Brussels, Belgium

My son and daughter-in-law and their family lived in Brussels for 2 years.  We were able to go visit them several times and explore Belgium and many nearby countries.  My son became an excellent tour guide!  One evening we went to see the 3 "peeing" statues in Brussels:  Manneken Pis, which is the peeing boy in Brussels and is very famous; and Jeanneke Pis, the peeing girl which is not quite as famous; and Zinneke Pis, the peeing dog, which far fewer people knew about.

Manneken Pis

Some believe that the original Manneken Pis dates back to the 15th Century, although we don't know exact details.  Jerome Duquesnoy created the sculpture that replaced the original in 1619, and this version of the statue resides in the city museum in Brussels.  Some people believe that the statue originated after a young boy put out a fire in Brussels by peeing on it, although no one really knows that for sure.  The statue has been stolen at times, and once broken into pieces before being replaced.  One famous aspect of the statue is its many different outfits - over a thousand in total.  You can see some of the outfits displayed at the museum on the same street titled GardeRobe Manneken Pis.  The statue is not only a statue, but also a fountain, as the boy actually is "peeing" into the fountain. Historically people were able to obtain drinking water from the fountain, but now the fountain is protected by an iron gate, so drinking is no longer possible.  In 2018 a leak was discovered in the fountain, and repairs were made, including a recirculating system for the water.  

Manneken Pis is located at 1000 Brussels, the corner of Rue de l'Etuve and Rue du Chene.  It is free to visit, and available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

July 2024

November 2024

My grandson with Manneken Pis in November 2024

My daughter, grandsons, and I in November 2024

A few days later, we went back to see that Manneken Pis's outfit had been changed:

My daughter at Manneken Pis in March of 2025.  He was wearing a graduation cap!

In July 2024 my daughter and grandson visited Manneken Pis at a rare date that he wasn't wearing any outfit at all - just a naked peeing boy

Jeanneke Pis

Jeannette Pis is the female version of Manneken Pis, and was created in 1987. It is not as easy to locate, although I was able to use my google maps to find it.  This peeing girl is located on Impasse de la Fidelite, across from the Delirium Cafe.  It is a dead-end street and not nearly as highly populated as the corner where Manneken Pis is located.  You would definitely have to be looking for it to find it.  It is said that the statue was created to represent equal representation among genders, because of the famous peeing boy statue.

This is how she was dressed in March of 2025

My daughter and grandson at Jeanneke Pis in March of 2025

These photos were taken in November of 2024 

Zinneke Pis

Unlike his two human counterparts, Zinneke Pis is not a fountain, but only a statue - this time a statue of a peeing dog.  Zinneke is located at Rue des Chartreux 35, 1000 Brussels, or on the corner of Rue des Chartreux and Rue du Vieux-Marche-aux-Grains.  He is a dog appearing to pee on a post.  He was created by sculptor Tom Frantzen in 1999.  He was modeled after Frantzen's own dog.  My grandsons enjoyed seeing this peeing dog for the first time in November 2024.

The 3 statues are very close to each other.  It would take 17 minutes to walk between them, beginning with Jeanneke Pis and ending with Zinneke Pis.

Walking the Streets of Brussels at Night in the Rain

We had a lot of destinations to reach during our trip, so we didn't spend a great deal of time in Brussels, although we did walk around that evening, eating waffles and chocolates, and visiting the 3 peeing statues.  On my two daughters' visits in 2024 and 2025, they visited the Atomium.  It's a stainless steel monument built for the 1958 Brussels World Fair.