Antwerp
Belgium or Bust part 2
27 Octobre (written 11 November)
After having a very enjoyable time in Brussels, I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about Antwerp. I’d read some sort of “iffy” reviews of the city, and I was absolutely baffled by the hotel I’d booked. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why a hotel would only have somebody in the office for a few hours in the morning, and some in the evening for check in/check out. I was terrified to think that I would arrive in Antwerp with my stuff, take a taxi to the hotel, and find it locked, and be left in the city with my bags. Nonetheless, I put on my big boy pants and got in the taxi for the Ambassador Suites Antwerp after my quick train from Brussels. Arriving at the hotel, I was even more perplexed. Here I was, little Willie (having now lost 3 inches from my waist) from Mount Desert Island, Maine, in the middle of Antwerp’s Orthodox Jewish neighborhood, in this hotel that wasn’t really a hotel. Luckily there were people there, so I walked in.
Walking in, I felt like I was in the shell of any normal American hotel. It had that strange decoration scheme that was all purples, greys, and greens, but it was like time stopped in 2001. Then I realized what the website meant when it said this hotel was located in a former four star hotel. That’s what is was, a former hotel, now turned apartment/suites/who knows? Well we’ll discuss that later. So I dropped off my bags, got directions and started my exploring.
I walked toward the Central Train Station, which I knew had a tourist info center (with maps!), and which I also knew was considered one of the greatest train stations in the world. I didn’t fall short of amazement. I was in awe. It was beautiful. Much larger than any station I’d seen in America and much more beautiful. Grand Central in New York would be the junk in the trunk of Antwerp Central’s car. Literally.
After getting my map I got underway to the central town square. Passing down the man shopping street of Antwerp, I couldn’t help being completely overwhelmed by the buildings. Modernist, Neoclassical, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Vernacular, Ancient, Brand New, I mean this city had everything and I was totally on overload. I found the central square and, though not as beautiful as Brussels, it was a very different feel. It didn’t feel so touristy and I felt like I was actually in a real city. Yeah, many of the buildings are 20th century reproductions, but I felt as though they added to the feeling of a living city. It showed that Antwerp was still vibrant and evolving, unlike Brussels which I felt like was a bit of a museum in general.
I got my lunch, a box of fries and a shishkabob thing. Holy sodium overload. I didn’t have to pee for a week, which is good since you pay by the piss in much of Europe. And to make it all the better, they put “sauces” on top of their fries. I got mayonnaise, the most traditional sauce, and I’m not exaggerating when I say ¼ of cup of mayo was slobbered over my fries. I couldn’t finish them if I tried.
After lunch I went to visit the Cathedral. Thanks to being an official European Student (something I will miss when I get back to America), I got in for 3 euros - yeah, expensive, but cheaper than full price! This place was HUGE. You could see the tower from every point of the city - it was a monster. Especially cool was the exhibition of the original altar paintings, which haven’t all been assembled in the Cathedral in a few hundred years. Originally, each guild had its own special altar in the Cathedral, and each hired an artist to painting an altar painting. When the French took over Belgium they stripped the churches bare, and took all the art and good stuff. That was the end of the guild altars. Napoleon I gave a lot of the artwork back to the Flemish Government, and sold some more, but it was never returned to the churches; it went into museums instead. Now, since the Museum of Beaux-arts is being redone, all of their altar paintings from the Cathedral are back, and many of the others from around Europe have made an appearance. It’s awesome. So many Rubens paintings too, since he was from Antwerp. They’re huge and really beautiful.
Rubens' Raising of the Cross
I spent quite a lot of time in the church, oogling its beauty and sheer mass, but I finally left to walk to another church, one designed by Peter Paul Rubens himself. This church, the Church of Charles Boromeus, is the only Baroque church in Antwerp, and was originally completely decorated by Rubens. A fire later took of much of the Rubens decorative scheme, but it’s still very beautiful. A subsequent fire a few years ago caused more damage that they are currently renovating. There I met the docent, who was a lovely British lady who has lived in Antwerp for decades. She gave me lots of good insight of places to see, and what not to see. Since I had three days here, I was happy to have plenty to do.
