Señorie Mechelen. Why is it worth visiting Mechelen, Belgium? Mechelen - a stronghold of bygone times

Tonight belonged to Mechelen. This small town will surprise you with a historical center that is very rich in attractions. The area of ​​the center is small and is located within the fortress walls, which were built in the 13th century.
First, the route map google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z7… All that remains of this powerful structure is the Brussels Gate, from which we began the tour. The interesting structure is now only suitable for external photography. It will not be possible to get inside, since it is now private property.

Having passed under the gate, we find ourselves on Hoogstraat street. If you walk along it without turning anywhere, you will get straight to the central square, Grote Markt. We decided not to look for easy ways and deviated a little from the straight road. To do this, we made a right turn onto Milsenstraat street. The end point of this venture is the Church of Our Lady of the Dale (Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-over-de-Dijlekerk). The first church on this site was built in 1236. The current building has stood since the 14th century. Like many buildings in the city, the church was damaged during both world wars. The restoration ended only in 1968, but not everything was restored. The organ had to be reassembled using parts from the old instrument, as well as the original restored organ cabinet, made in the Baroque style in 1669. Among the most famous masterpieces of this establishment, the polyptych of Peter Paul Rubens “The Miraculous Catch of Fish” is mentioned. At the moment, only the triptych remains of the painting. Two parts were lost after the French exported them in the 18th century. One remained in France and is now part of the collection of the Lorraine Museum, and the other was considered lost until in 2008, at one of the exhibitions of the Hermitage collection in Nizhny Novgorod, it was seen by a musician and one of the best carillonneurs in Mechelen. Of all the photographs taken indoors, it is not surprising that this particular picture turned out the best.
A further walk around the city was accompanied by periodic rain. From the church we headed to the embankment of the Dil River. Here on Zoutwerf street, before reaching the ancient stone bridge from the 13th century, there is a house called Salmon (De Zalm). The house previously belonged to the guild of fish merchants, as evidenced by the large fish above the entrance. In Northern Europe it is one of the earliest houses with Renaissance decoration. Now the building houses a craft museum.
To continue driving along the embankment immediately after the bridge, you will have to go around one block and come to a building that can be called a large glass cube. The former brewery of the famous Lamot beer has been rebuilt into an unimaginable combination of different forms of existence under one roof. This is a residential building, a hotel, a fitness club, an exhibition hall, a supermarket and a restaurant. For us, the most interesting object was located near the building. It was a bronze boy on the steps with a rose behind his back, looking at a man in medieval clothes. In profile the man resembles our leader. This boy is young Ludwig van Beethoven. And the monument was erected as a reminder that the lineage of this great man began here in Mechelen. The composer's grandfather served as a baker, and in his youth he showed talent for singing and studied at the choral school of St. Rumbolt's Cathedral. Most likely, the grandson is admiring the grandfather’s profile.
A little further along the embankment you can see a dreaming girl. It was not possible to find out her pedigree, and therefore we walked past to see three interesting buildings, each with its own name, at the bridge at the intersection of Haverwerf and Kraanstraat streets. The house on the far left is named Sint-Jozef. The house depicts St. Joseph as the baby Jesus, the middle one is called the Prodigal Son (De Verloren Zoon") or the Little Devils (De Duiveltjes). The first name is given for the sculptures above the entrance, and the second for the columns in the form of little devils. And the last house on the far right is Little Paradise (Het Paradijske) The plot of the sketches on the house is connected with Adam and Eve, more precisely with their mistakes, which led to expulsion from Paradise.
We will cross the bridge called Crane to the opposite bank. The 15th century bridge got its name from the crane located here. Our direction of travel is IJzerenleen and Grote Markt. Grote Markt
From the square we will go along Sint-Katelijnestraat to the Church of St. Catherine, built in the 14th century in an area where poor citizens lived. The church itself was built with strict frugality in mind. As an example, the ceiling was made of wood. In those days, the stone was more highly valued. The name of Katherine was given to the church due to her mythical figure. Having conquered this area, the Roman emperor ordered the renunciation of Christianity. Catherine refused, and then she was sentenced to death. Several attempts were made, but none were successful. God protected Catherine.
On the nearby Moreelstraat street in the woods stands the Greater Beguinage Church - Begijnhofkerk. Its pride is the collection of ancient paintings by Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck and other authors. In the same area is the Great Beguinage of Mechelen, where up to 1,800 people lived at the height of the society.
From the churches along Sint-Katelijnestraat we go back to the intersection with Kanunnik de Deckerstraat and turn left. Let's walk to Schoutetstraat, where the shelters of Tongerlo and Sint-Truiden abbeys follow one after another behind a high red fence. Shelters were built in fortified cities for guests. During the wars, refugees hid here.
And ahead you can already see the tower of the Church of St. John (Sint-Janskerk). The area was home to members of the Great Council of Mechelen, the highest court in the Netherlands, from the 15th century until the French Revolution. All members of the council belonged to the most noble and wealthy families, so the church’s treasury contains many valuables, despite the fact that it could not avoid looting and pogroms during the Reformation. The most famous creation is Peter Paul Rubens' Adoration of the Wise Men. Thanks to the mechanism, the picture can rotate.
The next building we wanted to see was on Sint-Janskerkhof street. This is the Busleyden mansion (Hof van Busleyden). It was built at the beginning of the 16th century and belonged to the humanist and philanthropist from Luxembourg Jeroen van Busleyden. At the end of the 15th century he was a member of the Great Council (the highest court in Mechelen). He became famous as a sponsor of the University of Leuven. This building was subsequently used as a charity house, where the poor could take out a small interest-free loan. Now here is the City Museum, where you can see many exhibits - from the Halo-Roman period to modern paintings and bells.
The walk was gradually coming to an end. And the day was heading there too. It was already dark outside and the rest of the inspection turned out to be crumpled. First we got to the Veemarkt square. Where Keizerstraat begins from this square, stands the Church of Saints Peter and Paul (Sint-Pieters-en-Pauluskerk). At this hour, only inspection of the façade is available. It is decorated with huge majestic columns, the upper part of the facade is crowned with a crown of rays and the sign of the Jesuit Order (IHS = Jesus Homines Salvator). The church contains a rich collection of 17th century paintings (Cuelin, Francuse, Coxey...), breathtaking oak paneling for 14 confessionals and a delightful pulpit. The church is also famous for its burials of celebrities. One of them belongs to Margaret of Austria.
Her Palace is located nearby on the opposite side of Keizerstraat from the Church of Peter and Paul. This house also bears the name Savoy Palace. Margaret arrived here in 1507 from Savoy and began to rule the Netherlands on behalf of her youngest nephew Charles. This building is one of the first in northern Europe, made in the Renaissance style. Above the entrance group is the coat of arms of Margarita and the woman who ruled the law, but for some reason without a blindfold. The building currently houses a court.
Next to the Church of Peter and Paul is another Palace, where Margarita lived until the construction of the Savoy Palace. Above the small door in the tower you can still see the coats of arms of Margaret of York and Charles the Bold. Now the building houses the city theater.
Here we finished our sightseeing of the city. Next we had dinner and transfer to the hotel.

