BELGIUM - Europe by Eurail 2015: Touring Europe by Train - page 58

BELGIUM
Belgium may be small in size—about the size of Maryland in the United States—but
it is large in its significance to the European Community. Belgium played an im-
portant role in creating the European Union, which now comprises 27 members.
The Treaty on the European Union was signed in Maastricht in 1992 in an effort to
safeguard peace in Europe and to move toward economic and monetary union with
intergovernmental cooperation. Belgium's capital city, Brussels, is the seat of the
European Union, NATO, and many other world trade and finance companies.
In 1830 Belgium gained its independence. No longer a part of the Netherlands,
Belgium became a federal state of communities and regions. The three communit-
ies are based on the Dutch, French, and German languages and culture—the Flem-
ish Community, the French Community, and the German-speaking Community. The
three regions (Flanders, Brussels Capital, and Wallonia) were based on economic
concerns.
Belgium has a hereditary constitutional monarchy, but the king does not “govern”;
he serves as protector of the country's unity and independence. King Albert II be-
came Belgium's sixth king in 1993.
Perhaps not as well known is Belgium's significant gastronomic role in western
Europe. After all, it was the Flemish Benedictine monks who invented beer, and the
beers considered to be “the best” are the ones still brewed traditionally in Belgian
monasteries. Restaurants of the Ardennes are well-known for their wild game, and
the coastal restaurants serve some of the finest North Sea fish and shellfish dishes.
A not so well-known culinary fact about Belgium: The ratio of restaurants to popula-
tion is equal to that of France.
For more information about Belgium, use the Internet address
www.visitbelgium.com or contact the Belgian Tourist Office in North America:
New York: 300 East 42nd Street, 14th Fl, New York, NY 10017.
Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]