Mechelen is one of the most richly historic towns and a very easy, very rewarding and exciting stop, only 20 minutes from either Brussels or Antwerp. If you travel by train from Antwerp to Brussels or the other way around, a stop in Mechelen will not cost you anything extra and you can enjoy a new Belgian city on your way.
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BENELUX travel guide to Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg
Mechelen
Nello and Patrasche – the Antwerp’s story of the Dog of Flanders
French-English author Marie Louise de la Ramée (1839-1908), alias Ouida, wrote the children’s book ‘A Dog of Flanders’ after visiting Antwerp in 1871. It is the story of a boy called Nello and his faithful dog Patrasche. Nello and Patrasche lived in Hoboken (now suburb of Antwerp). They traveled into Antwerp every day with their milk cart and it was there in the Cathedral of Our Lady that they met their dramatic end.
The book found its way to Japan and Korea, where it was translated and is still a best-seller today. Many Japanese and Korean children have read the tragic tale of Nello and Patrasche and through it have discovered Antwerp and Rubens.
There is a statue of Nello and Patrasche in the district of Hoboken at the height of the Infoshop (Kapelstraat 3). Both figures have also been immortalized in a bench; you can find this work of art in front of the Cathedral of Our Lady, in Handschoenmarkt.
The Antwerp Six. Belgian city of fashion makers
As a fashion city Antwerp owes its reputation to the pioneers of the fashion movement, the so-called ‘Antwerp Six’: Walter Van Beirendonck, Ann Demeulemeester, Dries Van Noten, Dirk Van Saene, Dirk Bikkembergs and Marina Yee travelled to London and Paris together in the Eighties as well as Martin Margiela (the seventh). Together the Antwerp six have conquered the fashion world with their very distinct vision of fashion.
Welcome to the BENELUX Guide!
BENELUX is more commonly known by its individual country names: Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg. Each has a remarkable history and a grand cultural heritage.
Dutch Gouda cheese, Belgian chocolate & pralines and Luxembourgian… banking are world-famous but yet, there is much more to discover in each of the countries of Benelux. While having much in common geographically, historically and linguistically, the three countries are quite distinct in their cultures.
As BENELUX Guide begins to attract professional guides from across the three countries for cooperation, we shall expand our travel tips and and practical advice per country and for the Benelux region as a whole.