Side chapel, all that's left of the original Rubens decoration
One thing she told me to be sure to visit was the Red Light District. Since Antwerp was, and still is, a seaport town, it had to have a fairly decent area where the seamen (haha, pun) could have a good time. Well, I found the area, and at first I was very confused: there were no ladies to be seen. None. I looked from afar and all I saw were men walking around, sort of meandering. Well, when in Rome…. So I started wandering too. And then I realized the secret of the Antwerp Hookers. They weren’t outside at all! Oh no! They were each in their own little glass cubicle with a door onto this big walking plaza, wearing next to nothing, and trying to seduce you to come in for a good time. It was bizarre. Then I figured out how it worked by watching this skeezy old codger. After doing plenty of research, he went up to a woman’s giant glass door, which she opened a tiny bit. He stuck his head in to do some talking while she rubbed herself all over proving how supple and voluptuous she was. Apparently they struck a deal because she soon pulled him inside and they went into a back area, which was closed off by a curtain. Watching this, I couldn’t help but think of the portraits in Harry Potter, which come in go, leaving an open space when the subject isn’t there.
Always being polite, I didn’t take any pictures, but trust me when I say this was a sight that blew my mind (haha, almost a pun!)
Continuing my walk, I went to the Church of St. Jacob, where Peter Paul Rubens is said to be buried, a tomb of his own making. For whatever reason, this church wasn’t totally sacked by the French, so it has some very beautiful, original features. I was especially impressed by some of the other tombs in the building.
My favorite tomb
Rubens' tomb
Rubens, who became incredibly famous and wealthy within his lifetime, actually put his tomb directly behind the altar, in the chapel normally dedicated to the Virgin. Well, this one still has an overall “Mary-vibe” but Rubens gave himself quite a sizable marble plaque on the floor, and put the likenesses of himself and his family in the large altar portrait he painted. Cocky bastard. Since I arrived a bit late at St. Jacob’s, I had to rush a bit to see it all before it closed (luckily I not only got a reduced rate because I’m a student, but also because it was getting near closing time). Well, having sufficiently see three churches, and countless whores, I walked back to my hotel so I could officially check in.
Once I’d checked in, I had my first view of the room. Wow. Major score for Willie. Apparently I hadn’t reserved a room but a suite. For less than 100 Euros a night, I was thrilled. I had my own living room with large dining area, a sizable kitchen, a bedroom, and a giant bathroom. I didn’t even know what to do with that much space! Nonetheless, I was impressed with my travel agent skills. Since it was now getting a bit late and I was dead tired, I did some homework, went out for a simple dinner (kosher pizza not far from my hotel) and came back to rest up for the next day.
28 Oct
Since I was looking for an early start, I did plenty of research the night before, and had a full game plan set. Having found an online site with some self-guided Antwerp architecture tours, I was ready to roll early in the day. I walked down to the southern area of Antwerp, to the suburb called Bercham, and started the journey by looking at some really great houses. Since this area was very wealthy at the end of the 19th century, there were hundreds of amazing houses here. Each one had a name and story that was visible from the exterior.
The Sunflower House
The Battle of Waterloo House
Detail of the decoration of the House of 12 Apostles
Details of the decoration of the House of the 12 Devils
After tour number 1, I took a taxi (my right foot still being very sore from the death March in Brussels) to the new Palace of Justice to start the second tour. Taxis in this city are not cheap, bub! For every second you wait in traffic, it’s .01 Euros. Well, you wait in a lot of red lights! The Palace of Justice, called the omgekeede friztzakken (the twisted fry sacks) by locals is awesome. It was finished in 1976, and was designed by Richard Rogers, the same guy who did the Pompidou Center in Paris (a miserable failure). This building is really A+ modern architecture, in my opinion. It’s all glass (the jducial system should be see through, right?) and has a reflective silver roof. Soo awesome! Like the first tour, the second was excellent. This guy does a great job with walking tours: <www.antwerp-tourist-guide.com/Antwerp-City-Tour.html>
One of three of the 5 Continents Houses that remains
The owner was a shipbuilder
PP Rubens designed city gate
Having just about walked myself to death, I was ready to start on the museums of Antwerp. My first museum would be the Plantijn-Moretus house, the Printing Museum. The Plantijn (pronounced Plantin’ like I’ve been plantin’ my ass in this same chair for hours now) family was a very well renowned printing family, and they did very well for themselves. It was very typical bourgeoise house of the 1620s, and very interesting. Since the family worked closely with Rubens on some projects, there were a number of Rubens studies and drawings for bookplates and title pages. Even for somebody who knows nothing about printing, I enjoyed it. I was also impressed by the audio guide, which was really imperative, even though I don’t normally like them. I learned a lot. For example, 1 printing press could turn out 1250 sheets per day. And the oldest printing presses in the world are currently at this museum, and in working order.
