BELGIUM IN THE LIMELIGHT
Three Belgian restaurants among World’s top 50 restaurants
Europe-based “Restaurant magazine” recently revealed the 50 best restaurants in the world for 2006, chosen by an international panel of impossible-to-please restaurateurs, chefs, food critics and industry experts. Three prestigious Belgian restaurants figure on the list: in 23rd place: Het Hof van Cleve in Kruishoutem, near Antwerp; 47th: De Karmeliet in Bruges; and 49th: Comme Chez Soi in Brussels. http://www.theworlds50best.com/bestlist.aspx
Dinner in the sky
Still on the subject of food, a unique Belgian invention: meals in the sky! If you wish to transform an ordinary meal into an unforgettable experience, offer your friends a dinner in the sky: a table surrounded by 22 chairs is suspended from a crane. Safely buckled up and floating mid-air, guests can enjoy a meal or meeting with the chefs, waiters, entertainers standing in an open area in the middle of the table. Table, crane, logistic and security staff are available for 7900 euros for an eight hour session. It can be organized anywhere, as long as the crane can be installed there.
Belgium among the top five most secure travel destinations
And if, while having dinner in the sky, you are afraid to fall off the crane, don’t worry. Belgium ranks among the five most secure travel destinations in the world, according to the annual survey published by The Norwich Union Travel Insurance. The other four are Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany and France.
THE MUSEUM OF THE MONTH
The Royal Museum of Central Africa is an ethnographical and natural history museum in Tervuren, in the suburbs of Brussels. It is both a scientific research institute dedicated to Africa and an important cultural center. Its collection of ethnographic objects from Central Africa is the only of its kind in the world. Its zoology collection features a large number of type specimens of African fauna, while the Entomology section boasts some six million insects. The Museum also houses a magnificent collection of tropical wood which is now the largest in Europe. www.africamuseum.be
How to discover Brussels
There are very many ways to discover and explore the city of Brussels. Here are a few tips:
Audio trails an audio trail, colorful and historic, comical and curious, entertaining and dream-like in the working-class district of the Marolles, on the history of the Grand- Place or the Sainte-Catherine district. www.d-tours.org
Theme-based walks the official site of Brussels international provides, under the section “Discover” a selection of theme-based walks covering places and events linked by a common subject, for ex.: comic strips, art nouveau, fashion trail, gourmet trail, European district, etc. www.brusselsinterational.be
Chatterbus tours By coach, public transport or on foot, chatterbus offers a wide selection of tours enabling the one-time visitor to get a good overview of Brussels and to discover lesser known, fascinating aspects of the city. www.busbavard.be
Discovering Brussels by bicycle a pleasant way of exploring the city. www.provelo.org
Tour the city with an erudite guide Art historians share their Brussels passions in a friendly and accessible manner. www.asbl-arkadia.be
BREVIA
Some surprising facts about Belgium Did you know that there are 800 kinds of beer made in Belgium, that Belgium has one of the lowest proportion of McDonald’s restaurants in the developed world, that the saxophone was invented in the 19th century by the Belgian Adolphe Sax, that Beethoven’s family originated from Mechelen in Belgium? What else don’t you know about Belgium? Have a look at www.eupedia.com/belgium/trivia.shtml
Ancient map discovered by Belgian The oldest known map in the western world was discovered in Taranto, Italy, by a team under the direction of Belgian archaeologist Thierry Van Campernolle of the University of Montpellier. The map, etched onto a fragment of black earthenware, is more than 2,500 years old. It depicts the heel of boot-shaped Italy, shows wave-like markings for the Adriatic and Ionian Seas and has dots indicating thirteen villages.
For previous numbers of "Belgium off the beaten track", click on the following links: BOT1 BOT2 BOT3 BOT4 BOT5