The main attraction of Mechelen - the tower of St. Rumbolt's Cathedral - can be seen from afar and far beyond the city limits. The unfinished monument, 97.28 m high, dominates the entire area. If you climb 514 steps to the top of the tower in clear weather, then

A little history

Visitors to Belgium visit in most cases the main cities: Bruges, Ghent, Brussels and Antwerp. This is because they don't take into account that there are wonderful historical sites a little off the beaten path. Mechelen is one of these places.

The settlement appeared in the Gallo-Roman period on the high western bank of the Dijle River, in the 3rd century under the Merovingians and later the Carolingians, the network of roads, once the pride of the Roman Empire, disappeared and the famous trade links withered, and the local, mostly pagan and idolatrous tribes were converted to Christianity by St. Rumbolt, Irish missionary and priest.

Over time, a second settlement grew up on the lower eastern bank precisely around the ecclesiastical order of St. Rumbolt. The most successful time for Mechelen began with the enmity of the Prince-Bishop of Liege, Lord Mechelen, Duke of Brabant

and the powerful Berthout family, trying to reduce each other's influence. The 13th-14th centuries became the heyday of Mechelen trade. The Burgundian invasion and conquest of Mechelen in 1357 by Louis de Malle, Count of Flanders, was the beginning of Burgundian rule.

For a short period of time (the first half of the 16th century) Mechelen became the capital of the Low Countries. At this time, the aunt of Charles V, the Stadtholder of the Lower Lands Margaret of Austria, moved her court to Mechelen, under her control Mechelen became the real political core of the Netherlands. Erasmus of Rotterdam, Thomas More and Albrecht Durer worked at her court.

Is it really obvious that she is from the Habsburgs? It’s hard not to recognize this look and the protruding lower lip :)

But the euphoria did not last long - after the death of Margaret, Mechelen again returned to a provincial state - her heir, Charles V,

again moved the court to Brussels. In the 1560s, Mechelen went through the Dutch Revolution and Northern Revolt, religious wars and the sack of the city by Spanish troops led by the Duke of Alba in 1572.

