Belgian National Day 2021
Free museums entry, a parade and fireworks are part of the celebration
Every year, Brussels is decorated in black, yellow, and red. National Day festivities commemorate the constitutional oath taken by Leopold I in 1831, on July 21st. He became the first King of Belgium, and the country anchored its independence from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The first festivities start to take place on the 20th of July when people gather at the Place du Jeu de Balle to participate in the National Ball—an outdoor ballroom lesson for all levels. The class is comparable to an open-air party to the sounds of live music.
The celebration itself commences on the morning of the 21st of July when the Royal Family and high officials attend the Te Deum mass in the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula. At the same time, the party begins around the city—in Brussels Park, Rue de la Régence, Place Royale, Place Poelaert, Sablon, and surrounding areas. In the Police village, one may watch the demonstration of sniffer dogs. In the Safety Village, you can take part in VR-games based on freeing hostages. While in the Defense Village, you have the opportunity to overcome an obstacle course. In addition to the dozens of sports courses, performances, and concerts, people may also visit museums for free.
The most picturesque part is a civil and military parade that starts at 4 p.m. on the Place des Palais. Belgian army divisions, police and emergency services walk through the city with military equipment on display and an aircraft show.
The National Day celebration ends at the Place des Palais: at 11 p.m., fireworks light the sky above Brussels.
Experiences in Belgium
HALLERBOS
For only a few weeks, a purple-blue flower carpet covers the Hallerbos, a forest near Brussels. The original name for these tiny flowers is Campanula Rotundifolia, but they are now known as “harebell” or “bluebell.” In Belgium, they used to be added to beer to make it taste bitter. The deep colour of the blossom gave the Hallerbos an alternative name: the Blue Forest.
The Hallerbos is only 20 km (12 mi) from Brussels. Located mostly in the municipality of Halle, it occupies the territory between the Zenne River and the Sonian Forest.
TOMORROWLAND
When some new festival is being introduced to the public, one can try to predict success or failure, yet you never know for sure how it will turn out in the long run. In the case of Tomorrowland, it was something nobody could anticipate. In the opening year 2005, tickets were given away for free just to fill the space. In a few years, the event was rated among Europe’s leading electronic music festivals. The greatest sensation happened in 2013 when full tickets were sold in 35 minutes, and the remainder of the tickets—in a single second.
In that fateful 2013, the number of attendees recorded was 180,000 individuals. The first years weren’t that numerous. The audience number exceeded 50,000 only in 2008, that’s also when the number of DJs reached a hundred. The festive program features world’s best dance music. Some of the most prominent figures playing every year are Armin van Buuren, David Guetta, Tiësto and others.
Tomorrowland takes place annually in Boom, Belgium over the last two weekends of July
KATTENSTOET
On the 2nd Sunday of May, an unusual procession occupies the streets of Ypres (Ieper), a small town near the French border. The Kattenstoet literally translates to ‘the Cat Parade’ and it is fully dedicated to felines. It occurs once in three years.
The procession unites around 2,000 people in masquerade costumes of cats, mice, witches and sorcerers, cartoon and fairy-tale characters, etc. The majority of floats depict cats and reflect local legends and the history of Ypres. The most impressive participants of the parade are Ypres’ giants. Goliath, medieval characters, and male and female cats are among the giants that walk side-by-side with dancers and musicians through the streets of the town.
When the parade ends, the crowd moves to city hall (Cloth Hall). A city fool throws toy cats from the bell tower into the crowd. Later, a mock witch burning occurs: the crowd sets a puppet witch on fire. The fest continues with numerous concerts and performances around the town.
GENT JAZZ FESTIVAL
Gent Jazz Festival is one of the most significant events for the jazz scene in Europe. It unites not only the local artists but also hosts the world-class musicians such as Erik Truffaz, Dave Holland Big Band, GoGo Penguin, and others.
The festival lasts for two weekends. The program of the first weekend is dedicated to more traditional jazz artists. The second weekend unites musicians who play not only traditional jazz but contemporary, fusion, and experimental music inspired by and based on jazz.
CHERRY BLOSSOM
For a few days in April, cherries burst into blossoms. In Belgium, the best spot to observe the sea of pink and white and to smell the sweet scent is in Hasselt, a city in the province of Limburg, around an hour drive east of Brussels. Approximately 225 cherry trees are in bloom in the Japanese Garden of Hasselt, the largest garden of this kind in Europe
PUKKELPOP gives way only to Rock Werchter. World-class musicians have graced the stage at this festival: Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Radiohead, Metallica, Green Day, Blink-182, Guns’N’Roses, Daft Punk, The Prodigy, Nine Inch Nails, Björk, Eminem, etc. Today, the festival is located between a dual carriageway in Kiewit, to the north of Hasselt, Limburg. For a few days, the small village turns into a place of pilgrimage for alternative music lovers. Visitors can enjoy free camping, a variety of pubs, food trucks, and excellent spots to have a snack. They may visit a circus show, attend lectures and speeches at Think Tank, and even get their hair and make-up done in Salon Fou—a barbershop and saloon.
In the so-called Secret Rooms, festival-goers may get a cocktail, attend a mini-concert from a band, and listen to the latest releases of famous bands. Also, visual shows by world-famous artists are projected on the 3-D video wall every evening.
GHENT LIGHT FESTIVAL
Every three years, for five days, the city turns into the scene for local and international light artists. They turn windows into displays and walls into screens for enchanting projections. They decorate the sights and monuments of Ghent and construct a new look for the city.
THE PAGEANT OF THE GOLDEN TREE
Thousands of people gather to commemorate events that occurred back in 1468, namely —the marriage of Charles the Bold, Count of Flanders, with Margaret of York, the English princess. The Pageant of the Golden Tree was first organised in 1958 and has since been repeated every five years.
The celebration is divided into two main parts. The first part is the parade with around 1,700 participants in masquerade costumes—knights, princesses, folklore beasts, magicians, bandits, burgers, etc. The procession is accompanied by jugglers, acrobats, troubadours, giants, and decorative festive floats.
The second part is focused on the wedding itself. The key happening of the initial wedding was the Tournament of the Golden Tree: knights from the entire country came to compete at the Market Square. A sparkling golden tree was the symbol of the tournament. Today, the pageant is named after that tree. Back in 1468, that celebration lasted for ten days. The modern re-enactment of the jousting contest between horsemen is part of the weekend-long festivities.
BEER FESTIVAL
Belgium and beer are inseparable. There are almost 200 breweries in the country that produces around 1,500 types of beer. Sweet and bitter, strong and low-alcohol, fruit and sour—local brewers know how to satisfy any beer-lover. Trappist beers brewed in abbeys, amber, kriek beers (fruit beers), brown and red beers, saison, strong blond and wheat beers are among most famous types.
In 2016, the beer culture of Belgium was recognised by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. To understand what beer means to the Belgians, you may visit a local beer festival and try different kinds of drink. The best season for beer-lovers is autumn as there are plenty of events to choose from.
Poperinge Beer Festival (October 30–31, 2021)
Modeste Beer Festival in Antwerp (October 2–3, 2021)