We visited Antwerp in May of 2001 on our way to attend the Internet BMW Riders Spring Informal Europrez meeting (IEP3). Antwerp is very English friendly as everyone we spoke with was able to speak Dutch (the native language in the city), French (the national language in the southern part of the country), English and German.

For us, Antwerp is a vibrant cosmopolitan city with a history of artistic and decorative crafts and music. The second largest city in the country, the port of Antwerp is the second largest in Europe and it contributes a great amount to the prosperity of the city. We found a cruise ship docked right next to the old town area in the city on the Scheldt River on our second visit. The city has a ring road which is built on a moat which once encircled the city. Most of the sights of the city are found in the old town center and based around the Grote Markt where the City Hall pictured at left is located.

What’s in a name? The name Antwerp is derived from the Dutch Antwerpen, often written Hantwerper until the last two centuries. An old legend is that a giant controlled the Scheldt who demanded a heavy toll from each passing ship. If the captain refused to pay he had a hand chopped off. In the right hand of the figure atop the statue in the foreground of the picture is a hand and the figure appears to be in the position of throwing the hand. The Roman warrior Silvius Brabo is given credit for slaying the giant and chopping his hand and throwing it into the Scheldt. Hence, Hantwerpen’ `hand throwing`; the H disappeared, `Antwerpen` stuck. Having said all this, we are told that there is not a shred of truth to the story.

No self respecting European town would be without it’s cathedral and Antwerp is well represented by Cathedral of Our Lady, a short distance from the Grote Markt and pictured at right. The cathedral is the largest Gothic cathedral in Belgium and is home to Ruben’s “Decent from the Cross”. Antwerp is also home to the Ruben’s House, although our timing was not great and we missed its opening hours every time we passed.

The worlds largest diamond cutting industry is run in Antwerp. It accounts for 12% of the turnover of the Flemish regional economy. The Diamond Center offers short tours which provide an overview of the process a diamond goes through in order to become a stone that would be sold. There is a showroom at the facility and you can purchase diamonds in a wide range of styles and qualities. The gentleman pictured at left is polishing stones on a wheel spinning at a very high rate of speed. We managed to miss the exact RPM mentioned but it was quite fast. At right, diamonds are being set into a ring that will go on sale at the center. If you wish, you can purchase a stone and watch it being set. Also, each stone comes with documentation stating its carat (weight), color, clarity and cut.

Just before leaving the city, we literally stumbled upon the Cogels-Osylei while trying to find a “late night shop” (a store open later than normal daytime hours). This street, while having no late night shops, is lined with turn of the century houses of varying styles, from Art Nouveau to classical (right). We were enchanted with the houses on this street and spent quite a bit of time just wandering along, enjoying the view. At one end of the street, there are 4 huge mansions of similar style, one on each corner. The picture at left is of one of them, with Jim on his bike at the stop sign.

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