The Moon Extinguishers — Flemish tapestries, beer, and Belgium's carillon capital
Mechelen (Malines) is Belgium's most underrated city — halfway between Brussels and Antwerp on the Dijle River, it was once the capital of the Habsburg Netherlands and home to the finest tapestry workshops in the world. Today it's known for its UNESCO-listed St Rumbold's Tower (the world's first campanology school), the Gouden Carolus beer brewed since 1471, and the varkenswangen (pork cheeks) stewed in dark ale at tiny eetcafés.
Mechelen reached its zenith under Margaret of Austria (1506–1530), who made it the capital of the Habsburg Low Countries and filled it with Renaissance art and tapestries. The city's carillon tradition began in the 15th century when bell-playing became an art form taught at the Royal Carillon School — still the world's only institution dedicated solely to this instrument. Mechelen's nickname 'Moon Extinguishers' (Maneblussers) dates to 1687 when residents, mistaking the red moon glowing behind St Rumbold's Tower for a fire, 'extinguished' it with water.