In the 17th century, when the formidable times had passed, Mechelen flourished again, famous for its lace,

fabrics, tapestries, gilded leather and woodwork. In the 18th century, a canal was built connecting Leuven and Mechelen, passing through Diehl and significantly improving navigation throughout the country. And in 1835, the first railway in Europe was built between Mechelen and Brussels.

Detail of the design of the facade of the Mechelen station - a reminder of the first train of continental Europe

Currently, Mechelen is still the religious capital of Belgium. The Archbishop of Belgium lives here. And Mechelen is the capital of carillon music in Belgium, it is from the name of the city that the completely Russian expression “raspberry ringing” comes from - in French Mechelen is called Malin.

Beethoven

No one associates the city of Mechelen with the great German composer Ludwig van Beethoven, but in vain! Although Beethoven was born in Bonn in Germany, his family came from Mechelen, where they were hereditary bakers from generation to generation. The composer's grandfather Ludwig (Louis) van Beethoven was even one of the students of the choral school, where the singers of the choir of St. Rumbolt's Cathedral were trained. Great-grandfather, Michel Van Beethoven, unfortunately, took up art, but quickly went bankrupt, and the family moved to Bonn to seek their fortune. For this reason, two generations later, a child named Ludwig van Beethoven was not born in Mechelen.

Grote Markt

From the station to the Grote Markt, a 10-minute walk following the signs along Bruun Street, straight ahead, without turning.

And when you come out onto a beautiful spacious square, where the gigantic tower of the cathedral rises in front of you, on the left is a stunningly beautiful women’s monument, and around you are the most beautiful buildings, next to the Cyclopean cathedral seeming like toys, know that you have come to the Grote Markt!

To the left of the remarkable monument to Margaret of Austria stands the Early Gothic City Councilors' House (Schepenhuis), the city's oldest building (1374). From 1473 to 1614 it was used for meetings of the Mechelen parliament, the main court of the Netherlands. Later, guilds held meetings here. In the following centuries the building was used for various purposes: a prison, a museum and a city archive.

The eyes of those entering the square for the first time are invariably attracted by the Gothic Town Hall - perhaps the most beautiful building of any Grote Markt. But we’ll get to it in literally 10 minutes, but for now we’ll explore the quaint houses on the square. They have elaborate facades, windows of different sizes, each with its own decoration - one, for example, with a plump pig at the top (1774).

It is very interesting to look at that part of the square, against which the bulk of the cathedral rises, from the side of the Town Hall - the houses seem unreal, like decorations (only the massive building of the former Cloth Works seems real - the one on the far left), but you understand that this is not so - you just stood near these buildings, and they are real! In cities like Mechelen, you want to see carriages, but not buses!

The townspeople probably thought the same thing – there are a couple of carriages with coachmen standing in front of the Town Hall. True, the carriages are tiny trams on wheels, which are harnessed to horses, and the coachmen in costumes look more like participants in a dressage competition, but these are such trifles. True, we didn’t go for a ride - I still remember how strong the smell was from the horses in Vienna (there was one large area around St. Stephen’s Cathedral for parking carriages that took tourists around the Habsburg capital, and we lived in a house next to the cathedral, and, accordingly, passed by at least a couple of times every morning), and although I was assured that when you sit in the carriage, there is no smell at all, this smell turned me away from horse riding forever :)

To the right of the Town Hall is located travel agency, the card will cost you 0.5 euros, but it's worth it.

Before reaching the travel agency, pay attention to the extravagant monument to the Signorca doll.

Every self-respecting medieval city has some beautiful legend, in Mechelen there are two of them, and both are about the people of Antwerp - for some reason two such glorious cities could not reconcile, but it all probably started with some trifle! Okay, Italians are hot-blooded people, but staid Belgians? Well, okay, the legend tells the following: every year the citizens of the city passed through the central streets in a festive procession, tossing a doll on a sheet (I don’t know why the poor doll got so much trouble), and in 1775 the doll was tossed so hard that it fell on passerby watching the procession. It had to happen that the passer-by turned out to be a resident of neighboring Antwerp! “He probably wanted to steal our doll!” - the townspeople thought, and rubbed their neighbor’s sides. In honor of this glorious event, a monument was erected. “This is some kind of nonsense,” you might think, yes, yes, we thought so too. But the monument stands, the legend lives on.

