Carousing in Antwerp

Small photo: The dumpbrothers, big photos: Petrol nightclub



Carousing - what they do best in Antwerp. Wherever you go this (spring) time of year you will find people carousing, often where you least expect it. Drinking, drugs, singing, dancing, playing music, dressing up and staying up late seem to be generally well thought of by most if not all of the popluation (including Neo Nazis, Jews and Muslims of various persuasions), [I didn't actually witness any neo nazis carousing but I'm guessing].
So how to get in on it? Actually you could probably just wander around, any time of day except maybe 6am-12am and you'd happen upon something. But if time's short as it often is for the intrepid expat, having to get back to work on Monday, then here's some hints. I'll start with where you probably want to be at the end of the night and work backwards.

Scheld'apen and Petrol - two reasons you want a bike, unless you're a keen late-night walker. To find them go along the river until you pass over a big freeway that goes under the river (everything goes under the river, there's no bridges in Antwerp) keep going a short way and you'll get to Petrol and Scheld'apen, follow someone to find the entrance.

Scheld'apen is your ferally kind of place basically a small old building that is a bar, surrounded by a kind of vacant lot with nice trees and some outdoor stages. Probably not so good in inclement weather for this reason. The night we were there they even made food, although the dish was called 'wok' which is disturbing to an Australian, I didn't try it. We saw the dumpbrothers play there (see photos above), and there were about 300 enthusiastic people in the audience, so I think they might be the house act.

Petrol is a big shed with an asphalt floor. The decor isn't bad (see photos) but it seems to have really good acts! (Why don't we get these in Melbourne, there's only 450,000 people here). The night we were there it was a special one-off night called Microob (not sure if it is a regular event or one off). It was some kind of showcase of local talent. There was a really good DJ mixing up all kinds of stuff, I think it was the one called TWENTYSOMETHING but he doesn't have a myspace - damn! One band we saw which was quite good was sukilove, they have a webpage which is quite cute and you can hear their music:

http://www.sukilove.com

Apart from that, just wander the streets in the old centre at night to see plenty of carousing in little bars. We were almost home Sunday night, when we passed by a tiny bar, half filled with a band consisting of a drummer with one drum and a cymbal, a bassist and a very drunk singer with keyboard (who sung loud enough not to need a microphone). Add to this a few tables and some very drunk customers carousing as much as was possible in the space, of various ages and degrees of eccentricity (judging by appearances). One had a little dog with him, a lady accosted another couple who were leaving, apparently accusing them of taking something from her handbag. Buying a drink didn't seem to be possible, instead were given Cava, the Catalonian Champagne which is the latest craze all over (I prefer it to Champagne myself, doesn't have the spew-aroma). Apparently the band had been walking past and asked if they could play, being as it was not a typical venue. After a while we left, the singer just got too drunk and stared at his keyboard telling everyone to wait a minute when they complained and two british tourists came in, one slapping his knee and insisting we sit on it.

Antwerp bands: since leaving Antwerp, I have been lucky enough to see two Antwerp bands play here in Nijmegen. DAAU (Die Anarchistische Abendunterhaltung - The Anarchic evening entertainment) are pretty good - you can listen to their music here:

http://www.radicalduke.com/

They played this song:

dispositioning system

This one on their website is good, it is with a singer called An Pierlé who seems cool, although I never heard of her:

The lost pussy

They do a mean static. I saw them would you believe at a place formerly known as the Open Air Bible Museum. Recently renamed as Museum Park Orientalis. Wierder and wierder but wait.... forthcoming: 12 Adventures in Nijmegen.

Antwerp hotels and transport

I've only tried two hotels in Antwerp so far so I can't really claim to be an expert. The first time we stayed in hotel Rubenshof whose beautiful breakfast room is shown above. I think it says something about Belgians that the breakfast room is often the nicest room in the house. Unfortunately I can't say much for the actual bedroom at hotel Rubenshof, or the shower (dribble, dribble..) or the location - which is a little dull and not that convenient to anything.

Last time we stayed in 't Katshuis (I'm not going to bother giving web addresses because you can easily google these places). We got a much better deal in terms of a big room with a bathroom and plenty of water coming out of the shower. However, should you be sensitive to noise at all, or should the weather be warm enough that you have to leave the window open - you will not get any sleep at all! At least on the weekend, because there are bars downstairs and the cathedral is very near and the bells ring pretty much continuously all day Sunday. This didn't worry us because we sort of slumbered in total exhaustion after all the excitement we were having. Also Katshuis is very convenient - it is just off the Grote Markt and everything is handy.

