Atomium Belgium


THE ATOMIUM
The only major monument of the exposition of 1958 that has remained at the Heysel is also the most spectacular: the Atomium. It has become the Eiffel Tower of Brussels after the first World Exhibition to take place after World War II. The entire economic outlook was much better than in the 1930's (the creation of the European Economic Community in 1957) and the world was vibrating with enthusiasm for the new technologies (nuclear power, the first satellite launch by the soviets, etc.). Over 35 million people visited the Expo 58 and 46 countries from six continents were represented. Most pavilions were built in a very modern futuristic architectural style which became the symbol of that era.
The Atomium is the visual representation of the concept of an "atom". It honored the metal and iron industry and the belief in the atomic power. The architect was André WATERKEYN. It took 18 months to conceive and another 18 months to construct. The monument is coated with aluminum and weighs 2.400 tons.
Nowadays the Heysel park is still visited by many. Next to the football stadium is KINEPOLIS, a major movie complex with 28 cinema rooms and a giant IMAX screen. Another main attraction is the beautiful MINI-EUROPE park, which contains miniature models (scale 1:25) of major monuments from the member states of the European Union.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• atomium
• brussels
• belgium
• world
• expo58
• amazing
• structure

[sandasmiley]

you can find a lot of clips here that have photos from the inside

[0mega73]

I wish it had shots of the inside, I wanna see that...