My favourite bar: ‘Oud Arsenaal’

My favourite bar: ‘Oud Arsenaal’

One of the really authentic bars in town is called ‘Oud Arsenaal’ (Old Arsenal) and is situated in the Maria Pijpelinckxstraat. In case you didn’t know: Maria Pijpelinckx was Rubens’ mother, so it shouldn’t surprise you you can find this bar in the neighbourhood of the Rubens House Museum.

It has been a bar ever since 1924 and the building itself dates back to early 19th century. The starting date of the bar can still be read in the inscription above the door. The shop front has these orange-brown coloured ceramic tiles and probably the interior dates back to 1932. In that year a permit was granted to enlarge the café and at that moment the art-deco interior was installed, with its brown and yellow floor tiles, and its walls covered with wooden benches, mirrors and wooden wainscoting.

When you enter the cafe, you make a trip through time, going back nearly a hundred years. In 2009 a search was held to look for really authentic public bars and ‘Oud Arsenaal’ was selected as one of the top-locations.

And another reason to go there: Steph, the landlord, has a really impressive choice of fine beers from all over the country and that at very affordable prices.

Oud Arsenaal

Maria Pijpelinckxstraat 14

Wed-Fri: 10:00-22:00

Sat-Sun: 07:30 – 19:30

Saturdays and Sundays a market (Vogeltjesmarkt) is being held in the immediate neighbourhood, that explains the early opening hours.

Eat and drink, Going out , , , , , , , , ,

Our historical churches

Although a number of historical churches have vanished (e.g. the Walburgischurch in the very center of the old town, and the church belonging to the St-Michael’s cloister in the environment of the Kloosterstraat), we still have 5 churches with a rich historical background.

The most important of these of course is the Cathedral, Our Lady’s Church, situated between the Town Hall and the Groenplaats, which by the way used to be a cemetery belonging to the church. This gothic masterpiece is especially known for its 4 Rubens paintings. While restauration works are on their way in the Fine Arts Museum, part of the collection, which originally belonged to the cathedral, are on display again. So the cathedral is an interesting museum of its own.

The youngest of the historical churches is the Jesuits’ church: St-Carl-Borromeus. Its façade is a fine example of baroque art, but only inside will you be able to feel the effect of baroque completely, especially when you enter the Houtappel chapel (to your right facing the main altar). Also this church is closely connected with Rubens as there are clear signs that Rubens had a hand in the design of both the façade and the tower. Originally the aisles left and right had their ceilings painted by Rubens, but a fire in 1718 destroyed all of these paintings. Rubens also painted two large canvases for the main altar, but the originals are now on display in Vienna. The really unique thing about this church is that the painting adorning the main altar can be switched. The original device to perform this feat is still active and is being used four times a year.

Another church linked with Rubens is St-James’s, located near St-Jacobsmarkt, entrance via the southern aisle in Lange Nieuwstraat. Here the master is buried beneath a painting of his own choice. This church boasts a very impressive main altar in baroque style and an organ on which the young Mozart one gave a concert as he passed Antwerp in the company of his father and his sister.

At the Veemarkt (Cattle Market) you can find the entrance to St-Paul’s, which used to be the church of the dominicans as you can clearly see from the engravings above the entrance. In the church you will find paintings of all the great masters (Rubens, Van Dijck, Jordaens, …) but equally impressive is the calvary you will find in a courtyard belonging to the church.

Last but not least there’s St-Andrew’s (entrance Waaistraat) which boasts what is probably the most fascinating pulpit in the world.

Monuments , , , , , , , , ,

A prolonged Chinese New Year

A tip for those who plan to stay in our city Feb 4th or 5th.

Jan 28th the Chinese New Year was celebrated in Chinatown in the Central Station area of the city. Especially Wednesday Feb 1st will be a noisy day as fireworks and crackers are going to drive away the evil demons. But as from this year this is not the end of celebrations: the following weekend ‘The Asian Lifestyle Group’ is staging a food festival under the name ‘Asia in Antwerp’.

