The compass on its front was a handy tool for 17th-century merchants who needed to know the direction of the wind.

Explore 400,000 years of humans' "battle against darkness" in this offbeat but thorough lamp museum.

This former Masonic lodge has been transformed into part museum, part bar, all awesome.

Christ's blood allegedly preserved in a Belgian town.

Potato-peeling mannequins, Inca art, and a dangling tuber mobile help trace the history of fries at this Belgian museum.

The bronzed skull of a beheaded traitor was affixed to the city gate in the 17th century.

The former home of a trailblazing surrealist is still filled with haunting dolls and grim paintings.

The last Oostende trawler to fish off Iceland is now a museum.

An unsettling sculpture of a boy hanging out in a street in Ghent has been baffling visitors for years.

Learn about stars, weather patterns, or just enjoy the panoramic view of Ghent.

Each time a baby is born in Ghent, these streetlights flash in silent celebration.

A beer pipeline runs beneath Bruges.

This charming, hidden guild museum holds some 700 years of crossbow history.

This modern arts center is built around a gem of late-Baroque architecture.

A huge old mansion full of thousands of toys, each there to be used and played with.

Three floors of musical instruments coming from all corners of the world and hundreds of years of musical history.

This small corner bar is home to a rare 1930s dance organ that still plays tunes for one Euro.

The patron of this extravagant Art Nouveau confection insisted that nothing less than a boat should project from its facade.

Most prolific publishing house in the 1600s open to the public.

Hidden along this old street in Antwerp is a surreal monument of a bronze arm sprouting four hands.

According to this bar, God gave an “11th commandment” to Antwerp: Thou shalt drink beer.

This former guildhall with a bacon-like exterior is now home to a museum covering 600 years of Antwerp's musical history.

This interactive sculpture allows visitors to leave a message in case a friend passes by.

To enter this cluttered-yet-cozy sanctum of Belgian brews, ring the bell and tell the gatekeepers you've come “to taste beer.”