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Belgium

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	BELGIAN COAST

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	BRUSSELS

THE FACTS ABOUT BELGIUM

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CAPITAL	Brussels

AREA	30,518 sq km

POPULATION	10.2 million

LANGUAGE	Dutch, French and German

CURRENCY	Euro

TIME	GMT +1 hour

TELEPHONE CODES	00 32

ELECTRICITY	220V, 50 Hz



Belgian Coast

Visas: EU citizens can enter on an official identity card. Travellers from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Japan, the USA and many other countries just need a valid passport (no visa). Tourists are allowed to stay for up to three months.

Public holidays: New Year's Day; Easter Monday; Labour Day; Ascension; Whit Sunday; Whit Monday; National Holiday (21 July); Assumption; All Saints' Day; Armistice Day (11 Nov); Christmas Day.

Good buys: Chocolates

Local Dishes: Moules frites (mussels and chips) and waffles

Good reading: The Sorrow of Belgium by Bruges-born author Hugo Claus is one of the few pieces of local literature translated into English. It describes wartime Belgium, seen through the eyes of a Flemish adolescent. A Tall Man in a Low Land by Harry Pearson is an amusing account of the travel writer's visit to Belgium. And Live & Work in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, by Vacation Work Publications, is handy if you're planning to settle in for a while.