Belgium is truly the heart of Europe. Gorgeous castles are essentially combined with modern architecture, old-fashioned breweries supply beer and malt liquor to casual street cafes, and local people gladly welcome foreigners, insatiable of adventures.

Even the smallest Belgian town has a wide range of attractions to offer, starting from weird museum exhibitions to magnificent abbeys and chalets. However, being short of time can significantly reduce the number of sightseeing spots, which is why top 5 places to visit might be distinguished.

從古怪的博物館展出到華麗的修道院，亦或是村間農(nóng)舍，即便是最下的比利時(shí)小鎮(zhèn)都會(huì)有許多風(fēng)景名勝。然而，停留時(shí)間的短暫會(huì)大大減少可供游覽的景點(diǎn)數(shù)量，這就是為什么我們列出5個(gè)與眾不同的必游之地。

It is obvious that Brussels is a top travel destination in Belgium. The sightseeing tours usually begin from Grote Markt Square. However, one could be interested in Mini-Europe Park, where all the masterpieces of European architecture are put, in miniature of course. Brusselians claim it is the only place in the world, where one can look at such a big number of magnificent sites. In fact, the total number is 300, among which the most cherished places are taken by Big Ben and Westminster Palace, Eifel Tower and Triumphal arch, Berlin Wall and Brandenburg Gate, Acropolis of Athens, Seville and Barcelona, etc. It is impossible to deny the presence of the European spirit.

布魯塞爾是比利時(shí)頂級(jí)旅游勝地已是眾人皆知的事。觀光之旅通常以市中心廣場(chǎng)為起點(diǎn)，不過你也可能會(huì)偏愛“小歐洲”公園。那里，所有歐洲建筑杰作以模型的方式展現(xiàn)給游客。布魯塞爾人宣稱這是世界上唯一一個(gè)能觀賞到如此數(shù)量的華麗建筑的地方。事實(shí)上，公園里共有300個(gè)建筑，其中最受歡迎的有大本鐘、威斯敏斯特宮、埃菲爾鐵塔、凱旋門、柏林墻和布蘭登堡門、雅典衛(wèi)城、塞維利亞和巴塞羅那等等。在那里，你絕不能否認(rèn)歐洲風(fēng)情的存在。

Besides being one of the oldest diamond centers in Europe, Antwerp was also the home of Peter Paul Rubens. Rubens House is nowadays turned into museum, devoted to the life and art of this notable artist. In fact, it was the house Rubens built for himself and his family. Regardless, there are fewer paintings by Rubens, as mostly they are exhibited in the world-known museums. On the contrary, visitors are offered to observe his sketches, simple designs and portraits. In addition, the entire construction might be considered Rubens’ art work, as it was designed and performed under the painter’s guidance, impressed with Italian Renaissance and Baroque styles.

安特衛(wèi)普不僅是歐洲最古老的鉆石中心之一，也是彼得·保羅·魯本斯(Peter Paul Rubens)的故鄉(xiāng)。魯本斯故居現(xiàn)在已被改造為博物館，展示這位著名藝術(shù)家的生活和藝術(shù)。實(shí)際上，這座房子是魯本斯為自己和家人建的，而屋內(nèi)魯本斯本人的畫作并不多，因?yàn)楫嬜鞔蠖喽急凰偷街┪镳^展出了?？墒?，游客們也有機(jī)會(huì)細(xì)細(xì)觀看他的素描、簡(jiǎn)單的設(shè)計(jì)和肖像畫。除此之外，此建筑本身就是一個(gè)藝術(shù)杰作，由魯本斯親自設(shè)計(jì)和監(jiān)造，深受意大利文藝復(fù)興和巴洛克風(fēng)格的影響。

15 km away from Brussels travelers might find Gaasbeek castle. This is one of top ten castles in Belgium in all its glory. Notwithstanding it was founded in the 13th century, the modern image has been preserved since the 19th century. It has experienced numerous renovations due to constant battles and fires. All in all, to date one has a chance to observe a gorgeous interior adorned with magnificent collections of Renaissance painters, museum archive abundant in the documents of the 19th-20th century and marvelous gardens around. Recently, Gaasbeek castle became a subject matter of Guerlain Company’s sponsorship. Therefore, regular exhibitions of perfumes are organized there.

出了布魯塞爾再有15千米就是加斯比克城堡，一座享有比利時(shí)十佳城堡之一的榮耀的城堡。盡管建于13世紀(jì)，它現(xiàn)在的外觀自19世紀(jì)以來便沒有再變過。在歷史上，它因戰(zhàn)火洗禮而經(jīng)過多次修葺。總之，時(shí)至今日，游客們有機(jī)會(huì)入內(nèi)觀賞它流光溢彩的室內(nèi)設(shè)計(jì)、文藝復(fù)興時(shí)期的杰作，豐富的19到20世紀(jì)檔案以及周邊設(shè)計(jì)奇妙的花園。近日，加斯比克城堡得到嬌蘭公司的贊助，因此會(huì)有一些定期的香水展出。

The spirit of medieval times might be noticed in historical center of Mechelen. In particular, it is an oval square, surrounded by city walls that were built in the 13th century and partially ruined in the 19th. The main attraction of Mechelen is St. Rumbold’s Cathedral, situated nearby. Its carillon is considered the best one in Europe, so the city livelihood is almost under control of cathedral chime-balls. 49 tollers were casted since 1640.

梅赫倫頗具古風(fēng)的市中心最引人注目的它的中世紀(jì)風(fēng)情。那是一個(gè)橢圓形廣場(chǎng)，周邊有13世紀(jì)建造的圍墻環(huán)繞，雖然部分圍墻曾在19世紀(jì)遭到毀壞。梅赫倫最重要的景點(diǎn)就是位于附近圣伯姆特大教堂。教堂的鐘聲被公認(rèn)是全歐首屈一指，所以梅赫倫城里的一切的大事小情都是在鐘聲的指引下慢慢進(jìn)行。從1640至今，已有49個(gè)個(gè)鐘被使用。

While visiting Belgium, it is impossible not to taste a drink of a national importance. This clearly refers to a beer. It is hard to count and to name all the beer sorts and breweries, dispersed all over Belgium. In contrast, attending of some beer museums is a must thing to do. One of them is arranged in Brussels, specifically Gueuze Museum of Beer-Making. Here enthusiasts also can try Belgian champagne, made of old and new beer sorts.

在游覽比利時(shí)的過程中，不能不嘗一種國寶級(jí)的飲品。我指的顯然是啤酒。很難一一列舉分布在比利時(shí)各地的各種啤酒和釀酒廠。相反的，一些啤酒博物館反而是必游之地，其中之一就是布魯塞爾的貴茲啤酒釀造博物館。這里，有興趣的游客可以試一試由新舊不同的啤酒制成的比利時(shí)香檳。