I’ve just added a new pictures gallery on Blue Brussels with pictures from the Cinquantenaire park. I’ve also beefed up my Etangs d’Ixelles galleries with photos of the Flagey building.

The “Cinquantenaire” park, museums and monuments were meant to be erected to celebrate Belgium’s 50th anniversary in 1880. However the buildings were not finished until 1905, in time to celebrate the country’s 75th anniversary.

Besides the arch and the park, the Cinquantenaire complex houses the following museums:

• Royal Army and Military History Museum
• Autoworld
• Royal Museum of Art and History

In the gardens you will also find Belgium’s largest Mosque (originally a conference center for the 1897 World Fair held in Brussels), ironically located close to one of Victor Horta’s controversial creations: a building housing the sculptor’s Jef Lambeaux’s erotic Passions Humaines ensemble. This exhibit remains controversial to this day, and the building is only open on request for museum visitors.

If you are in Brussels in summertime, make sure you go to the Drive-In Movies: from the end of June till the end of August, a weekly selection of movies shown in open air at the Cinquantenaire. Old-timers pay half price, and moviegoers typically blast their horns when there is a lot of action (particularly erotic) on the screen! Check out our events page for more things to do in Brussels.

Popularity: 40% [?]

I am happy to announce a significant addition to Blue Brussels: a new section in our events page now covers all current cultural activities in Brussels.

It is still an early iteration, but the page features a very large selection of current events in Brussels:

• Live Music and concerts, pop and rock concerts at Forest National, the Ancienne Belgique but also at clubs and smaller venues such as the Botanique, the Cirque Royal, etc. Classical music and opera is also tracked, as well as all the summer music festivals in Brussels
• Exhibitions, not to miss anything going on at the National Museums, the Bozar or Flagey
• Nightlife is also covered, with all the parties at Brussels’ clubs, including a special section focusing on the Fuse activities
• Movie and theater. All box office shows with showing times. Listings for theater plays in English, French and Ducth.

I’ll be adding more in the near future, so stay tuned! The service is made possible thanks to a collaboration with Agenda and Cinenews.

Popularity: 37% [?]

• Recyclart
  Held in the little Brussels-Chapelle train station, this art festival showcases artistic creations made out of recycled materials.
  Site: Recyclart
• Ommegang
  A huge procession on Grand Place with origins from the 15th century. Now devoid of any religions connotations, it is a great show for Bruxellois and visitors alike: giants, life-sized chess game, dances.
  Site: Ommegang
• Meyboom
  The oldest procession in town consists in the planting of a “tree of joy” at the intersection of the rue du Marais and rue des Sables. This procession was allowed to proceed as a reward of a feat of arms in the 14th century. To read more about the intense rivalry between Leuven and Brussels about this procession, which lives up to this day, make sure to visit the website.
  Site: Meyboom
• Bruxelles Les Bains
  On the banks of the canal, this temporary resort hosts a number of Summer activities, sporting events, concerts and food stalls.
  Site: Bruxelles Les Bains
• Foire du Midi
  A very old tradition in Brussels: from mid-July to mid-August, countless attractions are set on the boulevards leading to the Midi train station.
  Site: Tourist Info
• Eu’ritmix music festival
  Yet another summertime music festival held in various squares of central Brussels. This festival showcases various musical styles from all around Europe.
  Site: Eu’ritmix
• Fiesta Latina
  The Fiesta Latina is really an incredible event. Two days of latin fever in the Châtelain area, with Cuban dances and a lot of exotic food and drinks. Great summertime event.
  Site: Fiesta Latina
• Ecran Total film festival
  A summer-long festival of films held at the Arenberg Galleries movie theater.
  Site: Arenberg
• Midi-Minimes music festival
  Yet another summertime music festival in Brussels: the Eglise des Minimes hosts lunchtime concerts of jazz and classical music.
  Site: Midi-Minimes
• Drive-In Movies
  From the end of June till the end of August, a weekly selection of movies shown in open air at the Cinquantenaire. Old-timers pay half price.
  Site: Drive-In Movies
• Flower Carpet on Grand Place
  Every other year (during even-numbered years) an impressive flower carpet is laid out on Brussels’ Grand Place. It is made out of more than a million petals of begonias.
  Site: Tapis de Fleurs
• Visit the Royal Palace
  The Royal Palace in the centre of the city is open to visitors during the summer, between the National Day (July 21) and early September.
  Site: Belgian Monarchy
• Beer weekend
  It’s beer weekend in Brussels every week of the year, but there is a special beer event on the Grand Place during the last weekend of August every year.
  Site: Beer Weekend
• Bellone-Brigittines Dance Festival
  An annual showcase of contemporary dance at the old Bellone house and in the old Brigittines chapel. The festival is held at the end of August and in early September.
  Site: Bellone
• Brussels Rollers
  This is an incredibly fun event to participate in: every Friday from early June through the end of September, rollerbladers take it to the streets of Brussels after 9pm. A lot of music and drinks, and a great success every year.
  Site: Belgium Rollers

