{"id":4242,"date":"2024-02-24T09:19:45","date_gmt":"2024-02-24T08:19:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/?page_id=4242"},"modified":"2024-02-25T06:45:28","modified_gmt":"2024-02-25T05:45:28","slug":"week-06-first-pinhole-shots-and-then-on-to-brussels","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/?page_id=4242","title":{"rendered":"Week 06: First pinhole shots, and walking around Ixelles"},"content":{"rendered":"

There were some of the usual activities such as cycling and work during the second week of February, but the main event was a trip to Brussels towards the end of the week. While I go to Brussels for work at regular intervals, this was a rare private trip, with the main motive being to take down a photo exhibition in which I participated, organised by the international photography club Viewfinders<\/a>. Once that was done, I spent the weekend walking mainly around the Ixelles neighbourhood and visiting art exhibitions, which will be subject of a separate gallery.<\/p>\n

6_1<\/strong>
\nI start with two nice sunrise images from our beach, but with a twist–these were taken on Fuji Provia 100F slide film, in my Rolleiflex T, thus the square 6×6 cm format. It is quite magical to hold the processed film in my hand:
\n\"Provia100_2024_3_4\"<\/p>\n

6_2<\/strong>
\n\"Provia100_2024_3_7\"<\/p>\n

6_3<\/strong>
\nInspired by my friend Lars who visited me in January and made a number of excellent pinhole photos, I decided to try my hand at it as well. So I bought a pinhole “lens” for my Fuji camera from a company called Thingyfy and started playing with it, first while having a beer on the beach:
\n\"DSF7834\"<\/p>\n

6_4<\/strong>
\n\"DSF7831\"<\/p>\n

6_5<\/strong>
\nThe next day, at the office, I photographed the passage between two of our buildings:
\n\"DSF7840\"<\/p>\n

6_6<\/strong>
\nBut I decided that the passage by itself was a bit boring, so I enlisted lovely Eri for help:
\n\"DSF7847\"<\/p>\n

6_7<\/strong>
\n\"DSF7848\"<\/p>\n

6_8<\/strong>
\nEri also recently assisted me in testing Ilford XP2 Super, a film which is not that great in 35mm, in medium format in my Rolleiflex. The results were quite pleasing in the larger format:
\n\"XP2Super_2024_1_9\"<\/p>\n

6_9<\/strong>
\n\"XP2Super_2024_1_12\"<\/p>\n

6_10<\/strong>
\nAs usual, I spent several hours during the weekend riding my bicycle. On Sunday it was my 82 km route through the towns of Alcoraya, Aspe, Novelda and Agost. Other cyclists were out there too:
\n\"1030977\"<\/p>\n

6_11<\/strong>
\nJust outside Novelda there is this interesting building, which I often thought about photographing. I think it once housed a brewery; sadly, now it is just a furniture factory:
\n\"1030984\"<\/p>\n

6_12<\/strong>
\nBetween Novelda and Agost the road passes under the high-speed train between Alicante and Madrid:
\n\"1030988\"<\/p>\n

6_13<\/strong>
\nNear Agost, one of the many roadside memorials. It is unusually colourful:
\n\"1030991\"<\/p>\n

6_14<\/strong>
\nMy wife has been nagging me to take up golf again (I took some lessons 4-5 years ago but then got bored with it). She says that one day I will be too old to cycle in the mountains, and then golf will provide me with an alternative outdoor exercise. While I hope that day is many years away, she does have a point, so I have started taking some classes and going to the driving range from time to time, as I did on Sunday afternoon:
\n\"R000152\"<\/p>\n

6_15<\/strong>
\nThe 18th hole:
\n\"R000151\"<\/p>\n

6_16<\/strong>
\nA proper golf course must have one or more cats:
\n\"R000156\"<\/p>\n

6_17<\/strong>
\nOn Thursday morning, during my pre-work bike ride, I stopped to photograph this man meditating on the beach while watching the sunrise:
\n\"1030995\"<\/p>\n

6_18<\/strong>
\nOn my way home from work Thursday afternoon, I stopped for a beer at Malatesta:
\n\"DSF7856\"<\/p>\n

6_19<\/strong>
\nFriday morning I drove to the airport for my flight to Brussels. A few hours later, I was in the familiar surroundings of Brussels airport with its Tintin moon rocket in the main hall:
\n\"R000163\"<\/p>\n

