Page 172 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Belgium & Luxembourg

170  BEL GIUM AND L UXEMBOURG REGION B Y REGION

s Hasselt
20 km (12 miles) NE of St-Truiden.
Road Map E2. * 80,000. £ @
n Maastrichterstraat 59; (011)
239540. ∑ visithasselt.be
Capital of the Province of Limburg,
Hasselt is a busy modern town,
famous as a historic centre of
jenever (gin) production. The
history of jenever is stylishly
explained in a former distillery at
the Nationaal Jenevermuseum.
Gin and distilling apparatus at the Nationaal Jenervermuseum, Hasselt The fashion museum, the
Modemuseum Hasselt, mounts
a St-Truiden 1942. It has 20,000 parts and is thematic exhibitions drawing
animated by moving figures on its extensive collection of
20 km (12 miles) E of Tienen.
Road Map D2. * 39,800. £ @ when the clock strikes. historical costumes.
n Grote Markt 44; (011) 701818. ( Hasselt also has the Japanse
∑ toerisme-sint-truiden.be P Abdijtoren Tuin, a remarkable garden
Abdijstraat. Open 9am–5pm daily. created with its Japanese twin
The attractive market town of Closed 1 Jan, 25, 26 & 31 Dec. & town, Itami. With rocks, winding
St-Truiden lies in the western P Begijnhofkerk paths, waterfalls, blossom trees
sector of the Haspengouw, a Begijnhof. Open Apr–Sep: and ceremonial buildings by a
region noted for its spring 10am–12:30pm & 1:30–5pm large carp pond, the garden has a
blossom and for orchards of Mon–Fri, 2–5pm Sat & Sun. refreshing air of authenticity. On
apples, pears and cherries. E Festraetsstudio the other side of the ring road is
The town is named after its Begijnhof. Open 10:30am–12:30pm Plopsa Indoor Hasselt, an all-
Benedictine abbey, founded & 1:30–4:30pm Mon–Fri, 1:30–4:30pm weather theme park for children.
around AD 660 by St Trudo, a Sat & Sun.
nobleman-turned-evangelist. E Nationaal Jenevermuseum
The abbey was closed during the Wittenonnenstraat 19. Tel (011)
French Revolutionary occupation 239860. Open Tue–Sun. Closed
in the 1790s. Its 11th-century 3 weeks in Jan, 24, 25 & 31 Dec. &
Abdijtoren is one of three towers -= ∑ jenevermuseum.be
that line up on the northern Y Japanse Tuin
side of the large Grote Markt. Gouverneur Verwilghensingel.
The second is the Belfort, built in Open Apr–Oct: 10am–5pm
1606 and attached incongruously Tue–Fri, 2–6pm Sat, Sun &
to the red 18th-century Stadhuis. public holidays. &
In front of the Belfort is a perron,  Plopsa Indoor Hasselt
a place marked by a column, Gouverneur Verwilghensingel 70.
where laws were promulgated Tel (011) 293040. Open school holidays:
and justice meted out. The daily; school term: 10am–6pm Wed–
perron was a symbol of liberty St-Truiden’s 18th-century Stadhuis with the Sun (until 5:30 pm Sat & Sun).
under the rule of the prince- Belfort rising behind it - = 7 ∑ plopsa.be
bishops of Liège (13th–15th
centuries). The third tower is
the 19th-century spire of the Jenever
Onze-Lieve-Vrouwkerk. The original gin, jenever is a strong alcoholic drink distilled
In the northeast of the town, from grain, usually malted barley. Invented in the 16th century,
a set of pretty 16th- to 18th- jenever was originally a medicine named
century houses cluster around after its key ingredient, juniper berries.
a square in the begijnhof. Today, it is produced in Belgium and
The charming barrel-vaulted the Netherlands in countless different
church, the Begijnhofkerk, styles, and with flavourings such as
orange, lemon, apple, hazelnut, vanilla
has a remarkable set of murals and chocolate. Oude (old) and jonge
dating from the 13th to the (young) describe variant distilling
17th centuries. techniques (rather than ageing) – jonge
The Festraetsstudio contains styles, introduced in around 1900, have a
a famous astronomical clock, lighter, less malty flavour. Jenever,
6-m (20-ft) tall, created by in all its various forms, is always Ceramic bottles of
master clockmaker Kamiel consumed neat. flavoured jenever
Festraets between 1937 and
For hotels and restaurants see p268 and pp286–8

170-171_EW_Belgium.indd 170 18/10/16 3:01 pm
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.9)
Date 28th May 2014
Size 125mm x 217mm