MANCAMONDO

Central Western
Europe

Kingdom of Belgium

The Benelux Union is a politico-economic union of three neighbouring
states in western Europe: Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg.

The name Benelux is formed from joining the first
two or three letters of each country's name.

Benelux

Belgium

Ghent

Belgium is a low-lying country on the North Sea coast in the Benelux.

Ghent started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Leie and in the Late Middle
Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of northern Europe, with some 50,000 people in 1300.

Ghent is a port and university city. The municipality comprises the city of Ghent proper and the surrounding suburbs of Afsnee,
Desteldonk, Drongen, Gentbrugge, Ledeberg, Mariakerke, Mendonk, Oostakker, Sint-Amandsberg,
Sint-Denijs-Westrem, Sint-Kruis-Winkel, Wondelgem and Zwijnaarde.

The ten-day-long Ghent Festival (Gentse Feesten in Dutch) is held every year and attended by about 1–1.5 million visitors.

Ghent is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province and after Antwerp the largest municipality of Belgium.

Ghent Gent Gand Flemish Region Belgium march 2018

Much of the city's medieval architecture remains intact and is remarkably well preserved and restored.

Ghent city centre is the largest carfree area in Belgium.

Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

Historical centre of Ghent – from left to right: Old post office, Saint-Nicholas Church, Belfry, and Saint Bavo Cathedral.

St. Nicholas Church (Dutch: Sint-Niklaaskerk) is one of the oldest and most prominent landmarks in Ghent.

Begun in the early 13th century as a replacement for an earlier Romanesque church, construction continued
through the rest of the century in the local Scheldt Gothic style (named after the nearby river).

Typical of this style is the use of blue-gray stone from the Tournai area, the single large tower
above the crossing, and the slender turrets at the building's corners.

Built in the old trade center of Ghent next to the bustling Korenmarkt (Wheat Market), St. Nicholas Church
was popular with the guilds whose members carried out their business nearby. The guilds had their own
chapels which were added to the sides of the church in the 14th and 15th centuries.

Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

The Saint Bavo Cathedral (Sint-Baafs Cathedral, Dutch: Sint Baafskathedraal) is an 89-meter-tall Catholic, Gothic cathedral in Ghent.

The building is built on the site of the former Chapel of St. John the Baptist, primarily of wooden construction that was consecrated
in 942 by Transmarus, Bishop of Tournai and Noyon. Traces of a later Romanesque structure can be found in the cathedral's crypt.
Construction of the Gothic church began around 1274.

In the subsequent period from the 14th through 16th centuries, nearly continuous
expansion projects in the Gothic style were executed on the structure.

Saint Bavo Cathedral Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

The great organ built in 1935 by Klais is the biggest of the Benelux.

Saint Bavo Cathedral Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

Saint Bavo Cathedral Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

In Ghent and other regions of East Flanders, bakeries sell a donut-shaped bun called a "mastel" (plural "mastellen"),
which is basically a bagel. "Mastellen" are also called "Saint Hubert bread", because on the Saint's feast day,
which is 3 November, the bakers bring their batches to the early Mass to be blessed.
Traditionally, it was thought that blessed mastellen immunized against rabies.

Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.

The city is host to some big cultural events such as the Gentse Feesten, I Love Techno in Flanders Expo,
the "10 Days Off" musical festival, the International Film Festival of Ghent
(with the World Soundtrack Awards) and the Gent Festival van Vlaanderen.

Ghent (Dutch: Gent; French: Gand), Flemish Region, East Flanders, 24.03.2018.