The Antwerp Central Station is one of the world’s most impressive railway stations. The monumental main building was designed by the Bruges architect L. Delacenserie. It has a huge dome and 8 smaller towers of which 6 were demolished during the 1950s, but these were reconstructed in 2009 together with several ornaments including large lion statues. The colorful interior is lavishly decorated with more than 20 different kinds of marble and stone. The main hall and the railway cafeteria can match the interiors of many palaces. The National Belgian Railway Company, SNCB-Holding, took up the challenge to transform the 1905 station into one meeting 2010 technological requirements and social needs, while still respecting its cultural heritage. The monumental architecture of the station has been painstakingly restored and integrated within a new structure by the architects, creating a dynamic blend of old and new, of stone, and brick and concrete. The 3.8km tunnel drilled under the existing station allowing high speed trains to travel between Amsterdam and Brussels, took eleven years of work, yet did not interrupt traffic.

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Mini Europe is a park located at the Heizel in Brussels near the Atomium. Roughly 80 cities and 350 the most attractive monuments in the European Union are represented. It is covering the whole Europe, many of the miniatures are very well done. All the macquettes of buildings are made at a scale of 1:25. Here a few images of this park.

Individual prices 2012:

Adults : € 13,80
Children : € 10,30
Seniors +60 : € 13,80

Opening hours in season 2012

17.03.2012 – 30.06.2012 from 9:30 to 18:00
01.07.2012 – 31.08.2012 from 9:30 to 20:00
01.09.2012 – 30.09.2012 from 9:30 to 18:00
01.10.2012 – 06.01.2013 from 10:00 to 18:00

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The Atomium is a monument built for Expo 1958 Brussels World’s Fair. It was designed by André Waterkeyn. It stands 332 feet (102 meters) high and consists of nine spheres of 59 feet (18 m) diameter connected by tubes measuring 94 feet (29 m) in length and 10 feet (3 m) thick. Spheres are connected by fast escalators. Restaurant is situated in the topmost atom. The monument was originally planned to remain standing only six months, but it became a symbol of modern architecture and Brussels. It represent a unit cell of an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. The Atomium is open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily from April through August, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. September through March. The basic ticket price is €6 for adults and €3 for children.

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