Brussels 1999 and 2000
In the winter of 99/00 I went to work in Brussels for 6 months. I had been working at NatWest for the previous 14 months on a Millennium project but it had come to an end in October. So with most companies scared to do any more work until after the Y2K tick-over and no contracts available in the UK I took 6 months working for ProtonCard in Brussels. It was fun but I wasn't a great fan of Brussels itself. It has some nice areas, some lovely buildings and grand squares but the whole city looks old and tired. Some places can look old and historical, quirky or endearing, but Brussels just looks old. The place needs a facelift, a modernising touch and a complete de-frogging, it's far too French! Oh and of course it's far too bureaucratic.
The Manneken Pis is dressed in a different costume each day, but the big thing about it is that it isn't a big thing. It's tiny, it's 2 foot tall but looks even smaller. Hardly an impressive statue to symbolise the whole city.