From there I wasn’t very far from the underground tunnel to cross the river. Unlike most cities, there are no Bridges to cross the river in Antwerp. None. (Bizarre, right?) No, instead they have an underground walking tunnel to go from side to side. Who can say no to a 70 year old WOODEN escalator to go 31.57 meters into the ground (that’s over 100 feet)? Down in the tunnel (all 572 meters of it!) people ride bikes to go from end to end, and even drive the occasional Vespa. (There is also an elevator to get into the tunnel. An elevator that holds 80 people, no less.)
After taking enough self-pictures to make even Myspace blush, I went back to the city side of the river and continued my random walking adventures. I spent a while walking along the river Schelde in the area around the Maritime Museum, which is closed. The museum is housed in the remains of the 13th century castle-fortress of the city. They had hundreds of boats which could be seen, though I couldn’t get very close.
Although it was Friday, I was a little bit worried about going out by myself tonight. In general I don’t worry, but since it was Friday and I was living in the Jewish neighborhood I was afraid that there would be nobody on the streets, and all the stores would be closed, so I went home pretty early, plus I had work to do. Wow, am I a fun traveller. I was completely correct about the stores closed, but as the night went on, the streets were packed! I was shocked. Lesson learned: even Hasidic Jews look to have a good time on the Sabbath!
29 Octobre
Since it was my last day in Antwerp, I had it scheduled out to the last minute, with lots of museums! I started out with the Mayer van den Bergh Museum, a museum created after the premature death of a young collector by his mother. This guy collected a bit of everything, and it was overwhelming. If you’ve ever been the Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum, it was like that. Just too much. (I can’t stand the ISG Museum. I always feel like I’m going to explode because there is soooooo much too look at, and it is so overwhelming.) I could have done without going to this museum. I don’t regret it (some more great Rubens), but shit son, there is no need to show everything at once! I also had some serious concerns for their collection because anybody could touch anything, such as the very beautiful 14th century tapestries in the stairway, which were no protected in any way.
With one museum down, and not very happy with it, I went to one that I really dreaded: the Rubens House, the domicile of Antwerp’s most celebrated artist. Aside from being PACKED, it was actually pretty good. There weren’t as many Rubens paintings as I expected (he didn’t paint them to keep them, duh!), but the house itself was a great way to learn more about the vernacular architecture of Flanders. The thing that completely redeemed this museum was the special exhibit about Rubens and his infatuation with Italian Baroque Architecture. It discussed his trips to Italy and its influence on his architectural drawings. It was very well done, and had a great paper guide, which I am guarding like it’s gold. It was a particularly appropriate because ½ of the house is a very traditional house, which Rubens purchased, while the other half, which contained the artist’s studio, was self designed and practically oozed baroque. It was a great juxtaposition.
After doing the museum, I took a nice tour of the gardens, and even in the grey of the Antwerp morning, it was pretty good. The gardens also had a funky little garden folly by Rubens which was very Italian as well.
Rubens house and studio
Between courtyard and garden
Garden Folly
Vernacular and Italian unite
With it now being about lunchtime, my tapeworm was wide awake, and I was ready for some munchies. Having done research the previous night, I learned that the place where I got my fries on the first day was supposed to be the best “fritteur” in Antwerp, so I decided to return and see if they were any better today. I ordered just fries, and Samurai sauce. I had no clue what Samurai sauce would be, but I figured it would be spicy, which would cut down on the salt overload I got last time. Once again, way too much sauce, but not nearly as salty and gross as the last time. In general, the fries were good, and alone with a burger they would have been to die for, but with the sauce soup all over them, it was just bizarre.
