Mini-Europe

Mini-Europe is a park, located at the foot of the Atomium in Brussels in Brupark. In the park the most beautiful monuments of the European Union on show, at a scale of 1:25. It represented about 80 cities and 350 houses.

The park is famous for the quality of its models, some of which have cost up to 350,000 euros ( Grand-Place/Grote market of Brussels). In the park there are many animations ( including trains, mills, eruption of Mount Vesuvius, Airbus, remote controlled trucks ). At the end of the tour of the park is the interactive exhibition "Spirit of Europe ", of which the European Union is presented through a series of interactive games.

The park is located on an area of ​​24,000 m². The initial investment in the park up to its opening by Prince Philippe in 1989 amounted to 10 million euros.

With 300,000 visitors per year and a turnover of 3 million Euro Mini-Europe is one of the main tourist attractions of Brussels.

Construction of the models

The models were selected because of their special architecture and its symbolic power within Europe. After this first selection, had plans and photographs of the selected models are concerned. This preparation phase cost more than 200,000 euros.

Most works were produced by a casting process. The parts are made of different materials. A copy of silicone is then made ​​by a casting process. The last copy is made of epoxy resin (at the beginning ) and polyester ( for the moment). Three monuments were made ​​of stone ( as the Leaning Tower of Pisa, marble ). In two models, a new computer - milling technique was used.

Finally, the models are painted. After completion, the monuments are mounted locally. There, the environment and the light is adjusted. For the Miniature of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela 24,000 labor hours were required.

Many monuments were financed by the European countries or regions.

Spirit of Europe

At the end of the tour there is an area dedicated to the European Union. In the form of games, the story of success, the culture, the functioning of institutions, the single market and the reasons for the extension are presented briefly here. For schools there are a number of educational projects.

Mini-Europe receives moral support from the European Commission and the European Parliament for all its activities.

Models

European Union

The European Union is the Berlaymont building, headquarters of the European Commission, represented, and through a nondescript building that stands in Paris, where Jean Monnet has prepared the Robert Schuman Declaration, which forms the starting point of the European Union.

Belgium

Belgium is represented by

  • The Curtius house in Liege,
  • The castle Vêves ( in the municipality of Celles, in the valley of Ry, a tributary of the Lesse )
  • The Collegiale of Dinant,
  • City Hall and the guild houses of Brussels,
  • The town hall in Antwerp with the standing in front of Brabo Fountain and guild houses,
  • The city hall in Leuven,
  • The Rabot ( a lift bridge, with barrage and towers ) and the Graselei ( a street with grain market ) in Ghent,
  • Gerber Square and the Belfry in Bruges,
  • The German Order of Alden Biesen,
  • A drilling platform.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria is represented by the Rila Monastery.

Denmark

Germany

Germany is represented by

  • The Holsten Gate in Lübeck,
  • The Brandenburg Gate in Berlin,
  • Speyer Cathedral,
  • The Millennium Tower - the symbol of the Federal Garden Show in Elbauenpark in Magdeburg,
  • The Osthofentor in Soest,
  • The Beethoven House in Bonn,
  • The Porta Nigra in Trier,
  • Burg Eltz,
  • The Pilgrimage Church of Wies ( Bavaria).

Estonia

Estonia is represented by the cannon tower in Tallinn, also called " thick Margarete " called, probably named after Queen Margaret of Denmark.

Finland

Finland is represented by the Olavinlinna.

France

France is represented by

  • The Eiffel Tower,
  • The Arc de Triomphe and
  • The Basilique du Sacré -Cœur Basilica in Paris,
  • The Sanctuary of Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp,
  • Clos de Vougeot Castle,
  • The Château de Chenonceau,
  • The Royal Saltworks at Arc -et- Senan
  • Airbus aircraft,
  • The high-speed Thalys,
  • A port ( as a symbol of the major European ports - Marseilles in France, Rotterdam in the Netherlands, Antwerp in Belgium, Hamburg in Germany ).
  • For the French Overseas Territories a model of the launch vehicle Ariane 5 is

Greece

Greece is represented by the Acropolis in Athens.

