Social Activities

The Social activities program will be continuously updated …

Main activities

mons2

Monday 10th August : Welcome activities

PRICE: FREE

Designated as European Capital of Culture in 2015, the city of Mons, counting around 100 000 inhabitants, is one of the must-see place in Belgium.

Inside the walls of the city center laden with history, the historic city hides buildings belonging to the Walloon cultural heritage, as the Collégiale Sainte-Waudru, with its cathedral-like appearance, the Gothic City Hall from the great age of Bourgogne Dukes and the baroque, 87 meters high, Beffroi, unique in Belgium and designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

In this enthralling context, we will discover the city’s historical heritage through a visit of the city center: the Collégiale, the Beffroi garden, the City Hall, the garden of Mayeur, the Grand Garde monkey (which will bring you luck if you touch it with the left hand), …

More information here.

Activity information : Meeting point @16h in Cité Houzeau

large

Wednesday 12th August : Sport and relaxation evening

PRICE: 12.90€ ( sport & leisure pool + Wellness)

The “Grand-Large” Aquatic Center offers a unique experience for everybody with its different indoor and outdoor activities. 2000m² of fun with family or friends, near the center of Mons and around the Grand-Large…
Th sport pool is a 25m pool with 8 lanes and the leisure area offers:

  • Rapid River
  • Warm lagoon
  • Wading pool for toddlers
  • Two outdoor pools
  • After the effort, comfort and relaxation! The Wellness area offers:

  • Bio-sauna at 70° and a 90° Finnish sauna
  • Hammam
  • Jacuzzi
  • Footbath
  • Relaxation area
  • A discount is also given to group of more than 15 people.
    Other prices: 7.10€ for sport & leisure pool & 3.70€ for sport pool only.
    ATTENTION: “The shorts are forbidden, only swimming trunks are allowed.”

    Activity information : Gathering @18h45 in Cité Houzeau. Pool exit at 21h30.

    bruges

    Saturday 15th August : One day in Bruges

    PRICE: coming soon

    What could be more romantic and inspiring than a place that looks like a backdrop for a fairy tale? The medieval overtones of Bruges’ cobblestone streets lead to countless historical, architectural and artistic wonders. Marvel at ornate houses lining intricate canals, and understand why this is a favorite destination for all types of travelers. The whole city emanates an appreciation of the past, a love of the present, and enthusiasm for the future.

    Activity information : Gathering @7h45 in Mons SNCB Station. Back in Mons at 20h30 .

    velo

    Saturday 22nd August : Bicycle ride along the canal-side

    PRICE: coming soon

    Includes cycle renting, lunch, admission to boat lift, admission to St-Feuillien brewery.

    We propose to enjoy a little bit of physical activity while discovering landscapes and outstanding sites along the waterways around the city of Mons. After a 25 km ride, you will discover the old hydraulic boat lifts, listed as world heritage by UNESCO, and the brand-new funicular boat lift (www.hainaut.be). On our way back to Mons, we will stop by the St-Feuillien brewery (www.st-feuillien.com) to enjoy some famous Belgian beers. It is a 6 hours touristic bike ride accessible to all. As our journey will be mainly along channels, we will be cycling along flat and asphalted bike-ways.

    1280px-Strépy-Bracquegnies_JPG03We will start our bike journey from the Grand-Large in Mons. After 15 kilometers along the channel, where we will see several locks, we will arrive at the foot of the funicular lift of Strépy-Thieu. It is a 150 meters high, giant boat lift that compensate alone a 73 meters drop, a concrete colossus equipped with two independent bins of several tonnes, that handle boats with strength and tranquility. There, we will visit there an exhibition explaining how and why this exceptional construction was brought to life as well as how it works. Finally, we will enjoy a fantastic view of the engine room and the surroundings of the area before recovering with a lunch break.

    best-western-plus-orange-hotel-la-louviere-saint-st-feuillien-brasserie-brewery-brouwerij-visit-le-roeulx-package
    Then, we will get back on our bicycles to head towards the channel bridge, a civil engineering structure inaugurated in 2002, that connects the Escault (Scheldt) Basin with the Meuse Basin. We will briefly leave the channel’s bank in order to visit the St-Feuillen Brewery, and of course enjoy a testing session. Taking its origins in the 7th century, this brewery produces nowadays 33, 000 hL annually through different kind of beers, as for instance St-Feuillen (which exists in four different versions and is among the most famous Belgian abbey beers), but also Grisette, a bit lighter and refreshing; blond Grisette (4.5°), white Grisette (5.5°), forest fruits Grisette (3.5°), and many other beers ..

