BRUSSELS TODAY

By: MARTIN GANI

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

A visual exploration of contemporary Brussels through original photos bringing the city alive. Often unfairly reduced to its role as the bureaucratic beating heart of the European Union this city of roughly 1.2 million people is far more than a political hub come to life. To walk through Brussels today is to experience a "Brussels-style" surrealism where medieval guildhalls stand a short metro ride away from atomic-age monuments, and where a world-class culinary revolution is currently taking place. The soul of Brussels, the Grand-Place, is considered one of the most beautiful squares in the world, the UNESCO World Heritage site is an architectural masterclass its perimeter lined with ornate 17th-century guildhalls, their facades dripping with gold leaf and intricate carvings. Yet, just a few streets away, Brussels reveals its quirky sense of humour with the Manneken Pis. This small bronze fountain of a peeing boy is the city’s unofficial mascot, often dressed in one of over 1,000 custom costumes stored in the City Museum. The city is currently undergoing a cultural transformation. For years, Brussels was seen as "the city between London and Paris," but it has stepped into its own as a creative powerhouse, the most anticipated development of 2026 KANAL-Centre Pompidou must be the full opening of this massive modern art centre. Housed in a former 1930s Citroën garage along the canal, it is one of Europe's largest cultural institutions, blending raw industrial heritage with cutting-edge contemporary art. Brussels is a city of layers. It is a place where you can discuss international policy in the morning, lose yourself in a Magritte surrealist painting in the afternoon, and end the night in a 300-year-old tavern with a glass of Chimay beer