Great Britain

Great Britain is represented by

  • The Houses of Parliament,
  • The birthplace of William Shakespeare in Stratford- upon- Avon and
  • The birthplace of his wife ( Anne Hathaway Cottage) - a rural house from the Elizabethan period found 1.5 km from the village of Shottery,
  • Traditional English building in the English Village - with St. Mary 's Church and St. John 's Church, butchers, post office and pub,
  • Longleat House ( the estate of the Marquis of Bath )
  • The Circus and The Royal Crescent in Bath,
  • Pride of Dover ( a channel ferry the Jumbo class)
  • Dover Castle on the white chalk cliffs of Dover and
  • The row of houses Athol Terrace at the foot of the cliffs' and
  • A model of the Euro tunnel.

Ireland

Ireland is represented by

Italy

Italy is represented by

  • The Leaning Tower of Pisa ( Campanile ),
  • The Romanesque Cathedral of Pisa,
  • The Baptistery in Pisa,
  • The Palazzo Pubblico in Siena,
  • The volcano Vesuvius on the Gulf of Naples,
  • The southern Italian town of Alberobello with its trulli (houses with conical roofs )
  • The Doge's Palace in Venice and
  • Villa Rotonda near Vicenza.

Latvia

Latvia is represented by the Monument of Freedom in Riga.

Lithuania

Lithuania is represented by the University of Vilnius.

Luxembourg

Luxembourg is represented by the Adolphe Bridge.

Malta

Malta is represented by the Mnajdra (3500 BC ).

The Netherlands

The Netherlands are represented by

  • The town hall in Maastricht,
  • The medieval castle Hoensbroek in Heerlen in the South Limburg,
  • Trade and farmhouses in Ootmarsum,
  • The mansion Kloveniersdoelen in Middelburg,
  • Farmhouses in the museum Orvelte ( province of Drenthe )
  • The inn balance in Alkmaar,
  • The windmills in Kinderdijk,
  • Canals in Amsterdam,
  • Houses of Doelenkade in Hoorn and
  • The town hall and two houses in Veere.

Austria

Austria is represented by the Melk Abbey.

Poland

Poland is represented by

  • Arthur's court with the opposite
  • Neptune Fountain in Gdansk and
  • The Three Crosses monument (dedicated to the 1970 killed workers of the naval base ).

Portugal

Portugal is represented by

  • The Torre de Belém in Lisbon,
  • The palace of the oceans of the Expo 98 in Lisbon,
  • The Castell Guimarães - the birthplace of Portugal
  • The Cais da Ribeira ( waterfront ) - the old town of Porto and
  • The Algarve.

Romania

Romania is represented by the castle Mogoşoaia

Sweden

Sweden is represented by the new City Hall in Stockholm ( Stockholm City Hall ).

Slovakia

Slovakia is represented by the Blue Church ( St. Elizabeth's Church ) in Bratislava.

Slovenia

Slovenia is represented by the three bridges in Ljubljana.

Spain

Spain is represented by

  • The Monastery of El Escorial,
  • The landscape of La Mancha,
  • The Plaza de Toros ( bullring ) in Sevilla,
  • The Monumento a Colon ( Columbus Monument ) in Barcelona and
  • The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Czechia

Czech Republic is represented by the Old Town Hall with the Astronomical Clock in Prague.

Hungary

Hungary is represented by the Széchenyi Baths in Varosliget Park in Budapest.

Cyprus

Cyprus is represented by the Kourion amphitheater in Limassol.

Grand Place Celles, Hainaut Alden Biesen Castle Viking ring fortress Trelleborg (Slagelse) Nyhavn Jahrtausendturm Bundesgartenschau Eltz Castle Wieskirche Margaret Sambiria Château de Chenonceau Arc-et-Senans Stratford-upon-Avon Anne Hathaway (Shakespeare's wife) Pisa Baptistry Trullo Villa Capra "La Rotonda" Freedom Monument Limburg (Netherlands) Gracht Artus Court Gdańsk Expo '98 Church of St. Elisabeth (Bratislava)
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