Christmas lights in the shopping streets 'Brussels By Lights'

The shopping streets in Brussels have special lights during the Christmas festivities, as part of the 8th edition of Brussels By Lights. This year, the project includes 142 streets, including 11 new, and several monumental origami creations.

Christmas lights

For example, a few new neighborhoods join the initiative this year and new light installations are appearing in various places: the Saint-Géry quarter, the Rue des Pierres, the Saint-Jacques quarter, the Rue du Fossé aux Loups, Rue de l'Ecuyer and the Rue de l'Évêque in the centre, the Place Agora, the Rue de la Madeleine, a new part of the Sablon quarter, the Place Jean Rey in the European quarter, the Petite rue des Minimes, the Place de l'Épée, the Rue Haute, Rue Blaes and Rue de Flandre, the Rue de la Fourche.

In total, Brussels By Lights illuminates the streets and shopping axes of the city with 16.4 km of light decorations and 8.8 km of garlands.

Brussels by Lights - Christmas tree - Grand-Place - click to enlarge

Brussels by Lights - Saint-Hubert Galleries - click to enlarge

Brussels by Lights - Place de la Monnaie - click to enlarge

Brussels by Lights - Place Agora - click to enlarge

Brussels by Lights - Place Fontainas - click to enlarge

Monumental origami creations

The City of Brussels also teamed up with the Belgian designer Charles Kaisin to create several monumental origami creations. These 'birds', made for the Erasmus Hospital, hang like golden doves in the Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries, above the Îlot Sacré and at Hotel Amigo. They are very symbolic: many of these birds have been folded by citizens as a token of solidarity.

An Origami Cone of 8 m high, decorated with 4,000 origami, will be installed in the courtyard of the City Hall. This 'pine tree' reminds us of the traditional Christmas tree, which will be installed at the Grand-Place a few meters away.