Brussels
| City of Brussels | |||
| Brussels skyline seen from the Kunstberg or Mont des Arts | |||
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| Nickname: Capital of Europe, Comic City | |||
| Map showing the location of Brussels in Belgium | |||
| Coordinates: {{#invoke:Coordinates|coord}}{{#coordinates:50|50|48.22|N|4|21|8.94|E|type:city | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| name= }} | |||
| Country | Belgium | ||
| Region | Brussels-Capital Region | ||
| Founded | 979 | ||
| Founded (Region) | June 18, 1989 | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor (Municipality) | Freddy Thielemans | ||
| Elevation | 13 m (43 ft) | ||
| Population (2007) | |||
| - Metro | 1,350,000 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Website: www.brussels.irisnet.be | |||
Brussels (French: Bruxelles, pronounced [bʁysɛl]; Dutch: Brussel, pronounced [ˈbrɵsəɫ]) is the largest city in Belgium, and the administrative heart of the European Union (EU). The City of Brussels in the Brussels-Capital Region is the country's capital. Brussels has grown from a 10th century fortress town into a metropolis of over one million inhabitants.
Geography
The name Brussels comes from the old Dutch Bruocsella, which means marsh (bruoc) and home (sella) or "home in the marsh".
Brussels is located in the centre of Belgium, in the valley of the Zenne (or Senne) River, which is a small indirect tributary of the Scheldt. In the centre of Brussels, the Zenne was completely covered up and boulevards were built over top in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is still visible in the outskirts of Brussels.
Close to the North Sea, Brussels has a mild, moderate climate, with summer temperatures usually between 68°F and 77°F (20°C and 25°C), and winter temperatures rarely below 32°F (0°C). There are approximately 200 days of rain per year, with a total annual precipitation of 25.1 inches (637mm).
The land area of Brussels totals 62.5 square miles (162 square kilometers).
The Zenne was notorious for being one of Belgium's worst polluted rivers, since all effluents from the Brussels Capital Region were versed in it without treatment. This problem was solved in March 2007 with the completion of new sewage treatment plants.
Districts
History
Mention was already made of Brussels around 695: Bishop Saint-Gery of Cambrai settled a chapel on a small island. Saint Vindicianus, also a bishop of Cambrai, is said to have died in the neighbourhood of Brussels.
The founding of Brussels is usually situated around 979, because Charles, Duke of Lower Lotharingia (953–993), transferred the relics of Saint Gudula from Moorsel to the Saint Gery chapel in Brussels. The Holy Roman Emperor Otto II gave the duchy of Lower Lotharingia to Charles, the banished son of King Louis IV of France in 977.
The county of Brussels was attributed to Lambert I of Leuven, count of Leuven around 1000. In 1047, his son Lambert II of Leuven founded the Saint Gudula chapter.
In the 12th century the small town became an important stop on the trade route from Bruges (Brugge) and Ghent to Cologne. The village benefited from this favourable position and, as it grew to a population of around 30,000, the surrounding marshes were drained to allow for further expansion. The Counts of Leuven became Dukes of Brabant at about this time (1183/1184).
Brussels became one of the main towns of the duchy of Brabant. The manufacture of luxury fabrics, that were exported to Paris, Venice and other towns, became the main source of wealth, enriching a few merchant families, who gained the right to exercise power as magistrates.
The Count of Flanders invaded and briefly occupied Brussels. After Flemish troops left, from 1357 to 1379, a new city wall was constructed: the inner ring or 'pentagon' now follows its course.
By 1430, after the wedding of heiress Margaret III of Flanders with Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy in 1369, the duke of Burgundy gained control of the duchy of Brabant. Brussels became the princely capital of the prosperous Low Countries, and flourished.
Artists, including Rogier van der Weyden, and craftsmen produced paintings, wooden sculptures, large historical tapestries, plate, jewelry, that were exported from Brussels. At this time the Town Hall with its tall steeple, various Gothic churches and cathedrals, and the impressive Coudenberg Palace were built.
Charles V (1500-1558) was declared King of the unified Spain, in 1516, in the Cathedral of Saint Gudule in Brussels. After a prolonged political crisis, it was in the Coudenberg Palace that Charles V abdicated in 1555. At that time, the city’s population grew to nearly 50,000. The Willebroek canal, linking Brussels with the port of Antwerp, was dug in 1561.
