Brussels Warnings Or Dangers Tips by irisbe Top 5 Page for this destination

Why we drink beer

Long, long time ago, and I am speaking from Middle Ages and after, water was very dangerous to drink. Unless you lived right next to the well, or you boiled it, it was ok.

When monks from the South came to settle here, they wanted to import the winemaking as they did so in their monasteries. The wine was a good alternative for water and safe to drink.
However, grapes were difficult to cultivate here so far North and the harvest not sufficient enough to provide them the wine necessary.

By special permission of the Church, they were allowed to brew beer instead of wine.
Yeast, one of the most important elements of the beer, was to each monastery a treasure to be kept secret. But I guess espionage and stealing are of all ages, so it happened that someone took a part of the (living) yeast and took it with him to another monastery. Slowly also others then monks were brewing beer and you could find a lot of microbreweries all around.
I think in Bruges there were over 300 of them some centuries ago!).

If you see the water on the picture (taken at Brussels), then you see it is “not drinkable water” as the sign says! So… you will have to taste one of our beers instead!

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I would recomend you to visit my Belgium page and have a look at the "tourist trap" tips if you want to make some choices.
It will be time I update that chapter because I have tried out many more beers since!

Website: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/23575/16f/7/

Don't get ripped off by Chinese mafiosa

In and around the big market of Brussels, new chocolate shops are popping up like mushrooms in a moisty forrest.
Don't be suprised to find chinese behind the desk claiming to sell you "real Belgian"chocolat.
IT IS FAKE!!!! AND NOT BELGIAN CHOCOLAT!
It is chocolate of low quality with no cacao in it but just fat and cream and I am informed by insiders most of it is fabricated by a Dutch company who recently moved their commercial seat into Belgium so they are able to sell their crap as Belgian chocolate.
DON'T GET FOOLED!!!
You might be seduced to enter the shop as you are clamped on at the street and be invited to enter the shop (BELGIAN SHOPKEEPERS NEVER DO AS SUCH!!!) and they preferable focus on Chinese and other Asian tourists as they are more keen to folow and believe there "fellow Asian".
They are ripped off!
They will pay less then in any other shop but they are not buying chocolat but fantasy low quality rubbish!
This rubbish is brought by those tourists into their countries as Belgian chocolat and it is ruining our reputation!
Please pass on this news to any one you know who wants to visit Belgium, especially Brussels in this case and WARN THEM against the fraudulous practices!
Ask for fellow VT-ers what are the right brands and be willing to pay at least around 30 Euro a kilo and not a 14 Euro or something like that as you just can't have handmade chocolat for that price...

Not all are bad, not all are good either! Taxis Review

In 2004 we organised a VT meeting in Brussels for the arrival of vginginbabe.
She had emailed her phone number and I tried to call her several times. It was always her answering machine.
Later on we managed to meet up and we heard her story on how on her first moments of arrival in Brussels she got ripped of by a taxidriver.
Accordingly to her explication she must have paid almost tripple the normal price and on top of it, through the consternation and her refusal to pay the first demanded amount of fee, she even forgot her mobile phone in the cab.

There are a few rules to watch when taking a cab:
1. Is it an official cab? in doubt write down the number plate or the number and company of the cab.
2. Check if there is a meter in the cab or negociate about the price first (but only do so if you know what approx you normally need to pay). Cabs always start with a start amount, independent of the distance you will drive.
3. If you know someone in the city you are at, you might want that person call their regular cab to pick you up or you can drive to that person and let him/her check if the amount could be correct.

South Station Midi/Zuid Avoid at Night Review

A place I would not easily wander around at night is the area around the South station.
At daytime you only have the stunning smell or should I say stench? of the pee of many men who consider the walls and every corner as a public toilet, but at night it also looks dangerous.
If you need to go to Brussels centrum and you arrive late, you better take the train to Central station or the metro, if you have too much luggage, just take a taxi but don't let them rip you off! That happens.

Driving can be dangerous for your sanity :) Driving Review

This is a crossroad/round point North/North-West of Place de Ste Catherine.
I took this picture from the corner at the end of Quai aux Barbes/Shutetankaai and th Arduinkaai/Quai aux pierres de taille.

Have you counted the traffic signs? If you only count the ones you see the fronts of and that warns you it is a one-way direction, you must come to 8!
But as you can see if you click on the picture to have the full view… there are plenty more traffic signs!
I think it was a sale-out when they bought them!

No way you can listen at the door!

Another thing about the Flemish Parliament is the fact that all the conference rooms are provided with special double doors so no one can put his/her ear against the door and listen over any secret decisions or deals made.

Look out at the Flemish Parliament !

When I was visiting the Flemish Parliament building and I was walking at the 2nd level underneath the glazier ceiling, I suddenly looked down and I saw I was walking on glas!
I could see right through the floor into the lower level... so... conclusion:
If I can see what is underneath me... then sure those at the 1st level can see what is on top of them... namely me in short skirts! waaahaaa...
I pointed it out to the guide
I said "Help!:" but she said... just walk those tiles that are made blurred (like the part in the left bottom corner) and you will be safe and the ppl down there won't spoil their coffee over their suites when you pass `-)

funny LOL