The 20th century will forever remain in the history of mankind as a period of active study of the atom and the application of atomic energy for various purposes. One of the symbols of the Belgian capital, Brussels, is a monument symbolizing the boundless peaceful possibilities of atomic energy - Atomium
How to get there
If you sit in the center of Brussels on tram number 81, which goes past a series of good, but rather monotonous, typical for Europe modern buildings, and get off at its final stop Heizel (Heizel), you can see this impressive structure, which took its rightful place in the series of sights of Brussels.
What is the Atomium
The shining metal monument represents the sobo th enlarged by 165 billion times the model of the iron molecule. The Atomium was designed by Andre Vaterkane and is a huge, 102 meters high, rather complicated structure consisting of nine spheres, each of which has a diameter of 18 meters, and twenty connecting pipes. Six spheres are accessible for visitors, escalators and connecting corridors are located inside the pipes, and a high-speed elevator is located in the central tube, one of the fastest in Europe.
The panorama of Brussels, opening from this site, is beautiful: the city is visible, as in the palm of your hand, with all its palaces, cathedrals, cozy crooked streets of the historical part of the city and direct buildings of modern architecture . Few people now remember the political opposition of the two systems and that the creation of the Atomium had a political coloring, but for many years now anyone who has risen here can enjoy the enchanting spectacle of the Belgian capital from a bird's-eye view . From here and in detail, consider the park "Europe in the Mini re, which is located nearby . This will save 15 EUR for entrance into it and not see some schematic of those layouts that are represented in it .
Infrastructure
In one of the spheres (in the one that seems to consist of multi-colored cells) is a small hotel, in rooms where you can spend the night and admire the nightly Brussels. Particularly interesting this event will be for parents with children and adolescents who are inclined to show interest in everything unusual.
There is also a small cafe in Atomium where you can have a snack, pausing to inspect this rather extensive structure. The other areas that are available to the public are exhibited
Exhibitions
One of the central expositions is dedicated to the World Exhibition in 1958, and is designed to promote peace and harmony throughout the world . The building also houses an exposition devoted to the achievements in the application nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, and not only in Belgium, but all over the world . Also interesting is the exhibition devoted to the way of life typical for the 50s . Here you can consider posters, books, household appliances, characteristic for Europe of that period . Nats, consisting of the best examples of Belgian industrial and household design, amazes not only the variety of exhibits, but also the ingenuity of their authors and their fresh look at ordinary things . Here also are temporary exhibitions, usually devoted to the latest scientific achievements .
Generalizing, we can say that the educational value of the Atomium is no less great than the architectural one. Of course, many souvenirs from Brussels are devoted to this particular building, which is so different from most traditional European sights. Buy these souvenirs, as well as posters, postcards and posters, you can in the store at the foot of the construction.
| Atomium |
| Atomium in Brussels |
| Atomium at sunset |
Address: Brussels, Avenue de l'Atomium, 1020. Next to the Atomium is the Heizel metro station.
Working hours: 10:00 - 18:00, 24 and 31 December: 10:00 - 16 : 00, December 25 and January 1: 12:00 - 16:00.
Entrance: 11 EUR, children from 12 to 18 years: 8 EUR, children from 6 to 11 years old: 6 EUR, children under 6 years: free
Prices are for May 2014