The festival is staged in the Waagnatie, opposite the Red Star Line Museum and will be open on Sat 4th and Sun 5th of February, each day starting at 12:30 up till 21:00. A marketplace is created with authentic Asian goods, recipes,… Tour operators specialised in Asia will present their programs, workshops will be organised to teach you the little tricks to make perfect sushi’s or to cut fruit and vegetables to look like flowers or animals and kids can get initiated into yoga.

But that’s not all: there will be music, acrobacy, folklore… and as Sunday is the national holiday in Bali, a special ceremony will be held. Tickets are for sale and more information can be found on the organization’s website.

Eat and drink, Going out, News

Don’t take my word for it, read the NYP

New York Post’s Jennifer Ceasar spent a few days in Antwerp and her conclusion is two-fold: 1. Antwerp is under-rated; 2. you mustn’t miss it. And this is why:

“With its perfectly preserved medieval buildings and ancient cobblestone streets, Antwerp might seem content to rest on historic laurels.

In fact, Belgium’s second-largest city is a vibrant, cosmopolitan place where avant-garde fashion, cutting-edge architecture and progressive cuisine flourish.

In recent years, urban renewal has come to the gritty docklands of the north (Eilandje) and to the former down-at-the-heels neighborhood (Zuid) in the south.

Here’s how to pass a few days in one of Europe’s coolest lesser-known destinations.”

And the article continues with some very interesting places to visit.

News, Publications

Old and new go hand in hand

The Hoogstraat is a very lively shopping street where you will not find any of the international brands, but only local shops, eat houses and bars. Jacques Jordaens, one of the great baroque painters of the city was born here in the house which now bears the number 13, right next to one of the entrances to the Vlaaikensgang, a relict of sixteenth century Antwerp.

One of the antique shops in the Kloosterstraat

One of the eldest buildings in the Hoogstraat is situated right next to St-Jansvliet. It is the Saint-Julian’s Hospital or guesthouse. Pilgrims on their way to Compostella could stay there overnight and in fact, they still can, although the guest house is now situated on St-Jansvliet and offers a bit more comfort than the old building. The old chapel of the guesthouse today houses the Black Panther, one of the most prestigious art galleries in town presenting a wide range of contemporary artists from home and abroad.

And while you’re at it, if you continue walking south, you enter the Kloosterstraat. Here, for something like half a mile, you will find a lot of antique and vintage shops, one next to the other, with of course a coffe house, restaurant or bar in between.

Eat and drink, Going out, Shop , ,

Two more reasons to visit Rubens’ House

Thanks to a gift by the King Bauduin Foundation, the Rubens’ House has acquired two more masterworks. One is a painting by Van Dijck, the other a self portrait by Jordaens, two contemporaries of Rubens and in the case of Van Dijck also a close co-worker and a personal friend.

Van Dijck’s painting is one of a set representing the apostles. In this case it is Matthew, the one who joined the apostles to bring the number to twelve again after Judas’ suicide.

Jordaens’ selfportrait is a copy of an existing self portrait (the original is in Neuburg on the Danube, Germany) by a pupil of Jordaens on which Jordaens himself has co-operated.

The two paintings will be on display on the Bafra event in Brussels next week, afterwards the Royal Arts Institute is going to study the paintings after which they will on exhibit again in Rubens’ House.

Photo: KIK-IRPA

Source: GVA

Monuments, News , ,

Diva, a gem of a museum

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, they say. Well, than Antwerp will be a girl’s favourite place, since almost every diamond has passed through the city in its lifetime. More than 80% of rough stones and about half of all polished ones are traded via Antwerp.

