Belgium may not be very touristy, but it is a well-known country. It is known for its Belgian waffles and chocolates. Belgians are very cultural and very proud of their country. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Belgium is located on the European continent. Its official name is the Kingdom of Belgium and its capital is Brussels. Its population is nine hundred and seventy-six thousand, five hundred and thirty-six people. Belgium borders the Netherlands, Germany, France and the North Sea. Belgium is rich in culture. Belgians enjoy freedom of religion and 98% of the population is Catholic. One hundred and fifty thousand people are Protestant and forty thousand people are Jewish. Belgians are big meat eaters and big beer drinkers. In fact, Belgians drink more beer than any other national group except Germany. Their favorite dishes are carbonades, which is beef simmered in beer, and waterzooi, which is chicken or fish chowder. Belgians speak Dutch, French or German. There are many festivals in Belgium. One of the most popular festivals is the Marche des Gilles. During the Marche des Gilles, boys and men dress in brightly colored costumes and wear hats filled with ostrich feathers. They throw oranges at people in the crowd and the boys who aren't dressed burst the sheep's bladders and hit anyone who isn't wearing a fancy hat. The Gilles would represent the defeated Inca Indians and the oranges would represent the gold taken by the Spaniards. Additionally, the townspeople leave their doors open so that some guests can enter the house and have a glass of champagne. Another popular festival is the Cat Festival, which takes place every May in Ypres. During the Cat Festival, people throw toy cats out of the Cloth Hall, which is a large building. This holiday represents the time when people threw away cats from the Cloth Hall because there were too many. Also during the festival, a fake witch is burned alive and a large fireworks display is held afterwards. There are also many medieval festivals in Belgium. Belgium's major sport is football, which is the major sport of many countries. Other sports in Belgium include tennis, horse riding, boating and hiking. There are also two strange sports in Belgium that people in Western Europe would be familiar with. One of them is called pigeon races in which pigeons fly across Spain, France and Belgium. More than a hundred pigeons can be entered in the same competition. Another strange sport is sand sailing. The sand sailing craft is called a sand boat and is built like sailboats, except they are made for land and not water. Belgium has a constitutional, representative government and a hereditary monarchy. The monarch is the head of state and is known as the King of the Belgians. It has limited political power and they play an important role in choosing a prime minister. It also serves as a symbol of national unity. The Belgian Senate has 181 members and the House of Representatives has 212 members. Their constitution was revised in 1971. Their cabinet must have an equal number of Dutch-speaking and French-speaking ministers. Belgians have freedom of education. Children must go to school between the ages of six and fifteen. Belgium also has one of the highest literacy rates in the world. Almost all children go to preschool and kindergarten. Keep in mind: this is not. (2016)., 56(1), 36-54.