EU and NATO characterizes Brussels, and Brussels is often associated with serious and smartly dressed men with wrinkled brows and worried mines in the deep, serious discussions. But Brussels is very different. The sidewalk cafes in the sunshine with a cold beer, it's fascinating museums, it's unique culinary experiences and it is small hidden treasures around the city. A study trip to Brussels has many other things to offer than visits by the two large organizations.

Experience Brussels in the best way

To get to Brussels - and to stay there!

One would think that it was easy and cheap to get to Brussels. However, the prices of aircraft is actually surprisingly high so depending on where you live in the country can certainly pays to check alternative travel options. Both train and bus are fine alternatives to fly. We took the trip down there in the bus and the trip took about 11 hours. In return, we saved a lot of money at the same time that it actually created a great team spirit in the process. A small tip; If you travel by rented bus down there, it's a good idea just to check that the hotel has a stopping place for buses or else it's a hassle just to find a place for it. It is also possible to travel down by train, but here the prices are a little pricey, and the trip long.

What you use on your trip, you might save on the hotel. The choices are many, the standard is high and prices are low. You should be aware that you must be out in time, because quite often the Brussels frame around various summits or conferences, and so it can be hard to find unemployed and central hotels. Breakfast at Brussels hotels are generally good; the vast majority of hotels offer a breakfast buffet, where absolutely nothing is missing.

NATO and EU

On a visit to Brussels comes, of course, not without a visit to the two institutions; NATO and the EU. It would be strange otherwise. Here we can from the Student guide did not emphasize enough how important it is to be out in time for the planning and have made some agreements. If you want to visit NATO, contact the Danish mission to NATO in good time, because it's more work for them to find premises and presenter. In addition, the visitor's passport number is input, so that they may be allowed. Therefore it is important to be out in good time.

Nato:
One must also realize that there are times when visits are not possible. One should not expect a tour because security is so high as it is, so it's very limiting areas, one must stay on. Despite all of this, a visit by NATO strongly recommended. It's kind of fascinating to see all the different military personnel who are going around the corridors and everything sikkerhedsopbuddet also gives an indication of which military secrets that can be found here. But not least, their presenters pretty amazing. They are super competent, entertaining and gives a good insight into the different international issues NATO is working with. A visit by NATO can definitely only recommended. One could possibly. ask his travel agency if they could help to facilitate the contact.

EU:
EU -VISIT is similarly good. Here we write, however, of little bitter experience when we strongly recommend that you in good time. It takes time to get in touch with the EU, and it can be surprisingly difficult to find a way into the system. You can almost beforehand forget to make contact with the commission. It has often busy and it can be hard to find round-pointers that hit the secondary target. MPs on the other hand easier to get on and get an agreement with - but again it is important to be in good time. We would recommend that you contact the politicians' press officer. In this way, it manages to make good agreements and perhaps even panel discussions. The only requirement is that you are in good time for their program is often packed. One should also be aware that it is almost impossible to find someone to talk to from Thursday midday onwards because parliamentarians and other good people have gone home. A visit by the EU can be a rather difficult affair, because it can be difficult to get in touch with the right people, but when it falls into place, it will be really good. One could also consider here whether your travel agency could help to facilitate the contact. However, it may be that they can not do it as effectively as you can.

Museum:
Close to the parliament finds a quite excellent museum that shows the EU's history and work areas. But like the visit by the EU and NATO, pay rpmærksom that students should be well dressed home. If you know nothing about the EU and NATO in advance, you will not understand much of what is going on.

As a little footnote, we will mention that it is worthwhile to explore the possibility of scholarships before traveling on a study trip with his students - there may be a lot to download here. But enough about EU and NATO! Brussels has therefore also different to offer.  

A tour of the city

One of the things that really moves in Brussels is to stroll through the city. The center is not very big, and you can - relatively easier to go from one end of town to the other. Here you will pass through the city's many diverse neighborhoods; the official neighborhoods, immigrant neighborhood and the famous African neighborhood.

If you get pain in his legs, one should not despair. There's great public transportation in Brussels. Buses run frequently and in all places, and the metro works perfectly.

Grand Place:
You have to love themselves, to also move into the central Grand Place. It is very impressive to look at. Grand Place is described as one of the most beautiful squares in Europe and is one of Belgium's biggest tourist attractions. The impressive buildings dating mainly from the late 17th century. The late-Gothic town hall from the 1400 figure stands out by his advanced age. Note the statue of St. Michel, who is the patron saint of Brussels, which sits at the top of the spire. Try to time it so that you come into place at sunset. There is light quite special and often, there is a sea of street artists and musicians in the square.

Also the Royal Palace and its park are worth a visit. The grass may not be used, so it's not that create a great atmosphere there, but the park is nice and looking down to some fine buildings and sweeping views of the city.