Having eaten as many fries as I wanted, I went on with the museum tour. Next up: the Rockoxhuis, the home of Nicolas Rockox, a very wealthy man who was very involved in town government and the wellbeing of Antwerp’s Citizens in the 17th Century. After the first museum today which proved to be a bust, I was not sure I really wanted to do this museum, but it got very good reviews, so I went. For one euro, why not?! When I arrived, there was only one Flemish (that’s what you call Belgians) family ahead of me, so we the four of us had the entire museum to ourselves. It was great. A totally wonderful museum (and pictures were encouraged!) with beautiful furniture, art, and great employees. When the four of us arrived at the movie theatre, the man came up to me and apologized that the movie was in Flemish, but if I waited around the museum, after the first film was over, he would replay it for me in English. I was very impressed by that. Since I now had the museum to myself, I took my time, looking at everything in depth, and really being amazed by the diversity of the collection. A couple of times I actually got so close to the artifacts that I set off the security alarms, but nobody came running to yell at me, so I guess they trusted me. As I got close to the end of the museum, I began wondering about the film, so when I finished I sat down and pretended to make myself look busy. A couple of minutes later I heard a knock on the door of the central courtyard and the guard beckoned me out, and took me to the theatre for my private showing of the movie. It was super nice, and I was very happy.
Rockoxhuis
Ivory inlaid chest
Details
Detail of portrait of N. Rockox by Rubens
From there I went to the final big church that I hadn’t yet visited: the church of St. Paul At first I couldn’t figure out how to get in, but once I found out the side entrance (these Antwerpian churches are big on using the side entrances). This church was once again huge, but had this really cool grotto-garden on the side. It was built into the side of the church, and was strange in its organic form compared to the towering Gothic church. Inside, there was the typical white/black contrast in the decoration, and beautiful wood carving, especially in and around the confessionals, which were totally carved with figures.
With my final church of Antwerp done, I went to the final museum, and Antwerp’s newest. It is called the Museum Aan der Stroom, and is located right on the water. It is a very modern building, but it is awesome. Huge swaths of glass draw your eyes up the side of a red, sandstone building, and it is so interesting to look at. This museum has all sorts of exhibits (a different one each floor, and they are all really thought provoking. In each one you enter into a room with an audio-visual piece which sort of addresses the topic of the exhibit and makes you consider what you bring with you as preconceptions. The exhibits included the history of Antwerp art, the concept of sense of self, Antwerp’s identity, Death, Trade, and others. Each looked at places all over the world, and with lots of viewpoints, you actually learned a lot and thought about how this played into what you already knew. It was also nice that from each level, on the escalator landing, you had really beautiful views of the city.
Another thing I really liked about these exhibits was that they included all types of artifacts. On one floor was a late 1930s red touring car. Elsewhere there hundreds of stuffed Winnie-the-Pooh stuffed animals, discussing trade and illegal trade. The use of colored lights also evoked a lot of different feelings, which was interesting because the exhibition areas had no windows at all.
At the top of the building was a viewing deck, from which you had panoramic views of the entire area. Only from here did I have any sense of how far I’d actually walked. Since it was early evening, the colors were especially beautiful as the sun began to set. That night, since it was so nice, I enjoyed the downtown area quite a bit before I finally began moseying to my suite to settle down.
My hotel was to the left and was behind two tiny spires.
The next day, my last day, I went out to find a late breakfast/early lunch, since I was leaving soon after noon. On my way into town, I found the most enormous open air market I’ve ever seen, and I knew I hit paydirt. There, between the olive sellers and the people selling God only knows what, was a lady making nice fresh waffles. I neeeded one, with lots of powdered sugar and chocolate. My mouth is watering just thinking about it! Well, I chowed that sucker down so fast there was a cloud of white powder that would make any crack addict jealous! After my waffle, I walked around for about an hour, just soaking up the last of Antwerp. What a place! Since I had to walk back to get my suitcases before walking to the train station, I got a little paper sack of fries (no sauce this time), and they were the best by far. Not too salty, and not swimming in sauce. Finally good fries! One interesting thing that makes Belgian fries so much better is the way in which they are cooked. They are fried.. TWICE! After the first time they just back onto the shelf, waiting to be ordered, and then they are fried the second time, so they are super crispy when they arrive in your hand. Damn they’re good!
With more fried yumminess than I knew what to do with, I got my bags, and went off the train station to wait for my train, and finding time to take a few more pictures.
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