For more info, check out our event calendar on Blue Brussels.

Popularity: 40% [?]

What’s to do in Brussels in July? Here’s our July Calendar of events in Brussels. For other months, check our events calendar on Blue Brussels.

• Brussels Rollers
  This is an incredibly fun event to participate in: every Friday from early June through the end of September, rollerbladers take it to the streets of Brussels after 9pm. A lot of music and drinks, and a great success every year.
  Site: Belgium Rollers
• Ommegang
  A huge procession on Grand Place with origins from the 15th century. Now devoid of any religions connotations, it is a great show for Bruxellois and visitors alike: giants, life-sized chess game, dances.
  Site: Ommegang
• Couleur Café
  Originately a world music festival, Couleur Café is now a potpourri of various musical styles in a very relaxed atmosphere where exotic food and dance abound.
  Site: Couleur Café
• European Film Festival
  Now held at Flagey, one of the most popular film festivals in Brussels. A lot of atmosphere with DJ’s and music well into the night.
  Site: FFFB
• Brosella Folk & Jazz Festival
  Held in the open-air Théâtre de Verdure at the footsteps of the atomium, this low-key jazz and folk festival attracts a local crowd. Great summertime activity when the sun is shining.
  Site: Brosella
• National Day on the 21st
  The national day celebrations typically involve large open-air fairs in the Rue de la Régence and the Royal Park, followed by the inevitable fireworks.
  Site: Tourist info
• Recyclart
  Held in the little Brussels-Chapelle train station, this art festival showcases artistic creations made out of recycled materials.
  Site: Recyclart
• Bruxelles Les Bains
  On the banks of the canal, this temporary resort hosts a number of Summer activities, sporting events, concerts and food stalls.
  Site: Bruxelles Les Bains
• Foire du Midi
  A very old tradition in Brussels: from mid-July to mid-August, countless attractions are set on the boulevards leading to the Midi train station.
  Site: Tourist Info
• Ecran Total film festival
  A summer-long festival of films held at the Arenberg Galleries movie theater.
  Site: Arenberg
• Midi-Minimes music festival
  Yet another summertime music festival in Brussels: the Eglise des Minimes hosts lunchtime concerts of jazz and classical music.
  Site: Midi-Minimes
• Drive-In Movies
  From the end of June till the end of August, a weekly selection of movies shown in open air at the Cinquantenaire. Old-timers pay half price.
  Site: Drive-In Movies
• Visit the Royal Palace
  The Royal Palace in the centre of the city is open to visitors during the summer, between the National Day (July 21) and early September.
  Site: Belgian Monarchy

Popularity: 36% [?]

Now that the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition has ended, what’s left to do in Brussels? Here’s our June Calendar of events in Brussels. For other months, check our events calendar on Blue Brussels.