The first two Low Countries Protestant martyrs died at the stake in Brussels in1523, the first of many. Calvinist ruled the city from 1578 until 1585, during the Revolt of the Netherlands (Eighty Years’ War) from 1568-1648. Fine Italo-Flemish Baroque churches were built there in the reign of Archduke Albert and Isabella (1598–1633).
In 1695, Brussels was attacked by general Villeroy of King Louis XIV of France, one of a series of invasions. A bombardment destroyed the city's heart: more than 4000 houses were set on fire, including the medieval buildings on the Grote Markt or Grand Place. New guildhalls, the existing architectural landmarks surrounding the Grand Place, were built after this destruction.
French troops occupied Brussels from 1746 to 1748, although the city revived with an economic upturn in the late 18th century. The Place Royale and Brussels Park was built at this time, as was much of the upper town.
In 1789, a popular revolt broke out in the Austrian Netherlands in reaction against the centalizing policies of Emperor Joseph II (1741-1790). French republican troops invaded, annexing Belgian principalities to France. Brussels became a chief town of a French département.
After Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo in present-day Belgium on June 18, 1815, the victorious powers at the Congress of Vienna created the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, which was to serve as a buffer state against any future French invasions. Brussels shared the status of capital with The Hague.
The Belgian Revolution began with a riot in Brussels in August 1830 and led to the establishment of an independent, Roman Catholic and neutral Belgium, with Brussels as its capital. Under Leopold II, who ascended the throne on July 21, 1831, the city underwent many changes: The city walls were replaced by tree-lined boulevards, the Zenne was culverted (as it brought diseases), the Brussels-Charleroi canal was dug, and the Tervuren Avenue was laid out.
During the First World War, Germans occupied Belgium from August 1914 to November 1918. The mayor of Brussels, Adolphe de Max, became famous for resisting abuses at the hands of German forces. Belgium did not receive the war reparations due from Germany, which had a significant effect on the Belgium economy, as did soaring exchange rates, which generated a serious flight of capital, an imbalance of payments, and rampant inflation. Greater Brussels became officially bilingual in 1932.
During World War II, the German army bombed Brussels from May 10, 1940, and took control of the city on May 18. The Nazis appointed a governing council headed by pro-Nazi Flemish nationalist Jan Grauls, and sought to divide Belgium by backing Flemish autonomy supporters. British troops liberated Brussels on September 3, 1944. Most of the war damage to the city was done from 1944 to 1945.
Huge Flemish protests against “Frenchification” took place in Brussels in 1961 and 1962. Flemings want bilingualism in the public services and oppose the expansion of the French-speaking urban area into surrounding Flemish areas. Legislation was passed in 1963 limiting the capital to 19 bilingual municipalities. The Francophone Democratic Front appeared in 1964 to resist perceived Flemish interference in Brussels municipal affairs.
The parliament gave cultural autonomy to the Flemish and Walloon regions in 1971, and the constitution was revised in 1980 to create an independent administration within each region, extended from 1988 to 1989 to cover the economy and education. That revision made the bilingual metropolitan area of Brussels a third independent region with its own administration.
The Heysel Stadium disaster, in which football hooligans caused the collapse of a retaining wall, killing 39 people, took place in Brussels on May 29, 1985. The match was the final of the 1985 European Cup tournament.
Brussels is famous for celebrating its history, as well as history in general. This is most evident in the fact that Brussels has well over 100 museums.
Government
Brussels is the largest municipality of the Brussels-Capital Region. This municipality inside Brussels is correctly named The City of Brussels (French: Bruxelles-Ville or Ville de Bruxelles, Dutch: Stad Brussel), which is one of 19 municipalities that make up the Brussels-Capital Region (see also: Municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region), with a total population of 1,024,492 inhabitants (1 January 2006). The municipality has a population of about 140,000. The Metropolitan area has about 2,090,000 inhabitants.
