Ghent

Is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province and after Antwerp the largest municipality of Belgium.

The city 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. It is a port and university city.

Ghent is Belgium's second largest municipality by number of inhabitants. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 1,205 km2 and has a total population of about 594,582 inhabitantsas which ranks it as the fourth most populous in Belgium.

Most historians believe that the older name for Ghent, 'Ganda', is derived from the Celtic word ganda which means confluence. Other sources connect its name with an obscure deity named Gontia.

Architecture

The Gravensteen

Old post office

Saint-Nicholas Church

Belfry

Saint Bavo Cathedral.

Much of the city's medieval architecture remains intact and is remarkably well preserved and restored. Ghent has established a blend between comfort of living and history. The city of Ghent also houses three béguinages and numerous churches including the Saint-Jacob's church, the Saint-Nicolas' church and the Saint Michael's church.

There are also the university hall Aula, the opera house and the main courthouse. Highlights of modern architecture are the university buildings. There are also a few theatres from diverse periods.

The beguinages, as well as the belfry and adjacent cloth hall, were recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites in 1998 and 1999.

Restaurants and culinary traditions

In Ghent and other regions of East-Flanders, bakeries sell a donut-shaped bun called a "mastel", which is basically a bagel. "Mastel" 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.

Other local delicacies are the praline chocolates from local producers such as Leonidas, the cuberdons or 'neuzekes' ('noses'), cone-shaped purple jelly-filled candies, 'babeluten' ('babblers'), hard butterscotch-like candy, and of course, on the more fiery side, the famous 'Tierenteyn', a hot but refined mustard that has some affinity to French 'Dijon' mustard.

Stoverij is a classic Flemish meat stew, preferably made with a generous addition of brown 'Trappist' (strong abbey beer) and served with French fries.
'Waterzooi' is a local stew originally made from freshwater fish caught in the rivers and creeks of Ghent, but nowadays often made with chicken instead of fish. It is usually served nouvelle-cuisine-style, and will be supplemented by a large pot on the side.

The city promotes a meat-free day on Thursdays called Donderdag Veggiedag with vegetarian food being promoted in public canteens for civil servants and elected councillors, in all city funded schools, and promotion of vegetarian eating options in town (through the distribution of "veggie street maps"). This campaign is linked to the recognition of the detrimental environmental effects of meat production, which the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization has established to represent nearly one-fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Ghent has the world's largest number of vegetarian restaurants per capita.

Festivities

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 and the Gent Festival van Vlaanderen.

Economy

The port of Ghent, in the north of the city, is the third largest port of Belgium. It houses Volvo Cars, Volvo Trucks, Volvo Parts, Honda, and Stora Enso.

The Ghent University and a number of research oriented companies, such as Ablynx, Innogenetics, Cropdesign and Bayer Cropscience, are situated in the central and southern part of the city.

As the largest city in East Flanders, Ghent has many hospitals, schools and shopping streets. Flanders Expo, the biggest event hall in Flanders and the second biggest in Belgium, is also located in Ghent. Tourism is becoming a major employer in the local area.

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