Town Hall

The modern Mechelen town hall consists of three different parts, a former clothiers' house, a magnificent palace in the Flamboyant Gothic style and a more or less modern building. The oldest part, a Gothic clothiers' house with a bell tower modeled after the town hall in Bruges, was not completed because the once lucrative cloth trade could no longer generate the necessary funds. The great fire (1342), which affected almost the entire city, fortunately did not damage the building much. Over time, the clothiers' house was restored; in the 17th century, baroque elements were even added to it.

At the beginning of the 16th century, when the cloth trade stopped, the elders developed a plan to replace the clothiers' house with a new palace. Since the plans drawn by the architect Keldermans remained unfinished, the council moved around 1614 to the Court of Savoy, the former palace of Margaret of Austria (currently a courthouse). Work stopped in 1547 and some unfinished and abandoned parts were even sold to local merchants for shops and warehouses.

Am I the only one who thinks the woman looks like Margaret of Austria?

The east wing was finally completed in the 20th century according to Keldermans' plan. In a niche on the ground floor, looking out over the shopping area, the self-confident and stern Charles V sits on a throne.

The facade on the street side has a nineteen-column arcade and an elaborately decorated gate with a wooden statue of St. Rombaud, through which you can enter a small cozy courtyard with a statue of “Mother and Child” by E. Wijnants.

The interior of the palace is also worth visiting, but is only open to groups accompanied by a local guide. On the ground floor you can find the pillared Reception Room, the Council Chamber and the Wedding Hall. In the first, you can see an elegant 16th-century tapestry made in Brussels depicting the “Battle of Tunisia.”

Another interesting place is the council chamber, where the city council meets every month. The Renaissance woodwork was made during World War I by Mechelen carpenters to avoid deportation to Germany. The third and final part of the town hall is the rather controversial new L-shaped wing from 1975. It is decorated in a modern style and strongly contrasts with other historical buildings in the complex.

St. Rumbout Cathedral

Another urban legend is associated with the cathedral - on one of the dark summer nights in 1687, the church watchman woke up and saw a flame between the spiers of the tower.

Without thinking twice, the watchman sounded the alarm and raised the entire city, which came running to the cathedral in full confidence that the enemy Antwerp residents had set fire to the cathedral tower solely out of envy. Everything turned out to be prosaic - that night there was a full, bright moon, the disc of which the sleepy watchman mistook for fire. The Antwerpians did not remain in debt, and dubbed the Mechelenians “moon extinguishers.”

When you walk around the cathedral from the outside, pay attention to the Russian delicacies store Berёzka behind the monument to Margaret of Austria.

In front of the cathedral is a statue of Christ with spectacularly raised arms and a small but expressive monument to children lost in the war... The gnarled hands of war reach out to a fragile tree, and on the pedestal there are small feet and palms...

The main attraction of Mechelen - the tower of St. Rumbolt's Cathedral - can be seen from afar and far beyond the city limits. The unfinished monument, 97.28 m high, dominates the entire area. If you climb the 514 steps to the top of the tower in clear weather, you will be able to see Antwerp and the Atomium in Brussels.

Thank you very much for the photo from the tower twinger

On the way up, the first stop is in the crane room, where everyone can appreciate the skill and ingenuity of the medieval crane designers. 80 steps up on the next floor, where there was once a blacksmith shop, a guide explains the oldest method and basic principles of bell selection and the evolution of carillon music. Far above you can already see the giant bells of the old carillon. The Salvator (8884 kg), Jesus (1640 kg) and the young Liberty Bell (1947 kg) are some of the famous bells that can be viewed up close. The carillon is the pride and adoration of local campanologists.

The next 3 floors lead to an old clock with 49 old bells, which, however, despite their age, work perfectly. Another 39 steps up is the new carillon, used during the summer months for evening concerts by famous carillonneurs. Two impressive carillons with a total weight of 80 tons and 98 bells are not the only attraction of the tower, after the last steps you emerge onto the upper platform and external balcony, from where you can enjoy a bird's eye view of the city. There is also a carillon school in the city, located in a beautiful building in the Rococo style.

The original plan for the tower was made when Mechelen was a rich and powerful commercial and political center. What better way to show this than by building a huge tower? According to the project, the tower of St. Rumbolt's Cathedral was to become the tallest tower not only in the Low Countries, but in the entire Christian world. When completed, it would have reached a stunning 160 meters. Financial problems in the 16th century led to a halt in the implementation of this grandiose building plan when the tower reached a height of 97.28 meters. However, it is possible to imagine what the tower might have been like - inside the cathedral there is a scaled-down model of the tower as it would have looked if completed. The famous French architect Vauban was so impressed by the building that he described it as the eighth wonder of the world.