Capital
Belgium
Template:Unreferenced-section Although some believe, wrongly, that the capital of Belgium is the entire Brussels-Capital Region, article 194 of the Belgian Constitution lays down that the capital of Belgium is the City of Brussels municipality.[1] Arguments that article 194's use of lower case for "ville de Bruxelles" and "stad Brussel" makes a subtle difference and means that greater Brussels is the capital cannot be legally defended. However, although the City of Brussels is the official capital, the funds allowed by the federation and region for the representative role of the capital are divided among the 19 municipalities, and some national institutions are sited in the other 18 municipalities. Thus, while de jure only the City of Brussels is entitled to the title of capital city of Belgium, de facto the entire Region plays this role.
Flanders and the French community
The Brussels-Capital Region is one of the three federated regions of Belgium, alongside Wallonia and the Flemish Region. Geographically and linguistically, it is a (bilingual) enclave in the (unilingual) Flemish Region. Regions are one component of Belgium's complex institutions, the three communities being the other component: the Brussels inhabitants must deal with either the French (speaking) community or the Flemish Community for matters such as culture and education.
Brussels is also the capital of both the French Community of Belgium (Communauté française de Belgique in French) and of Flanders (Vlaanderen); all Flemish capital institutions are established here: Flemish Parliament, Flemish government and its administration.
European Union
Two of the main institutions of the European Union - the European Commission and the Council of the European Union - have their headquarters in Brussels: the Commission in the Berlaymont building, and the Council in the Justus Lipsius building facing it. The third institution, the European Parliament, also has a parliamentary chamber in Brussels in which its committees meet and some of its plenary sessions are held (the other plenary sessions are held in Strasbourg, and its administrative headquarters are in Luxembourg). See also: Brussels and the European Union.
International organizations
Brussels is also the political seat of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the Western European Union (WEU) and EUROCONTROL, the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation. Due to this, some countries have three ambassadors present in Brussels: the normal bi-lateral ambassador, the EU-ambassador, and finally the NATO-ambassador.
Economy
Overview – Any specialization: For instance, is a manufactured product is associated with particular cities a. Milwaukee—cheese and beer b. Los Angeles—entertainment industry c. Sheffield—coal d. top 20 cities in the U.S. are highly specialized
Per capita GDP, rank Financial and business services sector Tourism Manufacturing Transport: Road, rail, air, sea
Connections
Brussels is served by Brussels Airport, located in the nearby Flemish municipality of Zaventem, and by the much smaller so-called Brussels South Airport, located near Charleroi (Wallonia), some 50km from Brussels. Brussels is also served by direct high-speed rail links: to the United Kingdom by the Eurostar train via the Channel Tunnel; to Amsterdam, Paris and Cologne by the Thalys; and to Cologne and Frankfurt by the German ICE.
Public transport
The Brussels metro dates back to 1976, but underground lines known as premetro have been serviced by tramways since 1968. A comprehensive bus and tram network also covers the city. Brussels also has its own port on the Willebroek canal located in the northwest of the city.
There are four companies managing public transport inside Brussels:
- STIB/MIVB (metro, bus, tram; Brussels' Regional services)
- NMBS/SNCB (train, organised on a Belgian scale)
- De Lijn (buses based in Flanders)
- TEC (buses based in Wallonia)
An interticketing system means that a STIB/MIVB ticket holder can use the train or long-distance buses inside the city. The commuter services operated by De Lijn, TEC and SNCB/NMBS will in the next few years be augmented by a metropolitan RER rail network around Brussels.
Since 2003 Brussels has had a car-sharing service operated by the Bremen company Cambio in partnership with STIB/MIVB and local ridesharing company taxi stop. In 2006 shared bicycles were also introduced.
