 |
Yes, kind of inappropriate, especially for a cover picture of my blog post..but I thought it would grab attention. And look, it worked :) It is actually a giant painting in one of the art galleries of the Marolles area of Brussels, which I will talk about in this post. I don't know if you know, but Tintin (the cartoon character in this painting) was invented in Belgium. You can even find graffiti paintings of him all over the city center walls! Below is a picture of the actual cover of the book, which I found at the antique market later that day... |
This past Sunday I got up quite early to go to the big
market here in Brussels at the Gare du Midi (train station here). First, I ate
a nice breakfast with the family (Spiegel-Ei (sunny-side up egg) on a baguette with basil and ketchup of course, the
normal Sunday meal…and also croissants with jam, a norm for weekends). I told
the family a bit about my trip to Oostende the day before, and then headed on
my way out.
I decided to go to a the square Jeu de Baille first, since the jazz
music there only lasts until noon. This is in a very nice antique store area called
the Marolles. It’s kind of like the city’s hidden treasure. It is full of
little cobble stone streets lined with small and large antique stores (some so
small you wonder how they can possibly
fit everything in such a small space, and you have practically no room to walk,
and some so big (but equally stuffed) with so many rooms and go so far back
that at some point you start to wonder if it even has an end). The antiques include
a lot of original African sculptures, baskets and other things imported from the
Congo and areas around it, since it used to be a colony of Belgium. But then
you also have some fancy antiques from 18th century Europe, such as
painted marble royal statues from France and Germany, and lots of furniture too.
 |
| Alleyway in the Marolles |
 |
| Belgian beer bar |
 |
| Cute house with moped :) |
There are also a lot of cool art galleries, including one I discovered in a
little alleyway. The gallery was full with only one kind of art, and a very
strange type at that. Each frame had a black and white cut out of a different
famous person’s head on a colorful collage-like background. But each one was
similar in that the artist painted bright red lipstick on each person’s lips,
giving each a special kind of grin, and then added an actual piece of women’s
underwear (ranging from granny style to sexy lace thong) upside-down on each
person’s head. It was quite entertaining, and very unique. One other lady in
there with me just couldn’t get enough of it and kept laughing and laughing.
Also on my way to the place Jeu de Baille (I took the outdoor
glass elevator down, which is always exciting:))
I passed a very talented group of old men playing jazz. They had a man on a
giant bass, a xylophone, sax, and accordion.
Anyway, every weekend at Place Jeu de Baille they have a
giant antique market there. The sellers, who are mostly middle-aged Moroccan
men, but also some old women and Africans too, set up sheets and tables with all
of their goods. It amazed me how much stuff was there. Tables with hundreds of
little trinkets, including jewelry, watches, royal pins, lighters, mirrors,
statues.. Everything you can think of.
And honestly I really enjoyed looking through
all the stuff. I didn’t realize how much I liked antique markets until these
past two weekends (last Saturday I discovered the market they have here along
the Chaussee de Waterloo, right next to my house). I loved looking at all the
old things and imagining who they could have belonged to. They even have old
postcards from all over Europe, which people had sent to family or friends
years ago. I love reading them and finding out what they had to say.. maybe
they were asking about how a sick grandmother was doing, or writing to their
love… it’s like getting to know a real person from the past. I also found some
gifts for family and friends… I think getting something special from an antique
market makes the object have so much more meaning. You can imagine who it
belonged to before and how it ended up in Brussels.. And I also got to practice
my bargaining skills which is always important :)
 |
| Yes, that is a real deer head. |
 |
| Lots of old coins and buttons |
 |
| Original wooden African masks |
 |
| Wooden sculpture chairs |
 |
| Lots of brass and marble statues |
 |
| A pretty bird statue |
I also got a little ring for myself. It is a small, silver pinky ring in the
shape of a snake. It looks very antiquey and may even be real silver...hard to
say though. But for me, the more important thing about it is its meaning. When
I put it on, I feel a bit more “bad-ass” and strong, but not in an obvious way.
The snake is small and still pretty looking, not scary. But I imagine myself
wearing this ring on a first date with a new guy, and him noticing it and
thinking “wow, this girl has a snake ring...she must be tough and not like to
fool around.” I feel like the snake is my protector, and when I look at it, I remember,
“I am strong, I take my life seriously.” Let’s see if it lives up to my expectations :)
The cafés surrounding the square were full with people of
all ages, relaxing and drinking beer. One of them had an old man playing folk
guitar, the music floating out the open bar windows into the square. There was
a stand selling “Escargots et Hot Dogs” (strange combo if you ask me...but I guess
it provides for the gourmands and the “not-so-adventurous” types).
Another tent was vending fresh “huitres”
(oysters). Piles of oyster shells and empty bottles of champagne were lined up
on the tables. I actually learned how to properly eat oysters here in Brussels
by my friend Hieu. He brought me to a fancy brunch one Sunday morning at a
hotel. It was the first time I ever drank champagne at breakfast (welcome to
high-class European life). So, of course, they had oysters there, along with a
large array of other kinds of seafood. Hieu showed me how to pour out the salty
seawater from the shell, remove the black, inedible part, and then scrape out
the meat with my knife, and finally, slurp it out of the shell. You finish the
show with a sip of champagne. Apparently, champagne and oysters are the perfect
aphrodisiac :)
 |
| Alleyway off of the square with a Tintin cartoon on the wall |
After Jeu de Baille, I headed over the giant market at Gare
du Midi. The market is situated around and under the train tracks (which are on
a bridge) and it is really huge. Lines of white tents fill the area, and you
can barely see the end. They are filled with every kind of fruit imaginable, as
well as veggies, spices, and specialty foods such as olives, cheese and meats.
