hiking tour along the canals instead. Next time, for sure, we will rent bikes or even consider buying new ones.

Still in Damme

The walk around Damme

Then, finally we came to the main stop of our three day excursion-Bruges. This city has carefully cherished the architectural and artistic treasures from the past. Along with a few other canal based, northern cities, such as Antwerp, it is sometimes referred to as “the Venice of the North”.  How romantic! Allow yourself a full day in town; Bruges has a lot to offer. Anders even found a beer shop that offered all 780 Belgian Beers at 2be,           www.2-be.biz and I finally took pleasure in the best ever strawberry cake. I´m a lot of things but being a quitter is not the one. Thank you Anders for a pleasant birthday trip and for being so enduring.

The Beer Shop

The beer this week is a Lambic fruit beer from Lindemans. A sparkling cherry flavoured brew which is smooth and refreshing, if you like this type of sweet beers. It has some bitterness but not much. It is very red and served chilled my wife enjoys it, as you can see in the picture above.

Coming weeks:

• EU continued
• In search for the best beer (an on-going quest for the perfect pint)
• More seafood
• Cheese
• Parks
• Culture
• Markets
• Politics

Facts of the week;

Drink; Lindeman Kriek 4%, Lambic fruit beer

Location; St-Laureins, very nice hotel and restaurant in Westende by the coast;  www.st-laureins.be

Point of Interest: Brügge, Damme, Ypres

Food: Baby Lobster

Brussel had once again summer temperatures  and this time supplemented with a long weekend. We decided to explore more of the parks in Brussels. As mentioned earlier the city is one of the greener capitals of Europe with a lot of parks small and large ones.

Take the tram or bus to Forest (station Rochefort). The commune lies to the south-west of the city, between Ixelles and St-Gilles and Uccle to the south-east.  You will find a lot of art deco buildings including its town hall.  There are several green areas in this part of town. We took a walk in two connected parks Parc de Forest and the wilder Parc Duden. Close by is Place de l’Altitude Cent one of the highest point in Brussels and offers spectacular views across the city. Here you will also find the Forest National, the city’s biggest concert venue, which attracts major stars on international tours.

Parc de Forest

The other area visited is located in the east, towards Tervuren. Take tram 39 or 44 from Montgomery along avenue Tervuren to the Tram Museum. Opposite you will see the large (close to 200 acres) Parc de Woluwe.  It is very popular for picnics and has a large variety of trees, more than 200. From here the walk starts on the old, now closed, railway between Brussels and Tervuren.

Parc de Woluwe

The old railway line 160 opened in 1882 by King Leopold II between Brussels and Tervuren, later it became the first electrified wide gauge line in Belgium. In 1958 passenger traffic ceased and in 1971 the line was abandoned completely and was taken over by motorways and the metro. However 5.5 km was transformed into a green commuting corridor between Audergem and Wolluwe-St Lambert. It connects university campus to the commission offices including shopping centres, schools, restaurant, sport centres and important transport interchanges. Several footbridges have been built along the path nicely integrated into the urban environment.

The walk is quite straightforward all the way up to the end of the path where part of a railway platform can be seen on the right hand side. The walk then continues through the houses up to metro Kraainhem and through some smaller parks to the university campus at Alma. A quick walk through the campus leads to the river Woluwe and a windmill as starting point for the return.

Old windmill

Follow the river nicely running through a park area. Soon Parc Malou the largest park of Woluwe-Saint-Lambert but also the oldest can be seen.

Le Moulin de Lindekemale

There is an old water mill, Le Moulin de Lindekemale on the route. It is now a French, quite expensive (€50), restaurant.

The next view is Castle Malou, build in neoclassic style in 1772 and it was initially a hunting lodge!  Soon avenue Tervuren is reached and the Park Woluwe. If there is time I would suggest an additional walk, in this very beautiful park, before a return.

Walk Wolouwe

After this exercise, why not continue the tram/buss all the way downtown and visit Moeder Lambic (in Sint Gilles), a famous beer café not far from the local Cantillon brewery (getting back to that later). They have a lot of bottled beers and of course a lot of Lambic/Geuze type of beers, several of them on tap, hand pumped. There is also a newer Moeder Lambic Fointainas not far from this original one. Both of them are definitely a must if you are into Lambic.

