Traditional Speculoos and the "Modern Christmas Tree" meet in Brussels

So, now for some insight into the Belgian way of celebrating the holiday season…

Brussels puts together a very nice, quite large Christmas market downtown surrounding the Grande Place, as well as in the big “Place Saint Catherine” where a large open square is and a giant old stone church stands at one end. The market consists of many little wooden huts lined up next to each other in two long rows. 

 Each hut sells something totally different, and they are in no particular order. Therefore, you simply have to wander around and take a look at all the different foods, including pastries, crepes, churros (yes, Mexican food even found its way into Belgium), cheeses (there is a special bright green cheese they sell that looks disgusting but is actually delicious. It is only green due to the large amount of fresh basil mixed into it), fresh bread, Swiss potato tartiflette (sliced potatoes with melted Swiss cheese, ham, cream and lots of herbs), Raclette on bread, sea snails in a broth (escargots, specially fast food you can find anywhere on the street in Brussels), oysters, mussels and frites, as well as every kind of holiday related alcoholic drink you can think of such as vin chaud (hot wine), jägermeister, and this special liquor with a million different flavors that I can’t remember the name of. You can also find huts selling handmade goods such as wooden statues, woolen hats and scarves, pottery, jewelry… 

(above) Cougnou de Brussels a specialty only made in Brussels, it is a sweet bread that can have almost anything added to it, from raisins, to almond paste, speculoos cream, chocolate pieces and more.

Roasted chestnuts! (Marrons)

 Swiss Tartiflette (enough to feed an army...or a Brussels xmas market full of hungry tourists;)

The popular, world-famous Tête Choco, a giant chocolate covered marshmallow. Every country in the world has their own version of this sugary treat. Here in Brussels, we offer a marshmallow with every kind of chocolate flavor you can think of, including cinnamon, lemon and mint.

In addition to hot wine (vin chaud) warm Kriek (cherry beer) is also popular.

French for cotton candy! (literally translates to "papa's beard")

The popular Jagermeister tent

Original Brussels style waffle

Vin chaud brewing

We even have tree-shaped waffles!

The Christmas specialty of Brussels, Speculoos cookies. Here is an especially giant one!

At the end of the rows of little houses was the giant looming Diamond Ferris wheel, which I had the pleasure of riding on with my daddy! The wheel really gives you the best view of the entire city of Brussels you can get. From one side, you can see the glittering Atomium, and on the other, the rows and rows of huts with colorful lights and the brightly purple lit church at the end. Then laid out under you is the big ice rink in the center of the market, with people of all ages skating around on the ice.

Pretty lanterns near the market


Other happenings I came across during the holiday season in Brussels include this parade with a bunch of old people carrying a copy of the Mannekin Pis on a stick,dressed as St. Nick. He even could pee! I was walking in front and suddenly felt a splash of wetness on my pants. I looked behind me, and the "Mannekin Pis" was peeing on me! Only in Belgium...

Janneken Pis dressed up like Mrs. Claus (girl version of Mannekin Pis)

 I also participated in the Santa Con. This is when all the expats in Brussels dress up as Santas (or Mrs. Clauses) and march around the city together, going to the market and spreading Christmas joy. The Chinese tourists seemed to especially enjoy this. I had maybe ten different Chinese people come up to me and ask if they could have a picture with me...

A snowman (bonhomme de neige in French) building contest is another popular activity. Club Med, which has a couple stores in Brussels, builds a giant "Snow Chalet" and hauls in a bunch of snow for the contest.

Jonas in his Christmas concert

The so-called “modern Christmas tree” has caused a lot of hoo-ha in the city of Brussels. Every year since as long as anyone can remember, the city has put up and beautifully decorated a giant, real sapin de Noël, or pine tree. However, this year they tried to spice things up a bit and try something new. But, not everyone is very pleased. Actually, hardly anyone is. Instead of getting a real tree, a giant metal/LED tree was fabricated out of giant boxes. The idea was to try something more “modern”, environmentally friendly, new, and provide something that people can climb to the top of and have a nice view of the beautiful Grande Place below. Now, I applaud the Brussels electricity company for going for something new (they are the ones who sponsor and provide electricity of the tree every year), but this tree is pretty hideous. What do you think?

View from the top

Now, the tree wouldn’t be so bad if it’s surroundings were just as modern as it is. But the Grande Place is so classic, so old, that the tree just totally looks out of place. Kind of like a giant, boxy alien. Now, I think at night, when the tree is all lit up, it actually looks very nice. They do a light show with coordinating music every night of the week, and it is actually quite impressive. They even shine bright, colorful lights on the old buildings in the Grande Place. Here are some pictures:

And even a video of the light show! Fast forward to the 5 min mark, then it gets really exciting! Click the link below:

"Modern Christmas Tree" at Grande Place, Brussels