HEULE/KORTRIJK - Here at BeerTourism.com we have been so busy with the development and launch of our own site that we have not been tasting as many newly launched Belgian beers as we would like to; something we will rectify in the future.. However, we have made time to taste a new Remembrance Beer, recently launched by the Eutropius brewery from Heule in West Flanders. Our first taste of the brew took place at Beershop 't Koelschip, a speciality beer shop in Ostend, 'conveniently' located close to our office. As we try to practice what we preach here at Beertourism.com, we decided some time ago that our New Years Eve dinner would comprise of a fine selection of Belgian beers and cheeses. We already assembled most of our list but we were still on the lookout for one or two more beers to complete the selection and thought to ourselves, why not taste this Belgian newcomer.. The beer itself is nicely packaged with a poppy on the label to symbolize Flanders Fields and the Great War and is currently only available in a 75 cl/25.36 fl oz bottle...

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OSTEND - After five years of renovations the old post office will open on the 21st of December as the city’s cultural centre. The name of the new centre is Cultuurcentrum de Grote Post, which translates literally as ‘Cultural Centre 'The Big Post’. The city’s post office was started in 1946 and completed in 1953. The new cultural centre has cost €20 million to build and has 10,000 square meters or more than 100,000 square feet of space containing a dance studio, two large halls, a multi-purpose hall, an event hall, no less than 10 artists’ studios, an outdoor amphitheatre and a culture café it will, no doubt, live up to its new name. For names, dates and much more check CC De Grote Post. The design is by www.degrotepost.be...

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OSTEND – In the winter, on the run up to the Christmas period, many towns and villages across Belgium host a Christmas market and install a temporary ice rink too. On the 30th of November, as they have for several years now, the city of Ostend opened its “Winter Ice” attraction to the public. Spanning over 1,000 square meters or almost 10,500 square feet, Ostenders can tell other cities they have the biggest one in Belgium! The ice rink is located on the city’s central square known as the “Het Wapenplein” and ice skating will be possible throughout the Christmas and New Year holiday season. The Christmassy atmosphere is further boosted with seasonal lighting and festive music and 5 different food and drink outlets. These are open until midnight and 1 am on Fridays and Saturdays respectively. Ostend’s ice rink is also one of few that is completely covered with a transparent roof making it an all-weather attraction which is expected to attract around 30,000 visitors in total...

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OSTEND – At the moment the city by the sea doesn’t have an observatory but it has now been officially announced that Ostend will build a completely new building to house one by 2015. The building will be integrated into an already planned new green belt concept that will circle the city perimeter. The observatory is just a small part of a much bigger plan to create this long-awaited recreational green zone. Detailed plans for this ambitious project should be finalised by February 2013. As part of the plans a large performance area and a new bike path will be added too. The project is part of a new management agreement which was made shortly after the local elections on the 14th of October this year...

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BRUGES - Next to the 'Pick Salami and Paprika Museum' in Hungary and the Jell-O Gallery in the USA, the Belgian Frietmuseum in Bruges has been added to the list of 'Oddest Food Museums' in the “Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2013” guide. The museum which is the only one in the world telling the history of the French fry, or as we like to call it, Belgian fry, opened up in 2008 and is located in the historical “Saaihalle”. And if there is one country that deserves a museum dedicated to fries it has to be Belgium. Next to chocolate and beer it is the nation’s most well-known product. The building itself dates back to the 14th century. It is conveniently located in the center of the medieval city, just 200 metres from the main market square...

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