“It’s very impressive, this tower, even a little heavy, but still good. It was while looking at this tower that I realized how the ancient builders combined strength with the “lacey” appearance of the towers: the high lancet windows of the lower floors were made fake and richly decorated with stone carvings, only the upper windows were real and also carved. The Mechelen Tower cannot be called “lace”, but it exudes solidity and reliability. Every quarter of an hour its bells rang, and not a short melody, but a rather long one. Their sound is excellent and surprisingly soft.” S.Narozhnaya

To be continued.

Mechelen is a small town located in the central part of Belgium. Its population is about 80,000 thousand people. It is unlikely that Mechelen will be found on maps or in brochures of organized tourism. Moreover, 4 out of 5 independent tourists will bypass this town, limiting themselves to visiting the popular Bruges, Antwerp and Ghent. But in vain, it would be a big mistake. Mechelen is definitely worth a visit.

How to get to Mechelen

How to plan a trip to the cities of Belgium, how much time to spend in a particular place, a description of logistics and transport - I covered all these issues in detail in a separate article, I recommend that you read it.

Geographically, Mechelen is located between two major cities of Belgium: Brussels and Antwerp. The closest airport to the city is Brussels Airport (BRU).

By train to Mechelen

For those who are just arriving in Belgium from Russia, the most convenient option is to immediately head to Mechelen from Brussels International Airport. The train station Brussels Airport Zaventem is located right next to the airport terminal.

Travel time to Mechelen is from 11 to 17 minutes (depending on the train), the fare is 8.60 euros. Trains run from 5 am to 12 midnight at intervals from 3 minutes to an hour.

Belgium is a small country, or rather, small. There are excellent railway connections between the cities. Therefore, if this is not your first day in Belgium and you are in another city in this country, then you can comfortably and quickly get to Mechelen by train.

• Antwerp - Mechelen: Direct flight, about 20 minutes, 4.10 Euro;
• Brussels - Mechelen: Direct flight, 25-30 minutes, 4.70 Euro;
• Bruges - Mechelen: Direct/with one change, about 1 hour 30 minutes, 14.80 Euro;
• Ghent - Mechelen: Direct/with one change, about 1 hour 10 minutes, 9.30 Euro.

The national carrier of Belgium is Belgian Railways SNCB. You can purchase a ticket in advance and view the current schedule on their website.

By car to Mechelen

Everything is simple here, we take the car, turn on the navigator and go. My opinion is that rented transport in Belgium is absolutely unnecessary for two reasons:

• First: in the tiny historical centers of all cities there are big problems with parking;
• Second: Belgium is a country where you need to taste a lot of beer. And in the morning, at lunch and in the evening.

Where to stay in Mechelen

I would like to note right away that 3-4 hours is enough to explore all of Mechelen. There is no point in staying in this city for several days. Under certain circumstances, you may not even need to spend the night in Mechelen. Come from Brussels, Antwerp or any other city, walk through the main attractions, and then move on.

In our particular case, we arrived on an overnight flight to Brussels, went straight from the airport to Mechelen and spent one night in this city. In the morning we saw all the main attractions, and in the afternoon we went further to Antwerp.

There are not very many accommodation options in Mechelen; there are about 20 within walking distance to all the main attractions. Below is a clickable map of Booking hotels.

Belgium is a very expensive country, do not be surprised by the minimum price for a room of 90 - 100 euros/day.

Since we only needed to spend the night, we took a cheaper option in Mechelen - mini-hotel Jan Bol B&B. There are two rooms in total. A very decent place in terms of price/quality ratio, I can recommend it.

Mechelen sightseeing map

What to see in Mechelen

On the map above I have marked places and attractions that may be of interest to tourists. Initially, it was assumed that we would spend time in the city until noon and, to be honest, there was doubt whether we would have time to see everything. In practice, it took even less time. By 11, we had walked the entire historical center of Mechelen up and down, and also drank beer at the local Het Anker brewery.

It makes no difference in what order to visit this or that attraction. I advise you to simply mark the main places on the map (or take the map above) and wander randomly from street to street.

Grote Markt area

Mechelen's central square is the heart of the city. All roads, one way or another, lead here.

Having visited all the most famous tourist cities in Belgium, I can say that each of them definitely has a central square with such gingerbread houses. They all look alike. A week passes after returning home, and when you close your eyes, you cannot immediately remember and imagine this or that place, they are so similar.

This phenomenon is most likely seasonal. In the summer, on weekends, tourists will probably crowd here, but their number will be tens of times less than in or.

