The districts of Antwerp

Central station: Diamant, Meir and surrounding area: An enchanting entrÉe

Travelling to Antwerp by train is a fantastic start. It will take you to the very core of the city, to a magnificent and surprising terminal building, and also has the advantage of completely avoiding today’s road rebuilding works. Leaving the platform hall takes you into the old station hall, more reminiscent of a cathedral than a train station.

The exit on the northern side of the Hall leads to the Koningin Astridplein. The combination of the station originating from the beginning of the 20th century and the Astrid Park Plaza Hotel are representative of the contrast that is typical of this city. The first thing you see on the right side of the station is the old entrance to the Zoo. Antwerp’s “Chinatown” starts left of the Plaza Hotel and ends at the Coninckplein. It’s one street filled with shops, supermarkets and restaurants all advertising in Chinese and English.

When you leave the station by the western exit, you’ll find yourself in the Pelikaanstraat, which is the beginning of the Jewish district, easily recognisable by dozens of jewellery shops, even though what’s for sale here is not exactly representative of Antwerp as the renowned diamond capital. The diamond grinders and fairs are hidden behind the façade of the Hoveniersstraat and are heavily guarded since a bombing in the early 1980s. Clearly visible however are the orthodox Jews with their black coats and hats.

The Keyserlei is a wide avenue that starts and has always been an area of entertainment, though the old variety theatres and dance halls have now been replaced by movie theatres (UGC). The Flemish Opera attracts music lovers to the Frankrijklei, where you’ll find the Opera, unfortunately overshadowed by a rather thoughtlessly situated tower. Across the ring boulevard, called the Leien, you enter the shopping centre of the city – the Meir and the Leysstraat. Don’t restrict yourself to window shopping but do look up every once in a while at the marvellous gables.

Turning left you end up near the Wapper, at the fully restored home and workshop of Rubens, just a few minutes from the Arenberg Theatre. Just ahead is a dominating skyscraper, build in 1931 and rising up to more than 300ft. It was Europe’s tallest building at the time of construction. Locals speak of the Boerentoren (Farmers’ tower) because of the finance company housed there, which specialised in loans to farmers. The route ends at the Grand Bazar where, within the confined of this former shopping centre, a contemporary shopping gallery and the Hilton hotel have settled.

Oude Stad: A tourist centre

Real eye-catchers – besides the many restaurants, pubs and shops – are the monumental buildings and the authentic squares in this part of the city. The 400-ft tower of the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal is the beacon of the old city. At the centre of the Grote Markt, a fountain called the Brabofontein tells the legend of the brave Roman, Silvius Brabo, who chopped off the hand of the giant, Druwoen Antigoon, thereby stopping him from charging a toll on the river Scheldt. Take time to stroll around the Vlaeykensgang, a 16th-century alleyway, the Grote Markt with its Guild Houses, and the City Hall; the Hendrik Conscienceplein with the baroque Sint Carolus Borremeus church and the city library.

Quartier Latin: Entertainment, antiques and more

The name might remind you of the district in Paris where the Latin language united the Sorbonne students, but here in Antwerp Latin originates from the posh French that used to be the official language here. It was introduced in 1710, when travelling theatre companies from Italy and France came here to perform their comedies in an old carpet factory. Numerous theatres were build, like the 19th-century Fransche Schouwburg owned by Pierre Bruno Bourla, which carries his name. Do go there, especially to admire the marvellous foyer.

The street vendors on the Vogelmarkt make for some good comedy on Sundays. The Vogelmarkt used to be the place where chicken, ducks and all kinds of other poultry were traditionally sold for cooking. On Saturday there is a large foodstuffs market where exotic fruit and spices are sold, hence its name “Vreemdelingenmarkt”.

An entirely different aspect of the Quartier Latin is the numerous fashion boutiques. Near the Meir, with its wide-ranging chain stores, you’ll find two small streets (the Schuttershofstraat and the Huidevetterstraat) with haute-couture oriented boutiques.

If antiques are your thing, go to the Komedieplaats, Leopoldstraat and St-Jorispoort. Look for the blue and white pennant which represents the guild for antique dealers. Here you won’t find vintage as you would in Sint-Andrieskwartier, but much more valuable merchandise.

De Wilde Zee: Fashion taken by storm

The name of this district (meaning the Rough Sea) is somewhat misleading as you might expect a grand panorama that you could take in at a glance. Truth be told, it’s only a few small shopping streets hiding behind the impressive outer walls of the Huidevetterstraat, the Meirbrug and Schoenmarkt. In the Wilde Zee, you do however run the risk of drowning in all the fashion. And if this amount of fashion hasn’t completely swept your attempts of self-restraint, wait until you see the large displays of chocolates in all shapes and sizes. Besides the big names like Neuhaus, Godiva and Leonidas, there are also many traditional chocolate makers like Burie.

’t Zuid: The stylish way of living

Everything in this district is relatively new. Houses are hardly much more than a century old, and the nightlife came to life only about two decades ago. An interesting characteristic: you’ll find more locals than tourists at tables in pubs, bistros and restaurants.

The stylish restaurants are generally situated in two avenues paralles to the Schelde: the Vlaamse and Waalse Kaai. The trendy image suffers quite a lot with the arrival of the Sinksenfoor funfair which takes over the square, from 30 May to 4 July – six weeks after Whitsun.

Looking for mass commercial shopping streets in ’t Zuid would be a vain task. Shopping is a very selective activity here. The emphasis is clearly on interior design.

This is also the area of the big museums: You can go the Koninklijke Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Royal Museum for Fine Arts), to the Museum for Fotografie which shows every development of the camera, from its invention until the present day and has a collection of photographic masterworks, or the MUKHA, the Museum of Contemporary Art.

Sint Andries: Browsing through bric-a-brac

Those who enjoy roaming around junk shops will certainly appreciate this area. In the last few years, the Kloosterstraat has become dominated by vintage shops. Mainly just old junk, but if you look a bit further you might discover a valuable little piece just waiting to be discovered. If you’re interested in antiques, the Kloosterstraat is an absolute must. With tolerably good weather rummage sales are held every Sunday on the St Jansvliet, the square that links Sint Andries and the old city.

The Parochie of Miserie (parish of Misery), is on the city side of the Kloosterstraat. It used to be the home to sailors and harbour workmen. Back then, many lived cramped together in slums, which are gone or have been renovated beyond recognition.

The Zurenborg district

Zurenborg is the name of a district, consisting of a few streets in the Antwerp suburb of Berchem. The district is situated near the railway station of Berchem. What you can see here is absolutely unique in Belgium. An incredible mixture of architectural styles unfolds itself before the eyes of the visitor. Nowhere else can such panoply of neo-styles be admired. The district is not really very large, so the best way to visit it is by taking a stroll through the different streets. In Belgium the district is also sometimes referred to as the “Cogels-Osylei”, which is the name of its main street.
The multitude of architectural styles and decorations is breathtaking. One can find a house in neo-gothic style standing right next to a house in Art Nouveau style (aka Jugendstil). All the houses were built at the time when all over Belgium the neo-styles were very popular (neo-classicist, neo-gothic, neo-renaissance, etc.…). It somehow showed that Belgium (as a relatively new state) had rediscovered its ancient glory of the 15th and 16th centuries when it was one of the most important European commercial centres. One style, however, was new: the Art Nouveau style. This style was developed out of the gothic and pre-Raphaelite styles. In Belgium it was perfected by the architect Victor Horta.