Mysterious & Unusual Bruges
Brugse zot / Bruges Fool : More than 100 years ago - in 1910 - the female psychiatric patients moved from the Boeveriestraat in Bruges to the Koning Albert I-laan in Sint-Michiels. From Open Poort to Brugse Zot sketches a picture of mental health care in Bruges.
Freemasons Bruges: During a walk in the inner city, you will learn more about the history of Belgian and especially Bruges freemasonry. The route takes in the places where the first lodges in Bruges met. The route also takes a look at the famous freemasons who were active in Bruges and who, following in the footsteps of illustrious predecessors such as Montesquieu, Voltaire, Lessing, Mozart, Haydn and Goethe, each contributed to society in their own way.
Myths and legends.
The Dark Side of Bruges: Discover the side of Bruges that most visitors don't get to see.
Leave the well-trodden paths to discover the mystery and history of Bruges. Learn about the fascinating myths and legends of Bruges.
Mysterious & Unusual Ghent
Museum Dr. Guislain is a cultural reference point concerning the history of and current discussions about psychiatry and mental health, care, art and madness. A museum in the Rue Joseph Guislain, in Belgium's oldest insane asylum built in 1857: you'd be crazy not to pay it a visit.
Freemasonry in Ghent. Freemasonry still fascinates an unpredictable number of people. It found its way to ghent in the eighteenth century and was soon surrounded by a halo of secrecy that has stubbornly haunted it to this day.
Mysterious & Unusual Brussels
Freemasonry
A veil of secrecy hangs over Freemasonry. The secluded character of the lodges and the age-old initiation traditions contribute greatly to this.
The Palace of Justice in Brussels
During this visit, you will discover not only the story of the architect, but also the architecture, the urban planning and the symbolism hidden behind this monumental facade. You will also get an insight into the workings of justice and the role of the palace.
Psychiatry past and present - On request.
Insane asylum Rekem
The castle d'Aspremont-Lynden in Meuse Renaissance, built in 1595 on the site of old fortresses. The castle was the residence of the counts of Rekem. During the French period (1795 to 1805) it served as a military hospital; between 1809 and 1891 as a beggar's home and from 1921 to 1980 as a state psychiatric institution.
Cemetery psychiatric hospital
This unique cemetery, at the edge of the Hoge Kempen National Park in a pine forest, was laid out to bury deceased patients of the psychiatric hospital of Rekem.
Psychiatric Care Centre
Visits aim to give a correct impression of present-day psychiatry and the functioning of a care centre. In this way OPZC Rekem helps to break the taboo that still exists around psychiatry. During the visits, the privacy of the patients and residents is taken into account.
