30,000 spectators for the Balloon’s Day Parade

The Balloon’s Day Parade, a procession of giant balloons depicting famous comic-book characters, travelled through central Brussels on Saturday and attracted around 30,000 spectators along its route, according to the Brussels local police. The event took place without incident. The procession launched Brussels’ Year of Comics, ‘Brussels 2009 BD COMICS STRIP’. At the head of the procession were giant Manneken Pis and Atomium balloons. They were followed by balloons representing the Smurfs, Spirou, Agent 212 and several American comic-book characters. Several folk groups accompanied the enormous balloons. The parade route ran between Brussels-South and Brussels-North stations. Many families, tourists and children attended this picturesque procession.