apilgrimage toBelgium’ssixTrappistbreweries, andat
theAbbayedeNotre-DamedeSaint-Remy inRochefort,
the then-generalmanagerVitalStreignardconveyed to
me that theprioritiesof theBelgiumpeoplewerevery
simple: “Food isfirst.Beer issecond.”Enoughsaid.
Withsuchoverlappingpriorities,Belgium isalways
highonmypersonal travel agenda, though I recom-
mendbookingbeyond theaveragevisitor’sstay; accord-
ing to touristboardstatistics,mostBelgium travelers
lingeramere twonights,whether forbusinessor lay-
over,whichcanhardlydo thecountry justice.
Onecouldeasilyspendweeks inBrusselsalone,butat
leastbooka fewnights in jail,a formermanifestationof
the luxuriousHotelAmigo juststepsoff theGrandPlace,
nowaRoccoForteHotelsproperty.Reservea tableat
CommeChezSoi,asmallVictorHorta-likeArtNouveau
shrine (andwherereveredchefWynantshasgivenover
thekitchen tohisson-in-law, chefLionelRigolet).
Assoonaspossible, securea tableat
aGrandPlacecaféandbeginyourBel-
gianbeeradventures, boldly, bysam-
plinga
gueuze
.Perhaps thestrangest
Belgiumbeer for theuninitiated, a
gueuze (orgeuze) isablendofoldand
new lambics, brewedwithwildyeasts—
basically, brewers from theSenneVal-
leysimply leave thebrewhouse
windowsopenand let thepure ferment-
ingmagicofnatureright in.Thecharacterof thebeer is
onlyroughlypredictable—oftensour, funky, andpuck-
ering. It’sanacquired taste, butworthacquiring.
Eventually,wanderover to theBelgianComicStrip
Center, oneofBrussels’major tourist stops.Belgians
love theircomics, and theirgreatest cartooncharacter
will soonenterabrighterspotlight.ThePeterJackson-
produced, StevenSpielberg-directed
TheAdventuresof
Tintin
premiered inBrusselsOctober26 (and isslated
toopen in theUnitedStatesDecember23).Tintin’scre-
ator, the lateHergé, isapresidingspiritat theComic
StripCenter, though the1906ArtNouveaubuilding isa
star in itsown right, amasterpieceby famedBelgium
architectanddesignerVictorHorta.
Unsurprisingly, themuseumcaféservesabeer
availablenowhereelse in thecountry, exceptacross
thestreet inasmallermuseumdevoted tocartoonist
MarcSleen.Byproducing thecomicstripdrawn lon-
gestbyasingleauthor, Sleen landed in theGuinness
BookofWorldRecords,while thestoutbeerserved
herewasnamedafterhismaincharacter,Nero.
Dayscanbespent in theshopsandmuseumsof
Clockwise from top: In
Brussels, stay at Hotel
Amigo; step into theBel-
giumComicStripCenter
and seeTheAdventures of
Tintin; andhaveadrinkof
AntwerpBolleke, also
calledDeKoninckBeer.
TRAVEL
Belgium: Beyond Beer
TOP:COURTESYHOTELAMIGO;WWW.VISITFLANDERS.US (3)
WINTER 2011
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