With medieval buildings and narrow streets winding around its ancient centre, Brussels can already seem like the setting for a fairy-tale to enchanted visitors. But now that impression is to come to life, as a new flower exhibition, named the Floralientime, is set to blossom in the city.
Every two years, Brussels plays host to a famous "flower carpet" for the month of August This can be a truly astonishing sight, which visitors flock to see.
There's only one problem -- the Flower Carpet is such a huge technical and logistic feat, that it takes two years to put every exhibition together! So the last one, seen in the pic, was in 2012 -- and the next one will bloom next year in August 2014.
But the organisers wanted to put together something in the meantime too, to delight visitors and natives in the "year in-between"
So they've rolled out the Floralientime. This is an arrangement of many small gardens and displays of flower art by different artists and gardeners. As shown below, laurel trees decorate the central square, and brightly coloured model lambs are placed around them, giving a true air of fairytale surreality. The town hall has also been filled with artistic exhibitions, bright and vibrant in the ancient chambers.
So if you fancy a holiday while August still holds us in her summery grasp, and you like a nice spot of exhibition gardening ....why not Brussels?