February 1, 2012

Belgium: 1 point

Keiki being from Belgium and Belgium being a small and relatively unknown country, foreigners sometimes ask us: “So, what is Belgium like?”. We understand it’s a polite way to start a conversation, still I wonder if people aren’t just lazy. I mean, there is Wikipedia and, since one year or so, Belgium has been officially totally street-viewified…

OK, I know some people are really busy and won’t spend too much time searching the Net for info about a little country with seemingly nothing interesting apart from keiki and a few other things like chocolate and beer. So, to help you out, dear busy foreigner friends, I have been doing some random Streetview screenshots in the most renowned places of Belgium. I hope it will give you a clearer idea of “what Belgium is like”.

Here are the results (pictures are from Streetview, comments are taken from Wikipedia):
"Belgium's two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia. The second half of the 20th century was marked by the rise of non-violent conflicts between the Flemish and the Francophones fuelled by cultural differences on the one hand and an asymmetrical economic evolution of Flanders and Wallonia on the other hand."

Flanders:
Flanders (somewhere between a potato field and a motorway)

Wallonia:
Wallonia (somewhere between a motorway and a potato field)

The five main belgian cities (by population size) are:

Brussels: the official founding of Brussels is usually situated around 979. On average (based on measurements the last 100 years), there are approximately 200 days of rain per year.
Brussels

Antwerp: historical Antwerp had its origins in a Gallo-Roman vicus civilization.
Antwerp

Liège: the first references to Liège are from 558, when it was known as Vicus Leudicus.
Liège

Ghent: archaeological evidence shows human presence in the region of the confluence of Scheldt and Lys going back as far as the Stone Age and the Iron Age.
Ghent

Charleroi: the history of the city of Charleroi starts in 1666, so named in honour of King Charles II.
Charleroi
So, come visit us...
Raphael