The third season of guided tours of the Belgian capital, spearheaded by Explore.Bruxelles and the Brussels-Capital Region, kicked off on Friday, with visitors treated to proposals for unusual routes around Molenbeek-Saint-Jean.
The season will run from April to December, featuring visits on foot and by bicycle, car and boat, organised in Dutch, English, French and German. Stakeholders include Arkadia, which took visitors on a street-art tour between La Fonderie and the MIMA Museum, which is also offering guided visits.
The Pro Velo association takes people to an "unusual Brussels," and Bruxelles Bavard focused on the Canal neighbourhood, to zoom in on traces of its industrial past, which tend to dim as gentrification takes hold.
The Urban Research and Action Network, ARAU, has developed an inventory of the transformations Molenbeek has undergone since the 1980s.
An expo at the Fonderie focused, through simple gestures such as drinking a glass of water, on the link between the city and the water.
In addition to Art Nouveau, Art Déco, neoclassical art and eclectism, the themes of the guided tours cover themes as varied as “green spaces,” gastronomy, folklore, history, heritage and Europe, among others..