    Canal_historique_du_centre_-_Ascenseur_n°3Then we will keep on riding along the channel in order to reach the Center historical channel and its hydraulic lifts designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. These hydraulic boat lifts were built between 1888 and 1917. They compensate a drop of 66 meters.
    The first lift compensate for 15.40 meters drop, whereas the three remaining for 16.93 each. And all this is done by one source of energy : water ! Before 1880, the coal-mining management in the Center area required transport by waterway. Thus, this channel helped connecting the Central area to all other regions in the country.
    This final section will bring us back to the Strépy-Thieu lift, where we will head back to Mons.

    Activity information : Gathering @19h00 in UMONS/FPMs building in Houdain street.

    dinner

    Wednesday 26th August : Banquet – social dinner

    All eNTERFACE participants are invited to our Banquet at 18h30 at Neo Cantine which is located at le Manège:

    Le M – Théâtre Le Manège
    Rue des Passages, 1 – 7000 Mons

    The menu is the following (sorry for the approximative translation):

    *Aperitive
    *Starter: Fish fillet (usually young catfish), mini seasonal vegetables in butter sauce
    * Main dish: Veal meat in grass crust meli-melo, Romanesco cabbage, tomato salsa
    * Desert: Variations around “THE banana”

    See you all there !

    giant

    Tuesday 1st September : Giant Play

    PRICE: FREE

    Not so long ago, Saint George saved us all from a terrible fate by killing the dragon. Unfortunately, little did we know its children would seek revenge and attack the city. Come and try to keep them in the dark! Giantplay is a funny Whack-A-Mole kinect game played on Citylight, a fourteen-window projection mapping installation set up by Numediart and Mons2015. It results from a collaboration between a local company called Dragonslide and Numediart. The application runs synchronously on fourteen computers thanks to specially developed tools. You are all invited to have some fun during the first gaming session on the first of September at 7 pm.

    Optional activities

    cafe

    Café Europa activities

    Wednesday 19th August : 3DBiolab @CaféEuropa

    PRICE: FREE

    ART & SCIENCES
    Workshops, scientific experiences, artistic performances, an exhibition that enlightens the link between Art and science.

    This residence consists of an exhibition on innovative projects between Art and science, public lectures, scientific do-it-yourself demos, interactive guided tours and 3D impression stands, creating objects from sound, movement, data, …

    You will be able to see experiments with batteries and bacteria, next generation green energies, urban ecosystem exploration by bees, …

    More information here.

    Thursday 27th August : l’assiette du futur @CaféEuropa

    PRICE: FREE

    The Smart Gastronomy Lab is presenting our future plate. Discover the word of gastronomic 3D printing through experiments, including 3D printing of chocolate !

    Five labs are available to test different products and concepts, among them an experimental modular kitchen for professionals (Creative Kitchen), a culinary lab (Cooking Lab) and an experimental restaurant.

    The strength and originality of Smart Gastronomy Lab is to bring together creativity actors coming from different worlds along with scientific and economic actors from the Walloon Region :

  • Top chefs associating creativity and the agro-food industry, the products and the producers
  • Developers and creative coders uniting new technologies and unbounded, ultra-fast and connected creativity
  • More information here.

    armada

    Thursday 27th August : Armada of thousand lights

    PRICE: FREE

    Grand-Large, the city’s ma­rina, will be adorned for several days with a thousand lights. On this occasion, nu­merous boats and barges will congregate, so that you can enjoy concerts, theatrical scenes, a naval show and even a firework display – all on the water.

    More information here.

    eclats

    Saturday 29th August : Aout en éclat

    PRICE: FREE

    The last Saturday of August 2015, the multi-festival « Août en éclat » is presenting its 11th edition. A firework of music, theater, carnival arts, kids village, associative meeting area, urban exposition in order to titillate the senses of its thousands of participants ! Original creations and worldwide known artists will be part of the event.

    More information here.