OK, so what about Brussels sprouts? Some research showed, that although originally from ancient Rome, they were grow,n possibly as early as the 13th century, in what is now Belgium.  Brussels sprouts are very healthy and contain good amounts of vitamins A, C, folid acid and they are also believed to protect against colon cancer.

Why not taste the Trappist cheese so we did test one from Chimay.  In 1862, the monks added a dairy and a brewery to the Abbey to help generate funds for their livelihood. Soon thereafter, they started making cheese from milk produced at the dairy.

Chimay Trappist Cheese

The rind is washed with their famous Chimay beer rather than ordinary spring water. This new variety developed an incomparable flavour that delighted the nose as well as the palate. The cheese is semi-soft and has a nutty, well-finished flavour with just a hint of hops and malt. While its aroma is quite strong, the taste of the cheese itself is somewhat mild but not at all bland.

Chimay Blue

So let us also taste the Chimay Blue 9%, is one of the so called strong ales here in Belgium. This top fermented Trappist beer, refermented in the bottle, is not pasteurised and is a well known Belgian brand all over the world.

It is strong although it has, as all the Trappist beer, a complex taste. It is nice but not as smooth as some of the other Trappist beers. I am not sure it is a perfect pairing to their cheese, maybe a sweeter beer would be a better companion.

Coming weeks:

• EU continued
• In search for the best beer (an on-going quest for the perfect pint)
• More seafood
• Cheese
• Parks
• Culture
• Markets
• Politics

Facts of the week;

Drink; Chimay Blue 9%,

Location; Moeder Lambic, Savoiestraat 68 Sint Gilles

Point of Interest: The old railway Brussels-Tervuren nice walk and return along river Woluwe.

Food: Brussel sprout, very healthy and the Chimay cheese

This weekend we drove just a couple of kilometres from the city centre to a place called Tervuren.  I’s a small village just at the outskirts of Brussels. You may have heard the name before, it is also a dog breed called Belgian Tervuren. This village can also be reached by tram #44 but for this excursion a car is needed to get to the magnificent Arboretum (http://www.arboretum-tervuren.be/ ).

Arburetum some strange ones

It covers an area of approximately 100 hectares and includes some 460 different species of tree (of which 305 leafy trees and 155 conifers). The altitude varies between 80 and 115 meters above sea level. The average temperature is 9.7°C and the average rainfall reaches 780mm a year (info from the site). The arboretum is covered by network of small roads and tracks which make it easy to get around inside the area. I strongly suggest a map, which is downloadable from their website, and a compass to get back to the car park. On the website there is a downloadable booklet with all the 460 specific trees.

Arboretum impressive trees

Take plenty of time for the stroll, there is also several beautiful glades perfect for a picnic.

Arboretum finished for this time

Back in town, a visit to another one of those old and genuine bars can be recommended; A La Becasse, a place not easy to find situated at the end of a narrow passage, close to the Bourse and Grand Place.

A La Bécasse entré

This 100 year old bar is famous all over the city for it’s “jeune lambic blanche”, a refreshing wit bier served in a stone jug.

Ardenne ham

If you are hungry try the house speciality – open sandwiches of sourdough bread with a choice of Flat Cheese, Holland Gouda Cheese, Potkaas (Brussels cheese and flat cheese), Kip-Kap (brawn, parsley, vinegar), Geperste Kop and Ardenne Ham.

A La Becasse at the bar

Lambic Blanc ( from Timmerman) “jeune lambic blanche” is a young lambic, this type of beer was mentioned in Week 9 blog.

Lambic Blanche

The Cantillon Brewery in Brussels (get back to this place later) has several Lambic/Geuze/Kriek beers on their repertoire. This particular beer has a sour taste with flavour of apples. It has a decent, quite nice taste but nothing for me. My wife liked it though.

Coming weeks:

• EU continued
• In search for the best beer (an on-going quest for the perfect pint)
• More seafood
• Cheese
• Parks
• Culture
• Markets
• Politics

Facts of the week;

Drink; Lambic Blanche (Timmermans) 4%,

Location; A La Becasse, rue de Tabora 11

Point of Interest: Aboretum in Tervuren

Food: Sourdough bread with Ardenner ham/cheese or herring