Another wintery weekend is around the corner. While it can be refreshing to wrap up warm and explore the great outdoors, spending all day outside may be impossible with the current sub-zero temperatures.
Luckily, there are plenty of activities in Brussels this weekend that allow locals and tourists to enjoy the indoor warmth while broadening their horizons. Find our favourites below!
Arts, music and culture
Brussels Jazz Festival, Flagey, until Saturday 20 January
What better way to beat the January blues than with an evening filled with jazz? Whether you are looking to explore new artists or be mesmerised by the best in the business, the capital's iconic Jazz Festival is the place to be.
Yazz Ahmed at the Brussels Jazz Festival in 2019. Credit: Flickr
This weekend, highlights include a carte-blanche session led by Casimir Liberski, pianist and artist-in-residence of the Brussels Jazz Festival, as well as big names from the American jazz scene, and the piano trio Donder.
Find more information here.
Europalia Georgia, various locations in Belgium, final weekend
This year's edition of the biennial major international arts festival dedicated to Georgia is coming to an end. The festival showcases the country's fascinating culture and the arts scene of its bustling capital Tbilisi.
The Basiani Ensemble presented traditional polyphony folk songs and old Christian hymns at the start of the festival. Credit: Europalia
While most performances, readings, concerts, film and dance and theatre productions have already taken place, some exhibitions are still accessible this weekend, including the festival's opening exhibition ‘The Avant-Garde in Georgia (1900-1936)’ at Bozar.
It presents a largely forgotten chapter in the history of avant-garde art. This includes Georgia's brief independence between 1918 and 1921, when new artistic practices that redefined a general attitude to life took hold.
Find more information here.
Free New Year's Concert, Bozar, Sunday 14 January
Art lovers rejoice! To mark the New Year, the City of Brussels in collaboration with the 19 Neighbourhood Houses (Maisons de Quartier) is treating locals to a free concert, hosted at one of Europe's most impressive concert halls: the Henry Le Bœuf Hall at Bozar.
The Henry Le Boeuf hall at the Palais des Beaux Arts. Credit: Belga / Benoit Doppagne
In this unique venue, the audience will be met with music from the string ensemble ‘Young Belgian Strings’, along with the children's choirs ‘Singing Molenbeek’ and ‘Equinox’.
Find more information here.
Out and about
Ça plante pour moi!, BRASS, Saturday 13 January
This relaxing – and partly free – event starts with a plant swap. People with green fingers or those looking for new greenery to add to their homes are invited to bring along their cuttings and swap them for new ones. A small area for cutting and repotting (with potting soil and pots) will also be available.
A previous edition of the much-loved event. Credit: BRASS
In the evening, the mood will become even more relaxing with an interactive organico-sound installation, terrarium style. Stick around until the end to enjoy three concerts touching on the day's theme in various ways.
Find more information here.
Fun for all ages
Christmas Circus Alexandre Bouglione, Flagey Square, final weekend
Anyone passing by the Flagey area of Ixelles will undoubtedly have spotted a large, colourful circus tent. This weekend marks the final chance to explore what is going on inside. Here, Circus Alexandre Bouglione is delivering its annual celebration of circus magic with a brand-new show.
Circus performance by the Alexandre Bouglione circus. Credit: Belga / Jonas Roosens
The programme features several international artists, including illusionists, acrobats, trapeze artists, clowns – and exclusively this year, the famous motorcyclists in the Globe of Death – and is sure to dazzle spectators of all ages.
Find more information here.
