P76 - Belgium - Gent - the Gravensteen castle

Gent, Belgium




Ghent (IPA: /ˈɡɛnt/; Gent IPA: [ʝɛnt] in Dutch, Gand [ɡɑ̃] in French, and formerly Gaunt in English) is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region, Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and became in the Middle Ages one of the largest and richest cities of northern Europe. Today it is a busy city with a port and a university.

The municipality comprises the city of Ghent proper and the towns of Afsnee, Desteldonk, Drongen, Gentbrugge, Ledeberg, Mariakerke, Mendonk, Oostakker, Sint-Amandsberg, Sint-Denijs-Westrem, Sint-Kruis-Winkel, Wondelgem and Zwijnaarde. With 237,250 inhabitants in the beginning of 2008, Ghent is Belgium's second largest municipality by number of inhabitants. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 1,205 km² and has a total population of 594,582 as of 1 January 2008, which ranks it as the fourth most populous in Belgium. The current mayor of Ghent, Daniël Termont, leads a coalition of the SP.a/VlaamsProgressieven and VLD.

Every year a ten day long street festival is held called the "Ghent Fests" (Gentse Feesten in Dutch). About 2 million visitors attend the festival every year.

Much of the city's medieval architecture remains intact and is remarkably well preserved and restored. Its centre is the largest carfree area in Belgium. Interesting highlights are the Saint Bavo Cathedral with the Ghent Altarpiece, the belfry, the Gravensteen castle, and the splendid architecture along the old Graslei harbour. Ghent established a nice blend between comfort of living and history – it is not a city-museum. The city of Ghent houses also three béguinages and numerous churches, among which the Saint-Jacobs church and the Saint-Nicolas Church are the most beautiful examples.

In the nineteenth century Ghent's most famous architect, Louis Roelandt, built the university hall Aula, the opera and the main courthouse. Highlights of modern architecture are the university buildings (the Boekentoren or Book Tower) by Henry Van de Velde. There are also a few theatres from diverse periods.

The beguinages, as well as the belfry and adjacent cloth hall, were recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites in 1998 and 1999.

根特（荷兰语：Gent，法语：Gand，英语：Ghent）是比利时弗兰德区的一个自治市，也指这个自治市中的根特城。根特自治市据2006年1月统计有人口23万，为比利时第二大自治市，它地处交通要冲，历史悠久，现在仍为旅游胜地。

根特自治市由根特城和周围的一些小镇组成，其中的根特市是东弗兰德省的最大的城市与省会。根特位于交通要道，为斯凯尔特河和莱斯河汇合处，并通过根特-特尔纽曾运河与海相连，处于两条欧洲高速公路E17和E40的交界点上，并有比利时第三大的火车站。

伯爵城堡（Granvensteen）,弗朗德尔伯爵的城堡是带着复兴式阁楼的根特著名建筑，窗户上的14个壁龛里放着这些爵爷们的镀金头像。 这座屹立在黑色的列夫河上的阴森森的伯爵城堡于12世纪末建造，由弗朗德尔的伯爵，阿尔萨斯的菲力普在一个更老的堡垒的基础上建造的。后来成了他的后代的住所，直到他们再也无法忍受那里的寒冷，搬到了普林森霍夫的城西部。

References sources : wikipedia, 欧洲时报