May 10, 2011

A Tour of Belgium: A Quick Overview of The Nation of Belgium, Plus a Recipe for Belgian Buttered Cupcakes as Lagniappe




Introduction


Have you ever wanted to travel without leaving home? Well in this overview, I’ll give you a vivid an exciting tour of Belgium and you won’t have to leave your house! You will learn good information about the country, its culture, its people, as well as a tasty recipe you can make at home. I will briefly discuss its geographic area and also point out some important facts about it. I will give you serious facts about the country as well as a few fun facts. Of course, I will also include some unusual facts that you may not already know. Furthermore, and just in case you want to give this country a physical tour, I will give you some much needed travel information.


Country Information






Geographic Facts


Here are some geographic facts about Belgium:

  1. Belgium has three parts. These parts include Lower-Belgium, Middle-Belgium, and High-Belgium. Belgium borders multiple countries on the north, south, and east of its location. On the western side of the country it borders the Northsea. The Netherlands is to the north, France is to the south, and both Germany and Luxembourg is to the east.
  2. Approximately 61% of the residents of Belgium reside in a region called Flanders. The population is about 340 people per square kilometer. The density of this population is one of Europe’s highest. The population in most of its cities have increased over the years due to industrial developments.
  3. There are three linguistic communities that separate the Belgium population. These languages are Dutch, Flemish, and French. Although majority of the population has knowledge of both French and Flemish, only about 10% of the population is completely bilingual.




“Serious” Facts


Here are some serious facts about Belgium:

  1. Belgium formed the third largest non-Common wealth contingent in the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain. In memory of the soldiers that were killed during WWI, the Menin Gate in Ypres was built. During this war a lot of people were killed. A famous nurse by the name of Edith Cavel was executed in Brussels for helping a group of allied soldiers escape to the Netherlands.
  2. The capital of Belgium is Brussels. Its also the home of the administrative center of the European Union. This earned the city the title of being called the Capital of Europe. Brussels is now home to many nationalities around the world thanks to its vibrant atmosphere.
  3. On February 17, Belgium made 249 days without a government. The broke a record set my Iraq last year when they went without government for an exceeded amount of time. Since the election last June a “caretaker” government has been running Belgium. Despite countless attempts by the nation leaders to form a government in the country its said to be “no where close to happening.”



“Fun” Facts


Here are some fun facts about Belgium:

  1. An old cartoon known as the “Smurfs,” with the little blue creatures are Belgian. They were created by Peyo.
  2. Simon Steven was a Belgian mathematician born in Bruges. He is credited with inventing the decimal system for mathematical division.
  3. The Antwerp Zoo has over 4,000 animals. Its said to be one of the largest and oldest zoos in Europe!




“Potpurri”


Here are some very unusual facts about Belgium:

  1. On Christmas Eve in Belgium, it is legal for children to throw bananas at police cars.On Christmas Day in Belgium, it is legal for police officers to throw bananas at children.
  2. In Belgium there are tons of castles per square smile which is more than anywhere else in the world. Which means some neighbors may be a community of castles. Whereas in the U.S. They are really hard to find.
  3. In Belgium they hold whats called the Cat Festival. This festival is located in Ypres. Its from the medieval ritual of throwing cats off the top of the belfry. Today, instead of throwing real cats, the politically correct society insists that toy stuffed cats be thrown instead.



Image via Wikipedia


Travel Information


Here are essential pieces of info that travelers to Belgium will want to know about where to go, what to see, and/or how to stay safe there:

  1. Belgium’s weather consist of many dark, cloudy, rainy, cold days. Djs in Belgium love the Beatles’ 1969 classic ‘Here comes the Sun’ because it rarely ever happens. If you are traveling to Belgium its best to go during late spring or early autumn. This would be the best time to avoid cold and rainy weather.
  2. If you are visiting on the weekend you might want to visit key cities such as Brussels, Antwerp, and Bruges. You can take a ride of the Eurostar if you’re coming from London or using the Thalys fast train networks. Its better to avoid touring on Mondays because museums as well as a lot of fun shops are closed during this day.
  3. The Dominican Hotel is one of the best hotels to stay in! Although its pricey costing about $300 US dollars a night its location is one of the finest in the city of Brussels!



Food Information






Recipe


First, here are the ingredients you will need for preparing Belgium buttered cakes:


Ingredients (makes 24)
250 g of flour
250 g butter or margarine
250 g sugar
4 eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla sugar
1 tablespoon of baking powder

Next, here is a step-by-step guide to preparing Belgium buttered cupcakes:


Step

1
Preheat the oven at 200 degrees Celsius

2
Beat eggs until foamy

3
Add sugar, vanilla, and soft butter

4
Add flour and baking power then mix well

5
Pour into muffin pan

6
Bake for 12 minutes

7
Enjoy!

This recipe was found:
Http://www.food.com/recipe/buttery-cupcakes-132558

My Kitchen Story


Cooking these cupcakes was harder than expected. I had my boyfriend help which was a bad idea. We made about 3 batches of cupcakes before we got it right. The first batch we over baked them and they taste horrible! For some reason they bake very quickly so be aware! So the second time we added about 75 additional grams of sugar (which is why they taste sweet!). However, we forgot how fast they cooked in started talking and joking around. So there goes another batch! Messing up so many times cause us to run out of eggs and sugar so we had to make a trip to the store before we could start over. Finally, we made the final two batches and sat at the bar and kept quiet until they were done! Overall they came out a little dark but still good.



References


http://www.food.com/recipe/buttery-cupcakes-132558

http://www.havetravelfun.com/belgium/belgium-information.htm#geography

http://www.angelfire.com/journal/NSYNC/weirdfacts.html

http://www.brussels.org/




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Contact Information


To contact the author of “A Tour of Belgium: A Quick Overview of the Nation of Belgium, Plus a Recipe for Buttery Belgium Cupcakes as Lagniappe,” please email shantel.delemenea@selu.edu or telnicole@gmail.com.



Biography


David C. Wyld (dwyld.kwu@gmail.com) is the Robert Maurin Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. He is a management consultant, researcher/writer, and executive educator. His blog, Wyld About Business, can be viewed at http://wyld-business.blogspot.com/. He also serves as the Director of the Reverse Auction Research Center (http://reverseauctionresearch.com/), a hub of research and news in the expanding world of competitive bidding. Dr. Wyld also maintains compilations of works he has helped his students to turn into editorially-reviewed publications at the following sites:






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