After several months of wet, windy dreariness, we were so thrilled to see the sun that we decided to celebrate with a weekend away. Inspired by seeing a fantastic exhibit of Peter Paul Rubens in Den Haag, we chose to explore his hometown of Antwerp, Belgium, a 2-hour train ride away. Traveling spontaneously with a family of 4 means having to be willing to stay in an overpriced 2-star hotel, but luckily it was clean and close to the historic center of this city of 460,000 people. According to folklore, the city got its name from a legend involving a giant that charged a toll to cross the river. If you refused to pay, the giant severed one of your hands and tossed it into the river. Eventually, the giant was slain by a hero named Brabo, who cut off the giant's hand and threw it into the river as depicted in the above statue in front of the town hall built in 1564. Hence the Dutch name Antwerpen means hand-throwing.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
A Weekend in Antwerp...
After several months of wet, windy dreariness, we were so thrilled to see the sun that we decided to celebrate with a weekend away. Inspired by seeing a fantastic exhibit of Peter Paul Rubens in Den Haag, we chose to explore his hometown of Antwerp, Belgium, a 2-hour train ride away. Traveling spontaneously with a family of 4 means having to be willing to stay in an overpriced 2-star hotel, but luckily it was clean and close to the historic center of this city of 460,000 people. According to folklore, the city got its name from a legend involving a giant that charged a toll to cross the river. If you refused to pay, the giant severed one of your hands and tossed it into the river. Eventually, the giant was slain by a hero named Brabo, who cut off the giant's hand and threw it into the river as depicted in the above statue in front of the town hall built in 1564. Hence the Dutch name Antwerpen means hand-throwing.
No comments:
Post a Comment