In a recent survey by Trip Advisor, Brussels was voted the most boring capital in Europe. Behind the stately 19 th century decadence or run-down administrative buildings from the s, there is a secret life full of personalities and persuasive charms. A mansion on a quiet street turns out to be a rendez-vous hotel with a dungeon where directors probably get back at their secretaries for sending out files too late or more likely let their secretaries turn the tables.
Closer to the touristy center, you could also start off at Goupil Le Fol. The bar is housed in what once used to be a brothel, and though its purpose has changed, it still retains its original atmosphere. Brussels is not an in your face kind of place.
On the other hand, for a local it takes no sweat to guide you on an associative tour of a few of the treasures, trash and historic traces that give this grey town so much color. First you take off the clothes. Then you feel the skin. Slowly you get to know about the spirit that fuels the body. The architecture here is anything, but boring. Its arrival met great resistance. Art Deco however, surpassed Art Nouveau as the style most often associated with lasciviousness and luxury.
This is a clear reflection of the period in which it boomed, namely the roaring twenties, which are so often portrayed by happy go lucky gals in Charleston dresses, sipping champagne from special coupes in bars, brothels or social clubs. Its heritage is still alive in certain places in Brussels, including the lecherous lifestyle that went with it.
Many brothels or rendez-vous hotels were built in Art Deco style, and unlike Goupil Le Fol, some still serve their original purpose. Like 5 th Avenue at the metro station Yser; a shady place where prices are negotiated before punters are led upstairs. The transactions that once characterized the place however, have been restricted to sipping coffee or beer and maybe spending a calm night in one the rooms. This is one of the few places where locals and imported Eurocrats mingle.
