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PHOTO © GETTY IIMAGES<br />
OUT OF<br />
TOWN<br />
Bruges Ice<br />
Festival<br />
BRUSSELS<br />
It’s the kind of job<br />
worthy of mythical<br />
status. Build a<br />
beautiful village<br />
complete with train<br />
station, atmospheric<br />
pub, sculptures<br />
and a slew of<br />
funfair rides for<br />
the kids. Decorate<br />
it in signature<br />
artwork, then watch<br />
it slowly dissolve<br />
into nothing. And<br />
rebuild it all over<br />
again the following<br />
year. Welcome<br />
to Bruges Ice<br />
Festival, an annual<br />
event open from<br />
10am–7pm until<br />
10 January, just an<br />
hour’s train ride<br />
from Brussels and<br />
metres from the<br />
central train station.<br />
With 300<br />
tonnes of ice<br />
works decorated<br />
with 400 tonnes<br />
of snow, the event<br />
calls for an army<br />
of international<br />
ice sculptors who<br />
descend on the city<br />
to create a winter<br />
wonderland made<br />
entirely of ice, with<br />
showpieces and<br />
interactive snowbound<br />
activities.<br />
THE BUZZ | BRUGES<br />
Previous themes<br />
have included fairy<br />
tales and classical<br />
styles, but this year<br />
sees an animated<br />
fi lm become the<br />
focal point. With<br />
sabre-toothed tigers<br />
and nut-gathering<br />
rodents galore, Ice<br />
Age is the <strong>2009</strong><br />
foil for the talent<br />
of Bruges resident<br />
sculptors, and<br />
the fantastical<br />
possibilities have<br />
seen more madcap<br />
designs than ever.<br />
On completion,<br />
the vast array of ice<br />
exhibits are housed<br />
in an enormous<br />
thermal tent<br />
designed to keep<br />
the contents at a<br />
constant –6°C. But<br />
while guests may<br />
want to keep their<br />
coats on to enjoy<br />
the display, hurtling<br />
down a towering ice<br />
slide into a frostily<br />
wrought pub is<br />
well worth getting<br />
a red nose for. Not<br />
to mention making<br />
that steaming hot<br />
chocolate and<br />
Belgian waffl e all<br />
the more deserved.<br />
icesculpture.be<br />
Catherine Quinn<br />
DECEMBER 09 | TRAVELLER | 35
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