The weekend after this post, I headed back to Brussels to meet up with a high school friend. We were staying in Brussels and planning on heading to Antwerp (Dutch Antwerpen, French Anvers) and Brugge (Dutch, English Bruges) as day trips. I was able to see bits of Brussels again which I really didn’t mind too much. We ventured to areas that I hadn’t been before and spent at least 30 minutes trying to figure out the metro system. We managed to buy a pass for 10€ that gives 24 hours unlimited travel for a group of less than 5 people. This was a really good deal =) It was during one of wanderings we came across this:
This just made my day =) Its just too cute (and funny)!
The next morning, we headed out early for Antwerp. The train ride was about 30 minutes. As there were 4 of us, we bought the Go Pass for the Belgium train. Each time you use it, its 4,60 Euros no matter the regular fare. The Antwerp train station was really pretty! The outside was under construction, but the inside was definitely worth taking a closer look at.
Our first stop was the Antwerp Diamond Museum. Antwerp is known to be a city of diamonds. The museum was interesting and boring (is that possible?). They tried to create interactive displays and provided all visitors with an audio guide available in numerous languages. They had some diamonds on display and lots of jewelry to see, but I don’t really know too much about this stuff, which is where the boring bit came in. Admission was 4€ for students.
We then headed for the city centre. As with most cities, there was a church, Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal (Cathedral of our Lady). This Cathedral is the highest Cathedral in the low countries. We needed to pay admission for the church (2€ for students). From the outside, this church is unbelievably tall. It seemed to go on forever. The church (as we see it now) was constructed between 1350 and 1520. I really have no idea how they managed it!
The Cathedral facade – originally there were to be two towers, but due to a fire, all efforts were focused on the church’s repair, and the tower was never built
Impossibly high!
The alter
The Grote Markt of Antwerp is set up quite similarly to the one in Brussels with a town hall and guild houses. In the middle of the market stands the statue of Brabo. Legend says that a giant once lived near the river and whenever a sailor refused to pay a toll, the giant would punish the sailor by cutting off his hand. Brabo managed to kill the giant and cut off the hand and threw it in the river. According to the legend, that is how the name “Antwerpen” came about: hand and werpen (to throw). The “hand” has become a symbol of Antwerp and can be found in the town flag and in some candy.
The town hall and Brabo fountain
The guild houses along the market are not the original ones. They were rebuilt after a fire in the 16th century.
The guild houses
We walked to the Steen (meaning “The Stone”), the only remaining part of the fortifications of Antwerp. We walked along the water before heading back for some shopping to end our day.
See more pictures here.
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