Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
sampling to judge. See the “choco-crawl” described in the Grand
Place Walk (page 401).
Manneken-Pis
—Brussels is a great city with a cheesy mascot
(apparently symbolizing the city's irreverence and love of the good
life)—a statue of a little boy urinating. Read up on his story at
any postcard stand. It's three short blocks off Grand Place, but,
for exact directions, take my Grand Place Walk (page 397), look
for small, white
Manneken-Pis
signs, or just ask a local,
“Où est
le Manneken-Pis?”
The little squirt may be wearing some clever
outfit, as costumes are sent to Brussels from around the world.
Cases full of these are on display in the City Museum (described
on page 385).
Costume and Lace Museum
—his is worthwhile only to those
who have devoted their lives to the making of lace (€3, Mon-Tue
and Thu-Fri 10:00-12:30 & 13:30-17:00, Sat-Sun 14:00-17:00,
closed Wed, Rue de la Violette 12, a block off Grand Place, tel.
02-213-4 450).
upper Town
Brussels' grandiose Upper Town, with its huge palace, is described
in the
J
Upper Town Walk on page 409. Along that walk, you'll
pass the following sights.
sss
royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium (Musées
royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique)
—his sprawling com-
plex is worth visiting for the three museums that hold its perma-
nent collection.
he
Museum of Ancient Art
and the
Museum of Modern
Art
are covered by the same €5 ticket (enter through the main
foyer for both). The Museum of Ancient Art—featuring Flemish
and Belgian art of the 14th-18th centuries—is packed with a daz-
zling collection of masterpieces by Van der Weyden, Brueghel,
Bosch, and Rubens. The Museum of Modern Art gives an easy-
to-enjoy walk through the art of the 19th and 20th centuries,
from Neoclassical to Surrealism. Highlights here include works by
Seurat, Gauguin, and David (Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00, closed Mon,
last entry at 16:30, audioguide-€2.50, tour booklet-€2.50, pricey
cafeteria with salad bar, Rue de la Régence 3, recorded info tel.
02-508-3211, www.fine-arts-museum.be).
he new
Magritte Museum,
honoring the Surrealist painter
René Magritte, opens in the same museum complex in 2009 and
contains over 150 works housed on three floors of a Neoclassical
building (separate €8 ticket, Tue-Sun 9:30-17:00, Wed until
20:00, closed Mon). The Magritte Museum is the best art news
in Brussels. Magritte's works are best described in his own words:
“My paintings are visible images which conceal nothing; they evoke
mystery and, indeed, when one sees one of my pictures, one asks oneself
