Flanders Today
Lowlands, tree-lined canals, wide beaches, art cities, gourmet chocolates and beers, superb cuisine, diamonds - all images that you might take home with you after a visit to Flanders. And the people? Rubens, Van Dyck, Eddy Merckx, Jacques Rogge, Kim Clijsters - all of them Flemish, all of them world-famous in their own way.
Flanders is the northern Dutch-speaking part of Belgium, a country divided along linguistic community lines into four virtually autonomous regions - Wallonia is the French-speaking region, Brussels is the bilingual capital region and in the south there's a smaller German-speaking enclave.
Flanders itself, with a total area of 30,528 square kilometres, would fit neatly into Otago and still have room to stretch its legs.
But it's not how big it is that counts, it's where it is.
Located precisely where Europe's three major cultures - Anglo-Saxon, Germanic and Latin - meet, the region has for centuries been a victim of countless wars as well as a major player in European trade. In fact, its immediate neighbours are England (across the Channel), France, Germany and the Netherlands, which continues to make it one of the leading logistics locations in Europe.
Being on major trade routes and in constant contact with people of other cultures has also given the six million Flemish people a remarkable aptitude for languages - most, but not all, speak two (French and English) in addition to their native Dutch dialect, while many can add German to that list.
And the region's capital? Brussels - headquarters of the European Union and Nato, as well as host to countless international organizations and more diplomatic missions than any city other than New York.
The region's other cities are also impressive. Antwerp is not only the world's fifth largest port and Europe's leading petrochemicals centre, it offers architectural treasures such as the Cathedral and Town Hall and a large range of specialised museums. Add in the fact that it is the world's largest diamond-trading centre, its reputation for fashion design (think Bikkembergs and Ann Demeulemeester for example) plus a café-style nightlife and it can be quite a place. Furthermore, it's on the Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam high-speed train line.
Bruges (or Brugge in Dutch) is the capital of West Flanders, the province where most of the battles were fought in World War One. The city survived relatively intact. Today, its numerous waterways have earned it the title of "Venice of the North" while its art heritage, including Van Eycks and a Michelangelo, and Middle Ages architecture have combined to attract tourists from around the world. And it's got something else up its sleeve - in the 14th century it became home to the world's first stock exchange. Further up the road, on the coast, is the city's port, Zeebrugge, a main arrival point for kiwifruit and other New Zealand products destined for European markets.
Ghent is another historic "art city", and then there's Louvain (Leuven) one of the oldest university cities in Europe.
So how does Flanders earn a living? Its major industries include automotive (four car plants as well as truck and bus manufacturers), logistics, chemicals and plastics, and a thriving life sciences sector in pharmaceuticals and biotech. In specialised areas of R&D it is a region that punches well above its weight - nanotechnology and stem cell technology are just two examples.
Sports-wise, Flanders is not a region that meets up with New Zealand on the world stage very often. The main sports are cycling and football with tennis a highly popular national pastime in viewing terms due mainly to the success of Kim Clijsters and her Wallonian compatriot Justine Henin.
Both rugby and cricket have followings and national teams compete around Europe. Its most famous rugby international? Back to the first paragraph... it's Jacques Rogge, capped 10 times for Belgium as well as being an Olympic sailor and now President of the International Olympic Committee.