6_20<\/strong>
\nI made my way from the airport to my hotel near Place St\u00c3\u00a9phanie, where I stopped to look at this enhanced utility box:
\n\"DSF7861\"<\/p>\n

6_21<\/strong>
\nAfter leaving my stuff at the hotel, I looked around for a place to have lunch; it was 3 p.m. and I was getting seriously hungry. Fortunately, I found a Lebanese restaurant called Al Bacha on a side street, Rue Jourdan. It turned out to have delicious food at reasonable prices and very friendly service. I enjoyed a generous serving of falafel:
\n\"R000164\"<\/p>\n

6_22<\/strong>
\nThe falafel was followed by a wrap with salad and, this being Belgium, fries:
\n\"R000165\"<\/p>\n

6_23<\/strong>
\nAfter lunch, I took the tram to Woluve St-Pierre where Brussels International Womens Club is located, site of the photo exhibition. The neighbourhood is quite posh, and during the 10-minute walk from the tram stop to the club I passed houses like this:
\n\"DSF7863\"<\/p>\n

6_24<\/strong>
\nI spent a couple of hours at the club, taking down the exhibition and chatting with the other other members of Viewfinders:
\n\"DSF7865\"<\/p>\n

6_25<\/strong>
\nOn my way back to the hotel, I came across Tintin in the metro. Belgians are very proud of their comics book culture, and especially Tintin and the various characters from those stories are everywhere:
\n\"DSF7867\"<\/p>\n

6_26<\/strong>
\nPlace St\u00c3\u00a9phanie in the evening:
\n\"DSF7868\"<\/p>\n

6_27<\/strong>
\nI walked a few hundred meters to the Matong\u00c3\u00a9 neighbourhood in Ixelles (Ixelles is a municipality covering parts of central Brussels). Matong\u00c3\u00a9, also known as Little Zaire, is one of my favourite parts of Brussels, with African shops and restaurants, but also all kind of other places, and people of all nationalities enjoying the place. I had a beer at L’Ultime Atome, one of my favourite watering holes:
\n\"DSF7871\"<\/p>\n

6_28<\/strong>
\nI lived in Matong\u00c3\u00a9 for 3 months in the summer of 1995, my first home in Brussels during my 5 years there. On a small street called Rue Longe Vie (“Long Life Street”) there is a south Asian shop which also has a few tables and serves delicious curries, samosas and the like. Tandoori Land was there back in 1995, and I used to take my son there for a snack, and it is still there today:
\n\"DSF7873\"<\/p>\n

6_29<\/strong>
\nI continued my walk on the large inner ring road that runs around the centre. It changes its name several times. On this particular stretch, between Porte de Namur and Louise, it is called Avenue de la Toison d’Or:
\n\"DSF7876\"<\/p>\n

6_30<\/strong>
\nAvenue de la Toison d’Or is lined by various high-end shops, including this home decor place with an eye-catching armchair in the window. It will set you back a cool 9,999 Euro:
\n\"DSF7878\"<\/p>\n

6_31<\/strong>
\nThe avenue ends on Place Poelaert from where one can take an elevator to descend to a neighbourhood called Marolles down below:
\n\"DSF7890\"<\/p>\n

6_32<\/strong>
\nI took the elevator down to have a look at Rue de l’Ep\u00c3\u00a9e. It was quite empty, besides a couple kissing on a bench:
\n\"DSF7886\"<\/p>\n

6_33<\/strong>
\nOn Saturday morning I went back to Matong\u00c3\u00a9 to take a look during daylight. As always, I was on the lookout for little details, like this sad-looking rose left to wither on a window sill. I wondered if there was some love story behind it:
\n\"R000166\"<\/p>\n

6_34<\/strong>
\nThe main thoroughfare of Matong\u00c3\u00a9 is Chauss\u00c3\u00a9e d’Ixelles, but at this early hour, with the shops not yet open, it was almost deserted:
\n\"DSF7895\"<\/p>\n

6_35<\/strong>
\nA large painting depicts life in Matong\u00c3\u00a9 with the title “Porte de Namur – Porte de l’Amour”. Porte de Namur is the name of the square on the inner ring road where Chauss\u00c3\u00a9e d’Ixelles ends:
\n\"DSF7896\"<\/p>\n

