Saturday, February 24, 2024

The Centraal Station in Antwerpen, Belgium

The Centraal Station is named as the most beautiful not just in Europe but in the whole world. The Centraal Station is designed by Architect Louis Delacenserie and constructed from 1895-1905. Architect Delacenseria took his inspiration from the Pantheon of Rome and also from the Swiss station of Lucerne. It was known also as the Railway Cathedral and inaugurated on August 11, 1905.

The station has four floors/levels and fourteen (14) tracks. It has eight (8) towers and a number of decorations with a golden color. The canopy has a length of 186 meters and width of 66 meters.

The station has been renovated and was led by Architect Jacques Voncke, and commissioned by Eurostation in 2009 still preserving its architectural treasure while drastically increasing capacity and modernization of passenger facilities.

Top routes in Antwerpen Centraal are Antwerp to Brussels airport, Antwerp to Amsterdam Schipol airport, Antwerp to Brussels Midi, Antwerp to Rotterdam, Netherlands, Antwerp to Amsterdam Centraal and Antwerp to Charleroi Sud.

Julia with Tito Raymond

The Centraal Station is exactly located in Koningin Astridplein, next to Antwerp Zoo and Diamond Quarter.

The top ten attractions in Antwerp are:

1. The Centraal Station

2. MAS Museum where you can see the whole of Antwerp

3. Het Steen

4. Vlaeykensgang, a hidden alley, type "Oude Kornmarkt 16" on google map and it will take you here

5. Cathedral of Our Lady and in front of it is the Nello and Patrasche statue

6. Zoo Antwerpen

7. Grote Markt

8. Plantin Moretus Museum

9. Red Star Line Museum

10. St. Paul's Church

Louvre Museum in Paris, France

Europe France 2:41 PM

The Louvre or the Louvre Museum is one of the largest, oldest and most impressive museum in the world. It is a central landmark of Paris. Louvre is famous for its iconic pieces like the Monalisa, Winged Victory of Samothrace and the Venus de Milo. It has an immense collection of artworks.

How to get to The Louvre?

If you're going to use the public transportation, going by metro is one of the most recommended options. Go to line one (1) or seven (7) as both arrive at Palais Royal Musee du Louvre station.

Paris is the world's most visited destination. Paris' Eiffel Tower and The Louvre ranks first globally in 2022 and nationally in 2023. The Louvre Museum houses 380,000 objects and displays and 35,000 works of art in eight curatorial departments. Most artifacts are of French and Renaissance art masterpieces and also from Rome and Egypt. During the French Revolution of August 10, 1793, The Louvre Museum was opened with 537 paintings. Most of the displayed works came from royal family and church confiscations. There are more than eight million visitors who pass through halls of Louvre. The museum is so huge and measures 200,000 square meters. It opens from 9am to 6pm and closes every Tuesdays and important holidays. The admission ticket costs 17 euro.

After visiting The Louvre, The Tuileries Gardens is a perfect location to relax and appreciate the beauty of Paris. It is a nice garden to walk around but can be crowded most of the time. Entrance is free.

Visit the top attractions in Paris.

1. The Eiffel Tower

2. Arc de Triomphe

3. Louvre Museum

4. Disneyland Paris

5. Notre dam cathedral

6. Montmarte and Sacre Coeur

7. Palace of Versailles

8. Luxembourg Park

9. The Pantheon

10. Moulin Rouge

Sunday, February 4, 2024

Antwerpen, Belgium

Belgium Europe 11:36 AM

Antwerp is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. Antwerp gained fame as the center of the diamond industry and its legacy for its fine arts.

Belgium as a country is famous for its Belgian beers, Belgian waffles and Belgian chocolates.

Belgium has three (3) official languages: Dutch (Flemish), French and German. It also has three regions through Constitutional reforms in 1970s and 1980s, a compromise designed to minimize linguistic and cultural stress. The three regions are Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels.

The five Flemish provinces includes Antwerp, Limburg, East Flanders, Flemish Brabant, and West Flanders.

Wallonia has five provinces namely Walloon Brabant, Hainaut, Liege, Luxembourg, and Namur.

Brussels, the third region, functions as a Single capital region administration.

Grote Markt

Belgium's official name is Kingdom of Belgium. Belgium is a constitutional, hereditary and known monarchy. The Kingdom of Belgium has a king and queen. King Philippe and Queen Mathilde married in 1999 and have four children namely Princess Elisabeth, Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel and Princess Eleonore.

In Belgium, the king has limited power. Parliament and Prime Minister is voted by the public since Belgium is a democratic country.

one of the Belgium-Netherland border, after crossing the street you have set foot to another country

Park Den Brandt

an underground restaurant in Antwerp

MAS Museum as background

biking in Grote Markt

spring in Antwerp