"The town where I was born! (yeah, yeah, big deal!)" Nivelles by XenoHumph

Nivelles Travel Guide: 9 reviews and 23 photos

Collégiale Ste Gertrude, Nivelles, Belgium

Great town full of history

What a shame! The first time I looked for Nivelles on VT, nothing! With all these talented Belgian VT members, what's going on that none seems to know this nice little town, where the famous Xenohumph saw the light of the day for the first time??
Well, so, I had to do something, even if my pictures are not top quality and I visited the town as a tourist only once, in 2001 to show it to my husband. For 25 years, every year, I went to Nivelles to visit my grand-mother and stay at her place, a small typical white-painted brick house. So, I am not very versed on all the historical stuffs to see here, beside the biggest church in town, Collégiale Sainte-Gertrude (above) dating from the Middle-Ages. It is one of the biggest romanesque churches in Europe.

World War II

Nivelles, Belgium, in 1940

Nivelles was bombed by the Germans in 1940. Luckily the walls of the Collégiale withstood the blast, and all that needed to be rebuilt were the roof and the main steeple. Houses around the church were completely flattened.
This is a picture that was in my Grand-Mother's living room throughout my childhood. The picture was taken by the local photographer Monsieur Sanspoux (funny name by the way in french, it means without flees!). Sorry, the scanning of the picture through its glass frame did not give a wonderful result...

House of the 1950' in Nivelles, Belgium

Nivelles is located about 25 km South of Brussels, in the Brabant -Wallon province of Belgium. The inhabitants of Nivelles are called aclots (male) and aclotes (female) and they speak french.

The house on the picture was built by my mother in the 50'. I lived there the first year of my life. My parents sold the house more than 10 years ago. I think the street is Rue Dangonneau.

Pros and Cons

Pros:Great little town to visit or live in, 30 mn train from Brussels
Cons:Belgian weather... (i.e. rain and grey!)
In a nutshell:Go see it!

Last visit to Nivelles: Aug 2001
Intro Updated Oct 18, 2004
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Reviews (9)

Tour Sainte Gertrude, Nivelles, Belgique - Nivelles

Le Tour Sainte Gertrude Local Customs (1)

This parade is a middle-age tradition, still very well alive. The whole town follows around in a day-long pilgrimage the... more travel advice

Tarte Al D'jote, Nivelles, Belgium - Nivelles

Tarte Al D'Jote Restaurants (1)

A delicious pie (quiche like) made with parsley, local fresh cow cheese and a type of salad-like vegetable (bette, or... more travel advice

My grand-mother's house! Off The Beaten Path (2)

Bonne Maman lived in this little house for more than 30 years. These cheap little houses were built after the war and... more travel advice

Nivelles train station, Belgium - Nivelles

The train station Off The Beaten Path (2)

An architectural design imported from England in the early 19th century! more travel advice

Things to Do (3)
See All Other things to see in Nivelles

Transportation (2)
See All A car would be practical to go around...

Travelogues (2)

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Comments (24)

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Nemorino Sep 8, 2012 at 3:57 PM

A nice little page about the town in Belgium where you were born. I visited Belgium this summer, but the other part of Belgium, namely Bruges, Gand and Anvers. We even had some VT meetings in Anvers aka Antwerp.
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mvtouring Jul 18, 2010 at 2:42 PM

What a lovely page with great tips. I loved reading them and seeing the place through your eyes ;-)
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breughel Nov 1, 2008 at 1:36 AM

Entre nous: le temps en Belgique a encore empiré. A Pâques il neigeait encore, ce 30 octobre il neigeait déjà dans le Brabant wallon. Nous attendons toujours ce réchauffement du climat promis par Gore. Belle page sur Nivelles à 20 Km de chez moi.
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gutk May 9, 2008 at 3:41 PM

I would like to have someone from the town contact me. I am looking for information on different locations from 1900. E mail Gutk@comcast.net
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JLBG Jan 27, 2006 at 7:04 AM

A part le chien, je ne connaissais rien de Nivelles. Merci !
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Muya Jun 17, 2005 at 4:14 AM

Ah bon tu es née à Nivelles ? J'habite juste à côté... Pas encore trouvé le temps de faire ma page, mais ça viendra :-) Jolies photos de la Collégiale !! Merci pour tes votes ! Muriel
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tpangelinan Mar 29, 2005 at 5:24 PM

Nice home town shots! Looks like a perfect place to grow up. I love your member photo!
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starship Jan 28, 2005 at 8:05 AM

I happily agree, you come from a beautiful town!
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bambino36 Nov 22, 2004 at 4:00 PM

Aww.. I missed Nivelles... and was so close. Took a detour to avoid the traffic from Oostende to Brussels and was really close... Nice town and very good tips :) No beach tho ;)
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dvideira Oct 23, 2004 at 4:18 PM

Thanks for the stroll through this beautiful little town. Great tips and beautiful pics. Thanks for sharing your memories and impressions.