Belgians love being eco-friendly and thus they love having festivals to celebrate their eco-friendliness (I would guess this uses up many non-renewable resources, but we'll ignore that for now).Sunday
, Sept 20 was Autoloze Zondag (Car-less Sunday) for all of Belgium. In the entire country, you're not supposed to drive your car, public transit is free, and there are people out everywhere to enjoy another opportunity to get a little crazy. I was lucky enough to spend this pseudo-holiday in Brussels, the capital of Belgium and it's many follies. Also lucky for me, I was in this French-speaking city with Anne, from France, so my brain got to take a break from translating/being really confused.
, Sept 20 was Autoloze Zondag (Car-less Sunday) for all of Belgium. In the entire country, you're not supposed to drive your car, public transit is free, and there are people out everywhere to enjoy another opportunity to get a little crazy. I was lucky enough to spend this pseudo-holiday in Brussels, the capital of Belgium and it's many follies. Also lucky for me, I was in this French-speaking city with Anne, from France, so my brain got to take a break from translating/being really confused. 
It was actually an incredible thing to see. In front of the main palace in Brussels, where there usually stands just stones and tourists, a huge plot of grass was placed in the middle of an 
open-air market/information area. There were dozens of booths, each having something to do with the environment, from eco-friendly cleaning products, to bio (European for "organic") foods, to Freecycle-type organizations to livestock. Yes, in the middle of the royal square in the "Capital of Europe" there were chickens, pigs, goats, rabbits, and cows you could milk (I opted to leave the cows with their privacy, woman to woman). I did, however, eat some of the BEST corn-on-the-cob I have ever had in my life. That alone would make a good Sunday in my book.
open-air market/information area. There were dozens of booths, each having something to do with the environment, from eco-friendly cleaning products, to bio (European for "organic") foods, to Freecycle-type organizations to livestock. Yes, in the middle of the royal square in the "Capital of Europe" there were chickens, pigs, goats, rabbits, and cows you could milk (I opted to leave the cows with their privacy, woman to woman). I did, however, eat some of the BEST corn-on-the-cob I have ever had in my life. That alone would make a good Sunday in my book.
Additionally, there were other art fairs and cultural cel
ebrations happening in various parts of the city. There was a stage in the middle of the Grote Markt where people of different ethnicities performed folk music (from Equador to Poland...don't ask me why), and a large area outside of a Chinese tea house advertising this fall's Chinese culture celebration (another festival, shocking).
ebrations happening in various parts of the city. There was a stage in the middle of the Grote Markt where people of different ethnicities performed folk music (from Equador to Poland...don't ask me why), and a large area outside of a Chinese tea house advertising this fall's Chinese culture celebration (another festival, shocking).
One of the coolest things about Brussels, though, is that I have friends there. (Look, Ma! Friends!) There are about 25 volunteers here in Belgium and since
we're all located in various cities throughout Flanders, there's always a place for us to stay when we want to go to an event in another city! The night before Autoloze Zondag a bunch of us got together at my friend Petar's apartment just to hang out/party/go to sleep waaaay past our bedtimes. It's always so much fun hanging out with them, especially since these are people who understand a lot of what I'm going though and are just as excited to see me as I am to see them:) Also, there is this remarkable view from Petar's apartment:
So there you go, the Festival of Festivals that took place over two weekends. You will soon hear about many more Belgian events because, well, they're always going on. At least waffles are always served, so who am I to complain...
xoxo
kosher waffle
(Dad) I've heard of colleges that were party towns. Sounds like all of Belgium is party town!
ReplyDelete