Always been fascinated by these blocks, and even more curious about that inner courtyard.
Back when I lived in the city I always wanted to live in one — a village inside a city, I thought it was, or at least hoped it would be. 
Admittedly, it was in far worse shape then than it is now, and the residents weren’t people with the most opportunities either. I did think they deserved this rather lovely place to live. The building was run down inside and out, but you didn’t have to stretch your imagination far to see the enormous potential in it.

Cycling through the city earlier today I saw the gate standing open and slipped inside with my 360° camera. Because something like this you can only really appreciate when you see it whole. Handsome, crisp, practical, compact and quiet.
A shame that it’s an empty space which doesn’t exactly invite social interaction — apart from a few children playing. But easy on the eye all the same. Along the outside of the building it’s another story entirely. Trendy (expensive) coffee shops and boutiques; the contrast could hardly be greater. I’d take the inside over an overpriced coffee on the outside any day.

I always drift off a little, wondering what it was like when the block was brand new and the first residents moved in, back in the early forties — though perhaps I’m romanticising it. Certainly for that period.

more about the Fierens blocks on wikipedia.