Brussels is an architectural landmine with styles from all over the world, hosting a plethora of both ancient and recent works. Exploring the city by road or walking is an absolute delight and there is very little to be disappointed by. After watching the light show I decided to get out of the crowded center and start ticking off some of the boxes on my list.
Time flies when you are enjoying the view. I wish I had some more time to go through the remainder of the city and look at some of the other extremely astonishing works of masons from the past. There is a gothic church not too far away from the centre and to date scientists are studying it as it keeps on delivering insights into how the style came out to be and how it developed. How cool is that?
The Bourse de Bruxelles is an imposing building that is extremely difficult to miss when in Brussels. Quick fact, did you know Bourse is "stock" in the Arabic language, too? Pronounced "boo-rsa". I thought I was pretty lucky to see it whole since it has been under construction and renovation for a very long time.
It is a pretty popular destination for many, wouldn't you say? The unending sight of people on the stairs of the main entrance certainly says so.
The building is a typical Palladian-style architecture. There is no doubt in my mind. I have a hard time understanding how did this style not stick long enough even though it was primarily European and also after making a comeback after centuries of being created.
Unlike its Venetian counterparts, this building has a lot of new, reinforced, public-facing structures which is why the public is allowed to sit and interact with it, unlike the Venetian ones. I wonder what materials were used in the 1800s when it was first erected. But I think I have a very good guess.
Just across the Bourse is the St. Nicholas Church. It is highly undermined under the shadow of the much pompous and epic structure of the Bourse. Of course, the church is closed in the evening and by the looks of it, not many people like to appreciate the church. Outside the church, there are beautiful statues and a select few stonework to look at. The real artwork is all on the inside. There are a couple of pictures of the artwork you can find online but nothing beats the real thing.
Being a tourist area means peculiar things are going on almost at every corner. My favourite one was this bookstore that crept outside its regular brick and mortar store and made its way onto the street between itself and the Bourse. Walking from sightseeing and looking for the next best read wasn't easier. The nice thing was that there was so much trust that the books were out in the open on foldable tables without anyone actively guarding them. I almost stopped to look for a book when I remembered I probably couldn't read anything unless it was in English.
The entire building, as I went around, still maintains most of its original elements. The front is surrounded by lions and looks very majestic. The other sides still have a lot of classic balustrade and pediments. I tried to look for the octagonal dome but couldn't see one. Maybe there is flexibility in terms of that in this style of architecture.
Although the lions were limited to the front, the other sides had beautiful stonework of people who I am sure hold a lot of meaning and are probably made after someone important, but I am clueless in that regard.
The building now also hosts Belgian Beer World and an archaeological museum. It is free to enter too. There is also a tourist hub where you can find more about sites in the city and also get trips. Talking about the archaeological museum, I did stumble across a very interesting keyhole on the ground. But let me leave it to you to understand what they are. Ready? Here goes...
So what do you think these are? And why do you think you can see them from the street?
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