St. Rumbold's Cathedral

Mechelen's most famous and visited landmark. The cathedral is located on the Grote Markt.

There is an observation deck at the top of the tower. Unfortunately, there is no photo from it. We didn’t go upstairs, it was closed. The visiting schedule is quite strange, information below.

• Mon - Fri, Sun - from 13:00 to 18:00;
• Saturday - from 10:00 to 18:00;
• Entry closes at 17:00.

The cost of visiting is 8 euros.

But the entrance to the cathedral itself is open from 08:00 in the morning.

I don’t even remember how many Catholic cathedrals I’ve walked through and inspected throughout Europe in my memory. In your second decade, you stop being surprised and admiring the beauty and grandeur of these structures. The incessant buzz from tourists, camera flashes - all this destroys the atmosphere that should put pressure on a person in such places.

You can feel this in St. Rumbold's Cathedral. Silent silence, not a single soul, amazing.

During the summer months, boat excursions are offered along the Dil River. There was no hint of this in March. And who should we take for a ride? During our entire stay in the city, we met tourists only once.

Brewery Het Anker

I thought for a long time about the order in which to place the places and attractions of Mechelen in the report. Purely from personal feelings and emotions, the top place in this town is the Het Anker brewery and the wonderful drink that they brew there. But starting your acquaintance with medieval Mechelen right away with beer is somehow disrespectful.

So, I’ll repeat my subjective opinion once again, the Het Anker brewery is a pearl not only of Mechelen, but of the whole of Belgium, for which it’s definitely worth coming to this tiny town.

The brewery complex offers beer lovers a range of services and entertainment. On the territory there is a decent hotel, a souvenir shop, the brewery itself and a bar (Brasserie).

Individual and group tours are held around the Het Anker brewery, where the technology of making their beer and the history of the brand are explained.

We did not go on the excursion for two reasons: the first is that it is conducted only in English, and the second is that advance reservation is required. For those planning to visit the brewery, below is the schedule and cost:

You can sign up for a tour on their official website or ask the hotel reception to do it for you. This was offered to us, but we refused, leaning towards only beer tasting, without visiting the brewery.

If you don’t have the time or desire, you can limit yourself to just visiting the Brasserie (bar), as we did.

Beer brewed at Het Anker is the standard of Belgian beer. This is the best thing I have tried in all cities. The main asset of the brewery is the Gauden Carolus variety in several versions: Classic, Tripel, Ambrio, Hopsinjoor.

It is impossible to take and single out one variety and say that it is the best. Each one is impeccable and good in their own way. After Gauden Carolus in Mechelen, the bar will be raised so high that it will be extremely difficult to find a more worthy beer. I recommend.

I forgot to mention, it’s better to take a tasting. For 9 euros you can buy 5 types of beer in a 0.15 liter glass. This is the perfect volume to try Gauden Carolus. And one more thing - strength, all beer is from 7 to 9%. You can’t feel it at all in taste, but in a state of intoxication with a small amount, it’s quite noticeable.

Beguinage

Flemish beguinages are settlements (communities) in which representatives of the religious movement of the same name lived. Now there are no representatives of this faith left, however, the neighborhoods that they inhabited and built for themselves remain. In Belgium, this architectural heritage is highly valued and equated to the heritage of the country. Any brochure picked up at the airport or hotel will certainly contain a mention of Beguinage and an invitation to visit it (there are Beguinages in almost all cities of the country).

To be honest, I didn’t immediately realize that I was in some iconic place. The Beguinage in Mechelen is a couple of cobbled streets and old red brick houses. It is located near Het Anker. So on your way to the brewery, you will pass through these streets anyway.

Pedestrian streets of Mechelen

I see no further point in systematizing and separating the remaining historical and architectural sights of Mechelen. They are all located nearby. On the general map, I have highlighted the central pedestrian streets that you definitely need to walk along. In total it is about 2 km or 30-40 minutes at a leisurely pace.

It’s enough to make a couple of circles, look around and you can check off Mechelen. This is a very small but extremely cozy town with quiet streets, squares, and an embankment.

Summarizing this report, I would like to note once again that this tiny Belgian city became a great discovery for me. Yes, its architecture is inferior to the grandeur and scale of Bruges, Ghent or Antwerp, but this difference is more than compensated by the atmosphere of this place. There are absolutely no tourists here and, frankly, Mechelen is much more suitable for “laying low” than Bruges.

How much time to spend in Mechelen?

3-4 hours is enough. This is my personal assessment. I am not interested in museums and exhibitions, so if anyone gets the idea to join high culture, they will have to look for other information on the Internet.