Railway stations
The major stations in Brussels are on the North-South Junction:
- Brussels North (French: Gare du Nord, Dutch: Brussel-Noord)
- Brussels Central (French: Gare Centrale, Dutch: Brussel-Centraal)
- Brussels South (French: Gare du Midi or Bruxelles-Midi, Dutch: Brussel-Zuid) (the Eurostar, Thalys, HST or TGV and ICE international terminal)
Two more stations serve the EU district in Brussels. Trains towards Namur and Luxembourg call at:
- Brussels Luxembourg/Luxemburg
- Brussels Schuman
The last two stations located in the centre of Brussels (they also are on the North-South Junction and operate only in rush hours) are:
- Brussels Congress (French: Bruxelles-Congrès, Dutch:Brussel-Congres)
- Brussels Chapel (French: Bruxelles-Chapelle, Dutch: Brussel-Kapellekerk)
Other railway stations in other Brussels municipalities include:
- Schaerbeek - Schaarbeek
- Etterbeek
- Uccle Stalle - Ukkel Stalle
- Uccle Calevoet - Ukkel Kalevoet
- Jette
- Merode
- Delta
- Saint-Job - Sint-Job
- Forest Est - Vorst Oost
- Forest Midi - Vorst Zuid
- Sint-Agatha-Berchem - Berchem-Sainte-Agathe
- Watermael - Watermaal
- Boitsfort - Bosvoorde
- Boondael - Boondaal
- Meiser
Road network
In mediaeval times Brussels stood at the intersection of routes running north-south (the modern Hoogstraat/Rue Haute) and east-west (Gentsesteenweg/Chaussée de Gand-Grasmarkt/Rue du Marché aux Herbes-Naamsestraat/Rue de Namur). The ancient pattern of streets radiating from the Grote Markt/Grand'Place in large part remains, but has been overlaid by boulevards built over the River Zenne/Senne, the city walls and the railway junction between the North and South Stations.
As one expects of a capital city, Brussels is the hub of the fan of old national roads, the principal ones being clockwise the N1 (N to Breda), N2 (E to Maastricht), N3 (E to Aachen), N4 (SE to Luxembourg) N5 (S to Rheims), N6 (SW to Maubeuge), N8 (W to Koksijde) and N9 (NW to Ostend) [2]. Usually named steenwegen/chaussées, these highways normally run straight as a die, but on occasion lose themselves in a labyrinth of narrow shopping streets.
As for motorways, the town is skirted by the European route E19 (N-S) and the E40 (E-W), while the E411 leads away to the SE. Brussels has an orbital motorway, numbered R0 (R-zero) and commonly referred to as the "ring" (French: ring Dutch: grote ring). It is pear-shaped as the southern side was never built as originally conceived, owing to residents' objections.
The city centre, sometimes known as "the pentagon", is surrounded by the "small ring" (Dutch: kleine ring, French: petite ceinture), a sequence of boulevards formally numbered R20. These were built upon the site of the second set of city walls following their demolition. Metro line 2 runs under much of these.
On the eastern side of the city, the R21 (French: grande ceinture, grote ring in Dutch) is formed by a string of boulevards that curves round from Laken (Laeken) to Ukkel (Uccle). Some premetro stations (see Brussels metro) were built on that route. A little further out, a stretch numbered R22 leads from Zaventem to Sint-Job.
Conferences and world fairs
Brussels hosted the famous fifth Solvay Conference in 1927, where physicists like Albert Einstein, Planck, Curie, Lorentz, Dirac, De Broglie, Bohr, Schrödinger, Pauli and Heisenberg discussed the path of the modern physics, specifically the new Quantum Theory. Einstein, disenchanted with Heisenberg's "Uncertainty Principle", remarked "God does not play dice". Bohr replied, "Einstein, stop telling God what to do." (See Bohr-Einstein debates). Seventeen of the twenty-nine attendees were or became Nobel Prize laureates. The building in which the conference took place (see picture) is now occupied by one of the high schools of the city's education system; Lycée Émile Jacqmain.
Brussels hosted the third Congrès international d'architecture moderne (Dutch:Internationaal Congres voor Moderne Architectuur) in 1930.
Two world fairs took place in Brussels, the Exposition universelle et internationale (1935) and the World Expo '58 in 1958. The Atomium, a 103 metre representation of an iron crystal was built for the Expo '58, and is still there, now renovated.
Demographics
Population, population rank Race/ethnicity - historical background of ethnic groups
Language is an issue in Belgium, and Brussels lies just north of the “language boundary” that separates Flanders region in the north, where the Flemish variant of Dutch is spoken, from the French-speaking Walloon region in the south. Brussels is officially bilingual, French, and Dutch, although French, mother tongue of the majority of the population, is the most widely used language in Brussels. The historical indigenous language of Brussels were Brabantian dialects particular to Brussels and related to Dutch. During the 19th century however, as literacy progressed, most dialect-speakers turned to French rather than to Dutch as their language of culture.
