La Belgique Gourmande

Object of the game
Don’t hurry, enjoy it and finish the game … taking as much time as you can. In the meantime discover a small country with a wealth of flavours and history. Relax and remember: who finishes last wins! And for once eating is allowed while you’re playing.

Rules of the game
The game can be played by 2 or 3 persons. The players take turns in throwing the dice and move forward accordingly. When a player lands on a ‘Belgique Gourmande’ square, he must follow the instructions (see the 14 places to stop from la Belgique Gourmande). If a player lands on a Belgique Gourmande square that is already occupied, he has to go back to the ‘start’ square.

All players start from the first square. The player who has thrown the lowest number with his dice, starts. The 14 places to stop from la Belgique Gourmande Start of the game. A beautiful walk through the Polders. Enjoy the scenery.

4 Ostend: After a visit to the training ship Mercator (named after the famous geographer) you sample the shrimp rissoles along the dyke. Then take a ride on a pedal kart and fill your lungs with sea air. Skip a turn. 6 Bruges: The visit to the beguinage by carriage has made you thirsty. Pay homage to Jeff de Bruges by visiting the Chocolate Museum. Then take a stroll along the canals. Don’t leave Bruges until all the other players have caught up with you.

9 Tournai: Shame on you! You have bypassed Courtrai. Stopping in the town of Clovis is compulsory. Admire the Belfry and the Cathedral. Skip a turn and enjoy a few ‘ballons noirs’ in a patisserie in the town centre.

11 Ghent: Ghent, the town where Charles V was born. Roam through the narrow streets of the Patershol clutching a bag of typical Ghent biscuits, called ‘mokken’. Take a boat trip on the river Lys and discover Latem and Deurle, villages which have always been popular with artists. Don’t throw the dice again until you’ve had a nap in a cornfield.

After having sauntered along the Dutch border and across the Kempen, you have nearly arrived at the gateways to Limburg.

19 Hasselt /Tongeren: softly, soooooftly. Here they live as they speak. Quietly and with a bit of melody. In order to work up an appetite, it is now time to take a historic walk in Bokrijk. Tell the player who is close behind you to take a look on square 50 to see if you are there too.

22 Spa: Peter the Great, Monteverdi and Victor Hugo already came here to recharge their batteries. Take the cable car and rejuvenate in these famous Roman baths and taste the depurative water. A bit of adventure in the Hautes Fagnes is definitely going to be to your liking. Skip two turns. Don’t worry, we will get you out of there again.

29 Bouillon: The ‘Archéoscope Godefroid de Bouillon’ or an Ardennes speciality on the banks of the Semois? Skip at least one turn to think about this! 33 Liège: Waiter, I’ll have kidneys prepared in the Liege way, with ‘péket jenever’! Good for the digestion, along the river Meuse, you enter the imaginary world of Simenon. Don’t leave Liege before you throw 1 with the dice.

36 Chimay: Watch out for the Iguanodons of Bernissart; recuperate with a delicious escaveche with Chimay.

40 Brussels: First time! Why not enjoy a plate of chips at Eugène’s, a friend of Grand Jacques (Brel). The Atomium can wait a while, so have your portrait drawn at the Comic Strip Museum. You will have to skip 3 turns until a kind-hearted soul buys this sketch from you.

42 Antwerp: Sample a ‘Bolleke’ beer and set out to explore the city where Rubens was born, also the second largest port in Europe. They won’t let you leave the zoo? Then you must count all the animals and skip a turn.

47 Waterloo: The cakes in Chaumont-Gistoux are delicious and… filling! Take your time to drag yourself up the hill fondly remembered by Napoleon and skip 2 turns.

51 Mechelen: And a cuckoo! Find the child in you again in the toy museum. Do you remember the days when you were 5 years old? Then return to square 5!

52 Brussels, second time!: Finished fooling around or ‘zwanzen’ as they call it here? You are expected at the Royal Palace or the European Commission? Shame, but drop in again whenever you like!