BRUSSELS – New coronavirus restrictions put a spotlight on two Belgian classics this week: Beer and surrealism.
Since bars in Brussels were forced to close as of Thursday for at least a month to deal with a massive surge in cases but restaurants were allowed to remain open, the big question on the streets is: when is a bar a bar and when is a bar a restaurant?
And more importantly, does the distinction really help contain the pandemic?It is all very reminiscent of surrealism master Rene Magritte, who painted a picture of a pipe and wrote under it “Ceci n’est pas une pipe (This is not a pipe,)" — because, of course, it is an image of a pipe.“The Treachery of Images,” as the painting is called, also applies to Brussels watering holes these.