Brussels, El Greco and Antoine.

Yesterday we went to Brussels to the El Greco Exposition at the Bozar.
Needless to say it was worth the trip, the cold and the queueing up to get in. Even the lady who thought she could go before her turn, then adressing us in an arrogant way when we said something about it... well she too was soon forgotten once we stood before the amazing work of Domenikos Theotokopoulos, aka El Greco.

One of the Apostels (Saint James), part of a wonderful serie of paintings around Christ and his twelve merry men.

Some wobbly bishop.

Another apostle, Saint John.

Afterwards we went to eat something at this café.

Then we took a taxi to the Anton Wiertz Museum in the Wiertzstraat.
Behind this gate lies one extravaganza beyond words...

As it turns out, this is supposed to be his most famous painting, and probably a good summary of his work: very well painted, full of skill and horror.

His selfportrait.

His deathmask.

And here are some views of the main hall...



So, now, everyone go to the Antoine Wiertz Museum! (did I mention it's for free?)

Tram & World Fair

This morning the street I live on went through a huge change... After a year of renovation and a lot of workingnoises, this morning the first tram slided through the street. It was actually a welcome back, because in the 1920s en 30s there was a tram that went through our street. Eventually it was replaced by a bus, and now it's full circle again. No pictures of today, but two wonderful postcards of the glory in olden days...



The building you see in the picture above at the end of the row (it's white), is the same building you see on the picture below, it's on the left. It was built in 1913 for the World Fair which was held in my hometown. The station and the square in front were also built especially for that Expo. The building is still very much in use, and so is the station, but the square has changed from this wonderful parc to an ugly busstation. Luckily they're trying as hard as possible to restore the former glory of this place.