• La Cambre Models
  Fresh graduates of the prestigious La Cambre fashion academy release their end-of-year creations onto the catwalks.
  Site: modobruxellae
• Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition
  A music competition for young virtuosos which never fails to attract a huge crowd. Alternates annually between piano, violin and voice.
  Site: Concours Reine Elisabeth
• Fête de la Musique
  The annual summer Fête de la Musique takes place on June 21 every year. Most years lots of concerts are organized throughout the town, although the concerts on Grand Place are always the highlight of the day.
  Site: Fête de la Musique
• Jazz Spring Sessions
  Since 1998 the VW Spring Sessions attract popular jazz artists. In recent years the festival branched out to latino, Afro-cuban and pop music. Most events in Brussels are hosted at the Bozar and Ancienne Belgique.
  Site: VW Spring Sessions
• Balsamine Danse Festival
  Contemporary dance festival held at the Balsamine theater.
  Site: Balsamine
• Couleur Café
  Originately a world music festival, Couleur Café is now a potpourri of various musical styles in a very relaxed atmosphere where exotic food and dance abound.
  Site: Couleur Café
• European Film Festival
  Now held at Flagey, one of the most popular film festivals in Brussels. A lot of atmosphere with DJ’s and music well into the night.
  Site: FFFB
• Ecran Total film festival
  A summer-long festival of films held at the Arenberg Galleries movie theater.
  Site: Arenberg
• Drive-In Movies
  From the end of June till the end of August, a weekly selection of movies shown in open air at the Cinquantenaire. Old-timers pay half price.
  Site: Drive-In Movies
• Brussels Rollers
  This is an incredibly fun event to participate in: every Friday from early June through the end of September, rollerbladers take it to the streets of Brussels after 9pm. A lot of music and drinks, and a great success every year.
  Site: Belgium Rollers

Popularity: 23% [?]

In the 13th century, Dame Gisèle, a Benedictine nun in Brussels wished to move to the Cistercians, an order founded in 1098 as a stricter branch of the Benedictines. Her superiors at Brussels’ Sainte Gudule chapter resisted the move and she had to obtain support in high places. With the assistance of the Duke Henri the First, she was allowed to acquire a vast peace of land in the Forêt de Soignes, around the spring of a little stream called the Maalbeek. She established a new abbey and named it after the room where Mary, mother of Christ, was supposed to have lived according to Christian mythology (the Camera Mariae): the Abbaye de La Cambre was born.

Right from the start the Abbey was very wealthy, with a vast expand of lands, including what is now the Bois de La Cambre, along with large areas of farmland in Flanders. At that time Ixelles was but a small village far away from Brussels, and there was ample room to erect buildings. Nowadays many of the remaining buildings date from the XIVth and XVIth centuries, including the nice Gothic church. From the start the place was a centre of teaching, with its boarding school that soon became very reputed. The Abbey still hosts part of the famous Cambre Achool of Visual Arts and Belgium’s National Geography Institute. French-style gardens have been added in the XIXth century, which form nice terraces up to Avenue Louise.

In the parks that surround the étangs d’Ixelles, leading to Place Flagey, you will find statues of Henri Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross, Camille Lemonier, a Belgian writer, and many other monuments. Already in the XIXth century the étangs were renowned to offer a place for charming and picturesque walks in Ixelles. The writer Hymans described it as follows:

« Il y avait, au bord des eaux, des guinguettes, où la bière brabançonne arrosait la gaufre dorée, et qui durant les belles après-midi de congé du printemps et de l’été, retentissaient des refrains et des cris d’enfants. Là, sur la cote, s’étageait, au centre des tonnelles, la Maison Rouge. Autour des étangs où se balançaient des verdures aquatiques, couraient des sentiers, au coin desquels des fermes et des métairies, demeures rustiques, égarées aux portes d’une Capitale, ouvraient leurs volets verts… »

Originally there were three ponds, but at the end of the XIXth century the third pond was filled and became the Place Sainte-Croix, later renamed Place Flagey. In the thirties the place was redeveloped around the Maison de la Radio, nowadays a cultural centre simply called “Flagey”.

Sources and further reading:

Adisc

Abbaye de La Cambre et Etangs d’Ixelles

Wikipedia article on Etangs d’Ixelles

Eurobru

Popularity: 9% [?]

Brussels has a lot to offer to visitors, especially now with the unseasonably warm weather these days… See some pictures which we recently added on Blue Brussels to get a foretaste.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Brussels Rue Haute.

Here’s a picture of the interior of a great pizza place on Rue Haute. Discover the Sunday buzz in the Marolles with our recent pictures.

Popularity: 4% [?]

We’ve added new pictures to Blue Brussels, our contemplative guide to the European capital. As most of our sites (except maybe for Blue Bulgaria), BlueBrussels.com is still in its infancy, but we have now more than 130 pictures to choose from.

Popularity: 3% [?]