"A Quaint Little Town Called VEURNE " a Belgium Travel Page by Krystynn

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Welcome to beautiful <b>BELGIUM</b>, my friends.

This is the Land of Belgian <i>frites</i>, <i>Godiva</i> chocolates, lovely quaint medieval villages (like <b>Brugge</b> and <b>Veurne</b>)... and home to the great <i>Peter Paul Reubens</i>,
the BEST Flemish artist ever lived. Yes, THE <i>Reubens</i>!

And our very first stop in Belgium is in the pretty little town of <b>VEURNE</b>.

<b>Veurne</b>, situated in the West of Flanders is a lovely and quiet (<i>not to mention, quirky</i>!) little town... with a small but interesting market place. There are many interesting houses here to capture your attention dating to as far back as the Spanish times. Let's begin with the <b>Town Hall</b>, built in a typical Flemish Renaissance style. Try and go inside to visit some of the beautifully decorated rooms. Other cool buildings to see include the <b>Palace of Justice</b> and of course the lovely <b>St. Walburga Church</b>.

Veurne was also the ONLY town in Belgium that was not occupied by the Germans during World War I. And no amount of heavy bombardments could destroy this little place! <i>God's blessings??</i> Maybe.

Anyway, we arrived at this quiet medieval town in the early afternoon and, <i>guess what</i>? I was immediately bowled over by its quaintness.... and rustic beauty! <i>Ah</i>, <b>Veurne</b>.
It's really best seen on foot with its many narrow cobbled lanes, unique tea rooms, a quaint <b>Bell Tower</b> and an old church amongst the many other attractions.

A quick window-shopping spree in the shops here selling all sorts of uniquely-shaped chocolates at UNBEATABLE prices, fine china ware, Belgian laces and souvenirs also left a lasting impression on me indeed. For where else can you find beautiful merchandise at such a bargain?! (Read: The things here are much, much cheaper than those sold in Brussels!).

<i>Need I mention that the houses here are all so captivating too</i>?? I felt as if I were being transported back in time during the merry days when <i>Robin Hood</i> and his merry men were kings of the forest. Only this is <b>Veurne</b> here in Belgium instead of Sherwood Forest in England! <i>Oh,</i> and the temperature here in mid-Spring can be quite chilly. 4 degrees Celcius. <i>Brrrrr</i>.

Our short one-day stopover in this little village with a strong Dutch influence (in its building architecture) certainly ignited my heart with a blazing desire to want to learn more about the rich culture of Belgium and its people.

<i>Why don't you come along with me</i> as I bring you on a short orientation tour around <b>Veurne</b>.... a place where not many tourists have discovered YET.

<b><U>BELGIUM FACTFILE:</u></b>

Full country name: Kingdom of BELGIUM

Area: 30,518 sq km

Population: 10.2 million

Capital: Brussels (pop: 970,000)

People: 55% Flemish (of Teutonic origin), 33% Walloons (French Latin) and about 10% foreigners.

Language: Flemish, French and German. Most Belgians also speak English.

Religion: More than 75% of the population is Roman Catholic.

Government: A constitutional parliamentary monarchy.

Monetary Unit: 1 Belgian franc = 100 centimes; Euro

Main Exports: Machinery and Electrical Equipment, Chemicals, Vehicles, Metals, Diamonds

Major Trading Partners: Germany, France, the Netherlands, UK

Internet Domain: .be

International Dialling Code: +32

Visas: EU citizens can enter on an official identity card. Travelers from Australia, Canada, Singapore, New Zealand, Japan, the USA and many other countries just need a valid passport (i.e. NO visa). Unless you're a citizen of a developing country, you can probably stay up to three months.

Health risks: None, except the cost of medical care. :-)

Time: GMT/UTC + 1hour (2 hours ahead in summer)

Electricity: 220V, 50 Hz

Weights & Measures: Metric

Tourism: 13 million visitors annually

<u><i>Above info courtesy of: The Belgium Tourism Board. </i></u>

<b><u>For your pre-trip planning, you can't beat these excellent sites:</u></b>

<a href="http://www.standaard.be/"target=newwindow>De Standaard</a>
<a href="http://www.tijd.be/"target=newwindow>De Financieel Economische Tijd (in Flemish)</a>
<a href="http://www.lesoir.be/"target=newwindow>Le Soir</a>
<a href="http://www.demorgen.be/"target=newwindow>De Morgen</a>
<a href="http://www.lalibre.be/"target=newwindow>La Libre (in French)</a>

<a href="http://www.rtbf.be/television/index.html"target=newwindow>RTBF Television</a>
<a href="http://www.tv1.be"target=newwindow>Flemish TV</a>

<a href="http://www2.rtbf.be/"target=newwindow>RTBF Radio</a>
<a href="http://www.radio1.be/"target=newwindow>Radio 1 (Flemish Radio)</a>
<a href="http://www.rvi.be/"target=newwindow>RV1 (Flemish Radio International)</a>

<b><u>Copyright: © Krystynn 2002.</u>
Please do not take my personal pics without prior permission. Thanks.</b>