A linguistic curiosity is the "Marollien" dialect, based on the Walloon of Liège and heavily influenced by the general (Dutch) Brussels dialect, which used to be spoken mostly in a central section of the city, the "Marolles/Marollen". Today, all Brussels dialects are on the verge of extinction, although some try to revive them.
There are no official statistics on the first language of the Brussels population since the State-run decennial linguistic census has been abolished. All studies carried on can only be estimations. However, according to a 2001 study by Rudi Janssen, a sociolinguist, and a similar study conducted by E. Corijn (both affiliated with the VUB), 51 percent are monolingual native French-speakers, 8.5 percent are monolingual native Dutch-speakers, 10.2 percent speak both Dutch and French as a mother tongue, 9.1 percent of monolingual French or Dutch-speakers learn the other language later in life, and 19.8 percent speak French in combination with a language other than Dutch. Religion
Brussels has several universities, the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), the Facultés Universitaires Saint Louis (FUSL), the Katholieke Universiteit Brussel (KUB) and the Royal Military Academy (RMA). A satellite campus of the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) is also located in Brussels: it is called "Louvain-en-Woluwe" or "UCL-Brussels", and hosts the faculty of Medicine of the university.
The Conservatoire Royal and the Koninklijk Conservatorium are drama schools in the city attended by many of the top actors and actresses to come out of Belgium.
Of interest
- Grand Place (Dutch: Grote Markt, the central market square and the jewel in Brussels' crown. The Grand-Place is Brussels' top tourist attraction justified by the Gothic magnificence of the Town Hall and the Baroque exuberance of the late seventeenth-century guildhouses with the sculptures of Peter van Dievoet surrounding the square.
- The Royal Palace of Laeken and the Royal Palace of Brussels.
- Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium [2] (French: Musées Royaux des Beaux Arts, Dutch: Koninklijke Musea voor Schone Kunsten) combining four interconnected sections of old masters and modern art collections. Together they make up Belgium's most complete collection of fine art with works by, amongst many, Pieter Bruegel, Rubens, Paul Delvaux and René Magritte.
- Brussels is famous for being home to many Belgian comics characters, including The Smurfs, Largo Winch, Tintin and Lucky Luke to name but a few. Throughout Brussels, (also nicknamed Comic City) there are many murals, frescos and even statues celebrating the city's many cartoon heroes.
- On the site of the Heysel/Heizel are the Atomium, one of the symbols of Belgium, a remnant of the 1958 World exposition in Brussels, and Mini-Europe, a park which hosts miniature models of famous European buildings.
- Manneken Pis: a small bronze fountain sculpture depicting a little boy urinating into the fountain's basin.
- Several churches, such as the Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Koekelberg, and the Saint Michael and Saint Gudula Cathedral.
- The Jubilee Arch (French: Les Arcades du Cinquantenaire, Dutch: Triomfboog van het Jubelpark)
- La Bourse/De Beurs, the location of the stock market Euronext in Belgium.
- De Munt/La Monnaie, an opera house.
- The Floral Carpet (not permanent)
- Tour and Taxis: a former stockhouse of the Thurn and Taxis family.
- Palais Stoclet/Stoclethuis
- Maison Horta/Hortahuis
- Avenue Louise/Louisalaan, an avenue in the fashionable part of Brussels.
