For the New York Times, this Belgian city 1.5 hours from Lille is “the perfect destination for a weekend”

Two weeks of school holidays for zone B, and therefore for The little northernersit may be the right place to get away without doing too much. And above all, he is in the small papers famous New York Timeswhich gave it an extraordinary shot in early January 2025. The neighboring municipalities on the French side are likely to be somewhat envious, but you have to face the facts: This city, on the territory of Belgiumis a real heritage jewelry. According to the New York Timesshe is even “ one of the most daring fashion and design centers in Europe“, Which makes her” the perfect destination for a weekend “. Big plus for us: It is only 1h30 drive from Lille… Drum roll …

This superb Belgian city honored by an “Art and culture” journalist from New York Times

HAS Lille Actuwe had also devoted an article to him in February 2024, praising its station, considered by many as the most beautiful in the worldor its atypical chocolate museum. You will undoubtedly have recognized it: it is Antwerp. The journalist “Art and Culture” of the American media, Nina Siegal, seems to have been captivated by the beauty of the Belgian port city.

“Browse its flat and pedestrian city center, to discover Gothic masterpieces, starred restaurants in the Michelin guide, creation workshops, wine bars and countless shopping streets. »»

Diamonds and Rubens

The editor inevitably returns to the sparkling reputation of Antwerp, always “at the heart of the diamond and art markets”. It is also nicknamed “The City of Diamonds”, even today: 70 % of diamonds around the world go through its diamond district, a stone’s throw from the station, where the equivalent of $ 26 billion in transactions S ‘perform each year. Antwerp also had “one of the first scholarships in the world”, we learned in the article.

Impossible to miss “the omnipresence of Rubens“, Having become the” artistic patron saint “of Antwerp, although born in Germany. It is possible to visit “His urban palace”, at least the gardenthe building, where its workshop is located, being under construction until 2027. His works remain visible in the Saint-Charles-Borromée church and in Notre-Dame cathedral.

A wine bar in an old library, a tunnel with period wooden escalators …

For shopping, Nina Siegel fell in love with the ready-to-wear brand-Haut-de-Gamme-Local Essential Antwerpfounded in 1999. “She has three shops in the city, including an Outlet store. There are contemporary pieces there, with bright colors, in patchwork, floral and fluorescent prints, and backdrops with sleeves and oversized ankles, for audacity. »»

The end of the day break, the American journalist grants herself At the Het Archief wine bar with sumptuous decoration. It is “hidden in an old 1850 library made of iron, with in the middle a spiral metal staircase”, compared to a “corkscrew”.

Among the other places that caught his attention, The Sainte-Anne tunnelpassing under the Scheldt and reserved for pedestrians and cyclists. Are kept there ” Authentic wooden escalatorsdating from 1933 ″. But also theBourla restaurant cafédecorated with candlesticks and mirrors with golden frames, with a spacious terrace overlooking the Graanmarkt square ”. A “classic” to discover Belgian cuisine is estimated.

Faced with this laudatory portrait of Antwerp, the tourist office reacted: “We are certainly not going to contradict her …». Not upset for a penny, we French either!

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