The range of different smells is overwhelming. I think if you walked through
the market with your eyes closed, you could still know perfectly which stand
you are passing just by breathing. The smell of ripe fruits would first hit
you, then the strong, spicy whiff of spices, then a scent of fresh cilantro
from the fresh herbs stand, the salty smell of dried meats, the ripe smell of
French cheese… And the sounds of the market are just as harsh on your senses! The
sellers there just go crazy! The fruit sellers, who are mostly middle-aged Moroccan
men, stand on the tables and hold up fruits yelling at the top of their lungs things
like “2 melons for 1.50 euros!” or “One package of mangos for 4 euros! Freshly
imported from the Ivory Coast! Last offer!” And others just yell for the heck
of it, chanting things like “Heeeyoooo” while walking around, just to get people’s
attention I guess...for me it makes me want to run away.. maybe I’m just a
newbie at the whole Midi market. I even
had some guy yelling at me for standing in front of his fruit stand, saying in
French, “Don’t reflect so much young lady, it’s bad for your health!” I passed
another table with a fat man selling watermelons. However, he was doing his job
in a very strange way.. He was standing on a chair, holding up two giant
watermelons and just yelling nonsense at the top of his lungs. He looked like
an excited baboon who just found his dinner.
 |
| The vendors standing on tables, yelling about fruit. |
Another man selling bananas and cherries had some cherries
hanging off his right ear… Also most likely to attract attention and get people
to buy from him. These guys really get into their work, and it is quite a show!
I guess if they want to sell, they have to attract people’s attention, and they
are doing what they think will best achieve that.
However, I definitely
felt a little out of place there. It was full of poor looking Islamic women, dressed
in long, fabric dressed and their heads wrapped in scarves. The whole market
has a kind of middle eastern feel to it. Some of the stands are playing Arabic versions
of popular songs, which I found quite funny. It was fun to go around to the
stands, the men telling me to “gouter” (taste) the fruits, each one holding out
a plate with freshly cut mango, melon or pineapple on it. I was convinced to
buy a mango (only 50 cent for 1!) and some melons and nectarines. The
nectarines were very very good, especially for the price (only 1 euro for 4 of
them). That is the great thing about the market (and also what I heard from the
other au pairs who had been there before)…that you get good fruit for cheap. Most
of the fruit comes from Africa (I know this because many of the sellers were yelling
things like, “Fresh, ripe Mango, direct from Africa!” and many of the boxes had
the words IVORY COAST stamped on them).
I passed a stand where a little boy, maybe about 9 years
old, was yelling at the top of his lungs to people to come buy the apples he
was trying to sell. They start training them young I guess. I bet his father
has been selling fruit at the market all his life, and now his son is doomed
for the same future. I can’t even imagine what it would be like, knowing I
would have to work at a fruit market, yelling all day to try and get people to
buy my products...what a life.
|
| The little boy (left side) |
I finally got past all the fruit and veggie stands, and
walked under the bridge, coming to the other side where the giant market
continued. Large white tents covered clothing sellers, including shoes and
bags. I passed one tent where a Greek man was selling freshly made Greek
specialties. You can get really high-quality, home-made genuine foreign foods
very easily in Brussels since the city it so international. At every market you
will find stands with Africans selling spiced, barbequed meats and sauces with
rice, Thai people selling fresh spring rolls and spicy curry, Greeks selling
baklava and spanakopita and Egyptians selling backed lamb with dried fruits..
the list goes on and on, and all the food tastes amazing!
 |
| Passing under the bridge |
 |
| Pant seller...interesting display there |
 |
| Market continues towards the Midi tower |
Anyway, another part of the market contained a large area
where they were selling all different kinds of plants, trees and flowers. They
sold fruit trees (like oranges and cherry trees) as well as exotic flowers and
palm trees. I saw one women ride away on her bike with a giant meter-long vine
of some flower sticking straight up out of her backpack.
I just couldn’t believe how crowded the market was. My feet
kept getting run over by women hurrying along pulling their fabric grocery
carriers on wheels behind them. And it was already 2:30 in the afternoon… I can
only imagine what it must me like in the morning when everyone is coming to get
the best fruit.
I walked father, towards the back of the market, coming to
an area with a bunch of cafés and people sitting on tables outside. Spanish
music was blasting (the first café on the corner was Spanish) and a man
grilling kebabs just outside the door. People we just chilling there, talking
and enjoying a drink and a kebab after a long day at the market.
I walked back towards the way I came, passing a waffle truck
and a very happy looking old man, eating a sausage and thoroughly enjoying it.
Around the Gare du Midi, there are many rundown houses and poor neighborhoods. Many of the houses are abandoned because they are so rundown and people don't have enough money to repair them. There is also an area nearby which is know for having prostitution.. Sometimes when you are on the train and passing the station, you can even see the prostitutes lit up in their windows.
 |
| Rundown houses near Gare du Midi |
I was starting to get a little hungry, and decided to check
out this stand I saw back in the beginning of the market, where they had a
giant grill going and a lady with a headscarf was grilling large triangles of filo
dough with some kind of filling inside, and another man was serving a brownish
colored tea out of a giant brass teapot. I went up to the women and asked her
what was inside the triangles. “Spinach and feta” she replied. So basically,
something like spanakopita. I thought it must be good since the table and
chairs around the stand were full of people happily eating it and drinking tea.
I took one, and then, just out of curiosity, asked the man what kind of tea it
was. It was “menthe” tea (mint), apparently it is supposed to go very well with
spinach and feta flavors.
 |
| Woman making the spanakopita |
Happily walking and eating, I checked the time and realized
it was time for me to go back home to help out at Jonas’s birthday party! (Which
I blogged about yesterday). Well, it was a nice Sunday adventure and I hope you
enjoyed my post about it :) Comments are appreciated!