6_36<\/strong>
\n\"DSF7900\"<\/p>\n

6_37<\/strong>
\nSmall shopping arcade on Chauss\u00c3\u00a9e d’Ixelles:
\n\"DSF7901\"<\/p>\n

6_38<\/strong>
\nTypical Matong\u00c3\u00a9 fruit and veg shop:
\n\"DSF7903\"<\/p>\n

6_39<\/strong>
\nSculpture in Matong\u00c3\u00a9 made of artillery shells, titled “Au del\u00c3\u00a0 de l’Espoir”, created by Freddy Tsimba (Congo) in 2007. It is a symbol of friendship between Ixelles and the Kalamu district of Kinshasa, as well as reminder of the terrible wars that continue to menace Congo:
\n\"DSF7905\"<\/p>\n

6_40<\/strong>
\nMatong\u00c3\u00a9 street corner:
\n\"DSF7910\"<\/p>\n

6_41<\/strong>
\nShop window:
\n\"DSF7913\"<\/p>\n

6_42<\/strong>
\nDoor bell:
\n\"DSF7927\"<\/p>\n

6_43<\/strong>
\nMural promoting peaceful co-existence, Rue de la Paix:
\n\"DSF7928\"<\/p>\n

6_44<\/strong>
\nMorning light, Rue Dublin:
\n\"DSF7915\"<\/p>\n

6_45<\/strong>
\nI left Matong\u00c3\u00a9 and crossed Rue du Tr\u00c3\u00b4ne to Square de Meeus, a large square lined by office buildings:
\n\"DSF7919\"<\/p>\n

6_46<\/strong>
\nThe park in the centre of the square where I would play catch with my son (then 6 years old) during our first summer in Brussels in 1995:
\n\"DSF7920\"<\/p>\n

6_47<\/strong>
\nI walked back to Matong\u00c3\u00a9, to the main church of the area, \u00c3\u2030glise St-Boniface. I had walked past here many times, but this time I went inside the church for the first time:
\n\"DSF7931\"<\/p>\n

6_48<\/strong>
\nNear the entrance to the church there is a display of photographs of members of the congregation, with brief statements about each person’s reasons for attending the church:
\n\"DSF7929\"<\/p>\n

6_49<\/strong>
\n\"DSF7930\"<\/p>\n

6_50<\/strong>
\nYoung mother with child and dog, Rue de Stassart near my hotel:
\n\"DSF7937\"<\/p>\n

6_51<\/strong>
\nAvenue Louise is another wide boulevard, built in the 19th century to provide easier access to the countryside. Today it is the home of many nice shops, including this small arcade with bear sculptures:
\n\"DSF7945\"<\/p>\n

6_52<\/strong>
\nI went inside the arcade to buy chocolate at the Pierre Marcolini shop, in my opinion the best chocolate in the world:
\n\"DSF7944\"<\/p>\n

6_53<\/strong>
\nA bit further down Avenue Louise, a hair salon with its guardian:
\n\"DSF8024\"<\/p>\n

6_54<\/strong>
\nOn Saturday afternoon, I ended up at Brussels Beer Project where I watched the Scotland-France Six Nations rugby match:
\n\"R000171\"<\/p>\n

6_55<\/strong>
\nI finished Saturday on Grand’ Place and dinner at this most traditional of Brussels restaurants, where I have been coming since 1995:
\n\"DSF8051\"<\/p>\n

6_56<\/strong>
\nThe people working in the restaurant are of course not the same as in 1995, but the place itself (and the food) have remained the same:
\n\"R000175\"<\/p>\n

6_57<\/strong>
\nThe dining room with the kitchen in the background:
\n\"R000174\"<\/p>\n

More of my photos from Brussels are here<\/a>. I have also set up a gallery dedicated to my visits to various art museums and exhibitions<\/a> during my visits to Brussels.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There were some of the usual activities such as cycling and work during the second week of February, but the main event was a trip to Brussels towards the end of the week. While I go to Brussels for work at regular intervals, this was a rare private trip, with the main motive being to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":4205,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4242"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4242"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4252,"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4242\/revisions\/4252"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.fotocycle.dk\/paws\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}