If you plan to definitely climb the Cathedral of St. Rumbold, you will have to adjust your visit to the city according to the work schedule of the observation deck.

When to visit Mechelen?

No one will give a definite answer to this question. I prefer to travel to European cities in the off-season. In winter, early spring, late autumn, but not in summer, when tourist traffic lies at the bottom. Mechelen was beautiful in March. The ancient medieval cities benefit greatly from gloomy skies and occasional drizzling rain.

Although, it seems to me, even in peak July and August it will be comfortable to be here. Mechelen is still not so popular among tourists.

Tomorrow the first match of the semi-final of the Belgian Cup will take place, where Mechelen will host Saint-Gilloise. The confrontation consists of 2 matches and therefore it will be important for the hosts to win this game as comfortably as possible, so that in the return game they do not have to make up for lost time, but instead calmly control the course of the match. And home walls should help them with this. Will they be able to achieve this? Let's try to figure it out.

Mechelen last season he played in the Belgian top division, where he was unexpectedly relegated, finishing last in the league. This season, the team’s main task is to return and so far it must be said that they are succeeding. More precisely, it turns out that at the moment we are leading the championship with a solid margin of 6 points 6 rounds before the end of the main part of the season, but it is worth noting that even if they lose 1st place, it does not matter, because then there will be a playoff, which will determine the lucky one holder of the only ticket to the top division.

Based on this, the coaching staff decided to field the strongest squad in this cup game, especially since the draw was quite convenient. In addition, Mechelen There are quite good prospects of winning the Belgian Cup. After all, in the other semi-final pair, the middle peasants of the major leagues Ghent and Ostend, who are approximately on the same level as Mechelen, will play against each other. And therefore the coaching staff decided that it was worth playing with the main team in this match.

Defender Jules Van Clemput will not be able to help Mechelen in the first semi-final

After all, everything is great in the championship so far and these are the results: 14 wins, 6 draws and 2 wins with a goal difference of 46-18. They scored the most goals in the league and conceded the least. On your own field Mechelen won 8 times, drew 2 times and lost 1 time with a goal difference of 24-9. Quite good results and I must say that only 3 times we didn’t score at least 2 goals at home. Not bad results that show that Mechelen is in excellent shape and is not going to stop. Moreover, the last defeat was in September, when they lost away to Bersota Wilrijk 1-0 and since then in 19 games, including the cup, they have not known what defeat is (16 wins and 3 draws). During these 19 matches, only 2 times did they not score at least 2 goals, and they limited themselves to 2 goals in only 5 games, i.e. We find that in 12 matches 3 or more goals were scored per game.

And now I would like to note the team’s performance in the Belgian Cup:

08/27/18 KUB Mechelen Royal Albert Quevy-Mons 2: 0
26.09.18 KUB Mechelen Antwerp 3: 1
05.12.18 KUB Mechelen Lokeren 2: 0
12/19/18 CUB Mechelen Kortrijk 3: 0

As you can see, we took all the cup matches very seriously and won 3 representatives of the top division more than confidently, including Antwerp, which ranks 2-3 along with Bruges. All the key players will be in this match, which you can check on the official website of the team, where the application for this game is listed. The only person who will not be able to play in this match is Jules Van Clemput(17/0 def) and Laurent Lemoine (5/0 def). All other players are in action, including the team's top scorers.

Mechelen's top scorer Igor Decarmago is on the roster for this match

And now I would like to note the confrontation between these teams in the national championship:

This season, the teams played each other 3 times and Mechelen won 2 times with a score of 2-1, and in another game there was a draw of 2-2. Before the start of the season, Mechelen also won a friendly game 2-0. As we can see, all 4 games ended with 2 goals from Mechelen per game. Today I decided that this option was worth playing. At least the ITB looks a little more reliable than a clear victory for the hosts.

On the other hand will be modest Union Saint-Gilloise, which unexpectedly knocked out the leader of the Belgian top division in the quarterfinals when they played 2-2, and in the penalty shootout they were stronger than Union Saint-Gilloise. Because of this, I was afraid to play a clear victory in the upcoming match, especially since they had previously knocked out Anderlecht 3-0. This suggests that their opponent is very serious, and therefore it is dangerous to play the outcomes. But I’m sure that Mechelen at home can learn from the mistakes of Ghent and Anderlecht, and therefore I propose to play the hosts’ ITB, especially since the hosts will play with the main squad.

The city of Mechelen in Belgium for most tourists is just one of the train stops between the Belgian capital and Antwerp.