Some parts of Antwerp are close together - the old centre, the river, the Centraal station area and the Hasidic area - but there is a lot to see further afield. If you love trams (teeny weeny ones) - you can get them. Otherwise a bike is a good idea. We got them from a place on Steenplein in the centre and they were very handy despite being extremely poorly maintained. I would recommend going for the cheapest bike, since having gears didn't help my bike at all and is probably what was making it slip constantly.

Antwerp: a guide to tourist info

Photo - a house in Zurenborg, an area mentioned in '12 adventures in Antwerp'

First thing to know about Antwerp is it's not that much use looking in guidebooks. They really give it short shrift as they don't actually expect anyone to go there [Come on lonely planet! You start the entry saying 'Antwerp is cool' then give it about 5 pages, mostly listing chi-chi restaurants of the type you can find anywhere].

The Antwerpians though, are more than happy to show you around and what's really wierd is they actually know what you want to see. They love their city, almost as much as me and for the same reasons. Have a look at the Antwerp city website to start with:

http://www.antwerpen.be/

When you get there head straight to the Antwerp tourism office on the Grote Markt (there's no sign or anthing on the building, but you should find it). They have really good free maps and also all sorts of brochures and booklets. They keep these behind the counter (so they don't get wasted of course). They don't really want you to get the good stuff so look at this part of the Antwerp city website which lists all the brochures so you know what to ask for:

http://www.antwerpen.be/eCache/BEN/266.html

There is a really good booklet called '12 Adventures in Antwerp' which goes through all different districts of Antwerp and lists attractions and gives a walk suggestion. It's 3 euros. There is also a free 'guide to Antwerp for young people' - which is made by the Use-it crew. I never thought I'd like anything for young people, but you're never too old to try these guides. Use-it has a website:

http://www.use-it.be/

You can download the use-it guides there. If you can't print A2 or whatever size it is you can get all the use-it maps for Antwerp, Ghent and Brugge from the people at the Antwerp tourist office, if you ask for each one by name. Only Antwerp seems to have a chunky little booklet from use-it.

Antwerp: gush gush gush

O.k. I don't know how I'm going to make this interesting because I am just crazy about Antwerp. After being disappointed with Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Cologne (not that there's anything wrong with them...) I've finally found a place, not too far from home, where you get the feeling interesting things are going on.

Arrival point: Antwerpen Centraal shown in picture above (alright it's in all the guidebooks!). When I first saw it I had a sense of deja vu. I think it was represented exactly in Spirited Away. The cartoonist probably found it so inspiring and couldn't think of possibly imagining a better train station, so just copied it as is. They have just finished building some lower levels to the train station, so now you can actually get this photo, as you're coming up an escalator.

Antwerp is a hidden little pocket of Europe where things are actually able to happen. As in Berlin, people actually have the time and the inclination to do interesting things. But how did such a place happen to develop here, in the middle of western Europe, unlike Berlin which is more or less on the border of east and west? I think at this point we have to give it to the Flems, who seem to have been able to make the most of being at the juncture of English, French and German cultural influences.

The atmosphere of past glory also gives Antwerp it's feel. The fact that the cost of living is way behind that of neighbouring areas means that it has attracted a fair few migrants and also those of the artistic persuasion. Also it's reputation for being 'dodgy' and 'dangerous' has probably helped.

O.k. enough gushing and on to the practicalities.

Coming out as a Nijmeegse

O.k. there is no point maintaining my mysterious blogging persona any longer. I'm living in Nijmegen - a rather inconsequential town in the Netherlands between Amsterdam and Antwerp. I didn't want to talk about Nijmegen or even the Netherlands in particular because I didn't want this to be so much an expat blog but more of a travel blog. Being as it is, inconsequential it is hard not to start to feel fond of Nijmegen, so I thought I might blog about it. The travel blog will continue.

Thus the lovely pictures of my local 'botanical gardens' (quotes because they're rather more modest that what you might have in mind as a botanical garden). This patch of land was extremely unimpressive until recently but now that spring has sprung though there are new flowers popping up almost every day - and don't those European plants look so much happier in their home country - happily growing in the almost permanent light rain. I tried to capture the yellow water irises but alas, they don't look nearly as impressive in the picture.

That's all for now about Nijmegen, I have to gush about Antwerp, my new love - but Nijmegen will be back - like a commercial, between travel blogs as it isn't nearly as dull as it seems on the surface.