Later this year a new museum is going to open its doors: Diva. Diva will be situated on Suikerrui and will host a collection that comes partly from the old Diamondmuseum and what used to be the Silvermuseum in Deurne. To celebrate this new museum Antwerp organizes a Diamondyear in 2017, that will start on Oct. 14 th in the Diamond Quarter. Monday Oct. 17th a new exhibition will start in the MAS-museum, all around diamond (the material, the jewels, the applications, the meaning and influence, …) and in December Diva will open its doors. By that time, the new museum will only partly be ready. Further parts will be opened to the public in the course of 2018.

Diva is going to be not just a museum, it will be a centre where one can experience diamonds, where one will be lured into the world of wealth and luxury and which will tell the story of people whose life is linked with the precious stones.

The centre will have a permanent exposition floor of some 800 m², and a further 800 m² are available for temporary exhibitons.

If you’re planning to visit Antwerp anywhere before the end of 2017, you can find exhibitions for both silverwork and diamonds in the pavilions outside of the MAS-museum. Entrance for both exhibitions as well as for the harbourpavilion is free.

News

Tour of Flanders

What do you think is meant with “Flanders’ most beautiful”?

  1. a beauty contest to choose Miss Flanders
  2. a contest in the international Ghent Flower show
  3. a bicycle race

If you chose option 3 you are on your way of becoming a real Fleming. Every year, for more than 100 years already, a race is held under the name Tour of Flanders and every year about a million fans cheer their idols as they ride their race. This year it will be the first time that Antwerp hosts the start of this big event, and Antwerp is preparing itself for a great party. In 2015 Antwerp hosted the start of a stage in the Tour de France and 200,000 fans came to the city to greet their heroes. Even more people are expected this year on the 2nd of April.

The name Tour of Flanders is of course inspired on the Tour de France, but as Flanders is too small for a race in 20 stages, the race consists of just one stage, a good 200 km long, interspersed with nasty cobble stone passages, and near the end of the race some pretty steep climbs. These climbs cannot be compared to the Tourmalet or Mont Ventoux, but the climbs follow one another incessantly and each time it is a fight to be in front position at the start of the climb, so it may be clear that only a really strong rider can win this race.

The presentation of the participants and the preliminary start will be given at Steenplein, then the riders follow the quays until Brouwersvliet, where they turn right and then ride through the tunnel to the left bank, rather quietly at a modest speed, so that the people along the street can easily recognise the riders, but as soon as they reach the village of Burcht hell will break lose and after that the speed will never go under 40 km per hour anymore until they reach Oudenaarde for the finish.

News, Sports

Favourite Bars

Hier alvast een paar van mijn favoriete cafeetjes. Als je op de naam klikt kan je meer informatie bekijken (voor zover die al aanwezig is).

– Oud Arsenaal
– De Duifkens
– ‘t Waagstuk
– Kulminator
– Groote Witte Arend

Eat and drink, Going out

Where to eat?

Whatever your tastes, you will surely find a nice restaurant in Antwerp: traditional Flemish/Belgian cuisine, French cuisine on both haute cuisine and bistrot level, Oriental food, all types of Mediterranean food,… You name it, we got it.

My favourite Italian restaurant is called ‘Verona’, in the shadow of the cathedral on the Oude Korenmarkt. A street with a great many restaurants, but Verona to me stands out. It is usually very busy, but the kitchen is well organised, so you don’t have to wait too long for your meal to arrive. If you want a real high class cuisine in this neighbourhood, be sure to visit ‘Sir Anthony Van Dyck’ in the Vlaaikensgang, a remnant of 16th century Antwerp.

Another area where you will find a great many restaurants is Vlaamse Kaai and Waalse Kaai in the south of the city. ‘Bizie Lizie’ (Vlaamse Kaai 16) is a place where I have never been disappointed. They are best known for their traditional French/Belgian cuisine.

Of course also the area around Central Station has a great many restaurants. Real Chinese food can be found in China Town (Van Wesenbekestraat). Stationstraat has many different flavours, and so does the De Keyserlei. Most of these restaurants serve decent food for reasonable prices.

A final fine food area is Zurenborg, especially up and around the Dageraadplaats.

Going out

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