It's just forty minutes from Brussels main station and even less from the airport, which can be reached cheaply with BiletyPlus, on the banks of the River Deile.

At best, guests of the country see the impressive tower of the city cathedral from a carriage, driving along the railway that carefully skirts the historical center. Meanwhile, in this charming old town there is a lot to see and even, we think, something to linger for. There are many attractions in Mechen - several hundred protected cultural sites, including two from the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Mechelen - a stronghold of bygone times

Mechelen, like other medieval ones, was once surrounded by an impressive wall, and now, as in Brussels, a wide boulevard has been laid out in its place.

However, you can get an idea of ​​what this place looked like in the old days. Because a huge, thick-walled, very menacing-looking double tower has survived, the Brussels Gate, the last of a dozen pre-existing city towers, built in the 13th century and once the largest.

Miracles on the River

It is difficult to get to the city center from the station without passing one of the bridges over the Deile. Meanwhile, there is no need to rush, because the result of a very original approach of the Mechelen residents to problems is located on the river.

Along the river there are old houses like a wall and they approach it very close - go find a place to look at the river not from a bridge, not to mention access to the water.

There is still an embankment here, but not along the shore, but in the middle of the water: they put pontoons in the river, stretched a path along them with a fence, and brought it to the shore in several places. And now everyone can stroll freely right in the middle of the main city water stream, admire the architecture, and pass under ancient stone bridges!

Mechelen Red Square

Having walked around the Schepenhus tower, the city visitor finds himself in the huge space of the main square of Mechelen. The first thing that immediately catches your eye is the emptiness in the center. No fountain, no equestrian statue or figure of a prominent local inhabitant. By the way, there is a statue in the square of the Duchess of Savoy and Princess Anne of Austria, but it is pushed into one of the corners. By the way, it’s very strange why this is so, considering how much useful the lady who kept the courtyard here did for the city.

In Mechelen, in addition to this, there is another statue and the palace of the Duchess, where, however, outsiders are not allowed, you can only look from the outside, but it is worth doing. It seems to be composed of two components, so dissimilar that they are sometimes mistaken for two different structures.

The southern side of the square is occupied by the town hall; it itself took almost 400 years to build, and was partially included in the UNESCO World Heritage List - what a curiosity! Only the town hall tower was worthy of inclusion. The entire building looks quite impressive, even though its facade seems to be made of three parts, each in its own style.

There is a funny sculpture near the town hall - some peasant, looking rather stupid, is being thrown on a trampoline. This is, in fact, a person who has become central to the noisy processions of the inhabitants of Mechelen. They do not have the best relations with their neighbors from Antwerp, so this doll is intended to ridicule the arrogance of the northerners. Since they boasted the nickname “seniors”, the local negative folklore character, previously called by the names of vices, received his own name - “senorque”. According to rumors, Antwerp residents are still having difficulty holding back their resentment.

A cathedral you can't miss

And on the northern side of the main square is the cathedral, which has gained enormous fame. It is named in honor of St. Rumbold, who once carried the word of God to the local residents and laid down his head in this field. The cathedral was founded in the 13th century, and in its current form it has existed for about four hundred years. For this reason, it is included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List.

The main church of Mechelen is truly not one of those that you immediately forget. Its 100-something-meter tower can be seen from afar and cannot be confused with anything. This is due to the unusual shape of the main tower - with a flat platform at the top, giving the entire structure the appearance of a fortification rather than a religious building. And all because there was not enough money for the planned tall spire! You can even climb onto its roof, 100 meters from the ground, if you time it well - they let you in once every 20 minutes from 13 to 16 hours and ask for 7 euros, the entrance is opposite the altar.

But even in the cathedral itself, tourists have something to look at: along the columns there are statues of saints in orderly rows, each with their own symbol in their hands. It’s as if one of the former shepherds is emerging from the wall; such a monument was erected to him here. A huge pulpit rises, a work of art in itself, it is all covered with skillful carvings, so that climbing it is as if you are climbing steps onto a hill covered with herbs. The walls are decorated with paintings dedicated to episodes from the life of St. Rumbolda. Light pours onto all this through windows covered in luxurious stained glass.

What else not to miss in Mechelen?

Well, now we have walked around the main attractions of Mechelen. But the list of what to see is far from exhausted.

There is also the Sint-Janskerk Cathedral, which would be unsurpassed in any other city, but here it is only number two to the Church of St. Rumbold. There is an ancient and very unique architecture monastery of beguines, a toy museum, an episcopal palace - you can’t list everything...

In a word, book tickets to Brussels - and go on an unusual journey, you won’t be disappointed!