BGM: Cinquantenaire Park

European Quarter, Brussels, Belgium

Parc du Cinquantenaire (French for 'Park of the 50th Anniversary') or Jubelpark (Dutch for 'Jubilee Park') is a 30-hectare public park built in 1880 during the reign of King Leopold II to commemorate fifty years of the country's independence. It's located at the easternmost part of the European Quarter of the city.

Before entering the park, my BFF and I saw the statue of Robert Schuman, a German composer, and that of Albert Thys, a Belgian general who was active in Congo Free State, Central Africa.

Located at the northwestern corner of the park are Great Mosque of Brussels and Temple of Human Passions.

Admission to the park is free of charge.

The mosque, completed in 1879, is the oldest one in Brussels.

The temple houses a scandalous relief depicting war, violence and rape by Jef Lambeaux.

The weather was really pleasant for a walk.

We saw many people bringing their dogs to play.

"We are the champions, my friends~"

The centrepiece of the park is the monumental triple arch with its U-shaped arcade. Click on the panorama shot below to enlarge it.

At the top is an oxidised copper statue of a woman on a quadriga, a chariot drawn by four horses. 

A jumbo Belgian flag!

Waffle or ice cream, anyone?

There are a few museums at the park, one of which is Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History.

Cinquantenaire / Jubelpark Museum is part of the Royal Museums for Art and History, which includes four others.

AutoWorld is a museum that showcases about 350 vintage cars.

Here's one last photo that I took before leaving the park.

The arch is featured in the 2013 version of SimCity, along with other famous landmarks across the globe.