Notable parks
| Belgium Portal |
- Brussels Park (French: Parc de Bruxelles, Dutch: Warandepark)
- Bois de la Cambre or Ter Kamerenbos
- Cinquantenaire (Dutch: Jubelpark)
- Laeken Park (French: Parc de Laeken, Dutch: Park van Laken)
- Woluwe Park (French: Parc de Woluwe, Dutch: Park van Woluwe)
- Josaphat Park (French: Parc Josaphat, Dutch: Josaphatpark)
- King Baudouin Park (French: Parc Roi Baudouin, Dutch: Koning Boudewijnpark)
- Kauberg
- Jardin botanique (Dutch: Kruidtuin)
- Leopold Park (French: Parc Léopold, Dutch: Leopoldpark)
- Jardins du Maelbeek (Dutch: Maalbeektuinen)
- Duden Park (French: Parc Duden, Dutch: Dudenpark)
- Astrid Park (French: Parc Astrid, Dutch: Astridpark)
Notable people from Brussels
See also: Notable people from Brussels
- Chantal Akerman, filmmaker and director
- Pierre Alechinsky, artist
- Plastic Bertrand, musician
- Brian Molko, lead singer of the band Placebo
- Jacques Brel, musician
- Rene Carcan, artist
- Michel De Ghelderode, dramatist
- Marc Didden, film director
- Saint Gudulae of Brussels and Eibingen, Saint of the city and national saint of Belgium
- Audrey Hepburn, actress
- Hergé, comics writer
- René Follet, comics writer
- Victor Horta, Art Nouveau architect
- Jacky Ickx, racing driver
- Paul-Emile Janson, politician, former Prime Minister of Belgium
- Nicholas Lens, author/composer
- Suzanne Lilar, essayist, novelist, and playwright, lived in Brussels from 1977-1992
- René Magritte, painter
- Amélie Nothomb, writer
- Peyo (Pierre Culliford), illustrator and creator of the Smurfs
- François Schuiten, comics artist
- Paul-Henri Spaak, politician, several times Minister of Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister of Belgium, former Secretary General of the NATO
- Toots Thielemans, jazz musician
- Jean-Claude Van Damme, actor; nickname: "The Muscles from Brussels"
- Rogier van der Weyden, painter, (1400-1465)
- Barend van Orley, painter, (1488-1541)
- Jean d'Osta (1909-1993), writer
- Diane von Furstenberg, fashion designer
- Lex Goudsmit, Actor
- Marguerite Yourcenar, writer and first female member of the Académie Française
- Olivier Theyskens, fashion designer
Sports clubs
- R.S.C. Anderlecht, football
- F.C. Molenbeek Brussels Strombeek, football
- R. Union Saint-Gilloise, football
- R.R.B.C. Brussels, basketball
Museums
- Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium
- BOZAR-PMSK (The Palace of Fine Arts)
- Film Museum
- Musical Instrument Museum (MiM)
- National Army Museum
- Royal Museums of Art and History
- Belgian Centre for Comic Strip Art
- Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
Other
- List of Minister-Presidents of Brussels
- Brussels Cross
- Brussels sprout - the vegetable named after the city
- Art Nouveau
- List of metro stations of Brussels
- Sonian Forest
- Memorial van Damme
- Eurovision Song Contest 1987
- Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film
- Gallery Gabrichidze
- The highest building in Brussels is the South Tower (150 m); the most famous probably the Atomium, which is a remnant from the 1958 World Exposition.
Folklore
Brussels' identity owes much to its rich folklore and traditions, among the liveliest in the country:
- A good introduction to the Brussels local dialect and way of life can be obtained at the House of Toone. This theatre of marionettes, originally located in the Marolles area, is now delivering its slapstick comedy in a 1696 estaminet a stone throw away from the Grand Place.
- The Ommegang (Dutch: walking around) started in the 14th-century as a religious procession. Taking place every year in July, it now commemorates Charles V's Joyous Entry in the city in 1549. The colourful parade includes floats, traditional giant puppets, such as Saint Michael and Saint Gudula, and scores of folkloric groups, either on foot or on horseback, dressed in medieval garb. The parade ends in a pageant on the Grand Place.
- The Meyboom (Dutch: tree of May) is an even older Brussels tradition (1308), which takes place paradoxically on August 9. After parading a young beech in the city, it is planted in a joyful spirit involving lots of music, brusseleir songs, and giant puppets.
Notes
External links
- Brussels-Capital Region, official site
- Travel guide to Brussels from Wikitravel
- Planitram Public transport in the Region of Brussels Capital, unofficial site (in English and French)
- Royal Museums of Fine Art of Belgium
- Article about the famous Brussels Cartoon Murals
- Academie van het Brussels (Dutch)
- Académie pour la Défense et l'Illustration du Parler Bruxellois (Marollien)
- Concise Guide to Brussels Tourism
- 20km of Brussels - every year there is a spectacular run with 25,000 runners running 20km
- Ommegang Festival
- Brussels interactive map
- Lucadea.com - 65 Bruxelles beautiful pics
- BrusselsTourism The first portal site for Tourism in Brussels, Capital of Europe. Since 1997
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