Manneken Pis:
Last but not least (although he is surprisingly small) must include the famous Manneken Pis, which is a little tucked on a side square but always with a lot of tourists around him. Manneken Pis depicts a tissende boy and is one of Brussels landmarks. The 60 centimeter high bronze statue is created by Hieronymus Duquesnoy in 1619. The reason for the statue's special motive is unknown, but it is said that a two-year boy one day away from his father in Brussels. The father searched day and night for him and promised that if he found him, he would raise a statue of the boy as he found him. On special occasions clothed Manneken Pis different suits. His wardrobe counts more than 800 costumes, of which 100 are exhibited at the Brussels City Museum.

Museums

As the capital of course there are many different museums in Brussels. Some are clearly aimed at geeks while others are for the general population. One of them is the impressive African museum. This museum, the museum of Belgium's colonial past.

Tintin and Terry:
Tintin and Terry is known by most. And the Belgians is then no secret of their pride in the famous duks boy and his clever dog. In Brussels, there is a fine little museum of Tintin with many original drawings and fun gadgets. If you plan to take a little something home from there, one must, however, have the wallet in order taking things are very expensive. If you can not get enough of comics can also visit the Cartoon Museum Centre Belge de la Bande Dessinée. Here you can see exhibitions of the great cartoon characters like Tintin and Lucky Luke. In addition, awards the museum free map of Comic route in Brussels city center, so you can visit the 18 gables with comic books in large format. It can be a great and fun idea to teach students Brussels center to know.

The Royal Military Museum:
If is more to museums in the heavy end, you can visit the Royal Military Museum. But here must be stressed that it is targeted for geeks to put it frankly. The museum has an almost unrivaled collection of war material, but it is good to have put himself into something of it in advance, otherwise you will probably feel a little bit lost.

City Museum of Manneken Pis and the Jewish Museum are examples of fine, classic museums, where you can easily get an afternoon to go.

There are many delicious places to eat in Brussels, and there are several delicacies, you should try when you are in Brussels.

Mussels and fries?
Something you should do when you are in Brussels is to eat a good time mussels with French fries. Belgians are even very excited about it, and such a meal with a cold beer is then not quite call to put it on Jutland. However, it may be a good idea to try it one of the better places, otherwise the quality and taste well be quite mediocre. The good places are, however, easy to find - just look for the queue. When we had to visit the EU parliament and were hunting for lunch, we found a small stall where the queue was about 200 m. So we knew we had struck gold and after about half an hour in line, we were also the best fries we some ever received.

Prices are fine and the food is top notch in Brussels. Even if you visit some of them that look like tourist traps quality is top notch. As a souvenir from Brussels should visit one of the numerous chocolate shops. They come in all price ranges and the individual chains specializing in different things. One could also consider a visit to Le Chocolatier Manon, who is a fine small chocolate factory. Here ends the tour with that you get a small bag of chocolate. It is not entirely bad end ...

Belgian beer in the world:
Belgian beer is widely known - and for good reasons for both quality and variety is brilliant. Each small bar or cafe has an impressive selection of beer and prices are relatively low compared to Denmark. One could Sagte angle a study, so the Belgian beer was a key roll - even without going drowned in the ;-).

On the whole, there are many opportunities to see the beer and chocolate museums or factories. Consider, for instance. visit Ølmuseet Gueze or brewery Cantillion. On the Cantillon Brewery, where the family Van Roy-Cantillon welcome you and gladly tells about the production of special beer Gueuze. The beer is 100% organic, and is a so-called Lambic, which means that it is prepared by spontaneous fermentation, and is brewed from barley malt, 60-70% and 30-40% unmalted wheat. By incorporating a visit to one of these things, one can give his study a more business-oriented angle.

Out of Brussels

There are several things you can see, if you want to leave Brussels for a short while. One feature is get out and see many of the breweries where monks over time, has been to brew beer. However, it is recommended just to hear how much there is to show a given location. Often, the production moved away, so you can actually see, just a few A4 - posters, and this is perhaps not the long drive worthwhile.

Waterloo:
If you want to see something else of Belgium outside Brussels Waterloo, where Wellington beat Napoleon, a popular destination. There is a quite excellent museum, with details of the battle and various documentaries. Moreover, you should not miss out on the view from the high support freedom that marks the battlefield, there are many steps, but the view is worth it!

When we were leaving, we considered also the beautiful old Hanseatic city of Bruges. Brygge is also relatively close to Brussels and is also worth a visit if you want to see something else. Unfortunately, it's a great day to be devoted to this, so it was pressure for us.

To put it short!

Brussels In other words recommended as a fine destination for a study. EU and NATO is of course a must, but the city has been written too much else to offer.

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