Author archive
Abbey Notre-Dame d’Orval – The modern abbey
Most people know that Belgium is famous for its many beers. What many people don’t know is the beer-making tradition was started by monks in the many abbeys scattered about the country.
This summer, Andrew and I decided to take the opportunity to visit several of these abbeys. The Abbey d’Orval, famous in Belgium for both its Trappist beers and its cheeses, was one of the places we visited.
It’s not hard to find English reading material in Brussels. In fact, most of the French and Dutch bookstores carry a range of English best-sellers. But where do you go if you are looking for something besides the latest Dan Brown thriller?
It took us four years, but we’ve finally done it – Andrew and I have joined a gym. And you know what? I actually like it.
Let me begin by saying I am not a sporty person. Normally, my most intense physical activity is walking around with my camera gear strapped to my back. I believe, if we were meant to jog, God would have given us built in sneakers. That said, I’ve known for quite some time, I needed to change my immobile ways.
Saint-Josse-Ten-Noode – the most densly populated commune in Brussels.
97.4% of Belgium’s population live in urban centres; I was shocked to learn today. Expatify had an interesting post listing countries with the highest percentage of their population living in urban areas. Belgium came in at number 6.
It’s true that Belgium is a small country that doesn’t have a lot of wide open spaces. However, with the fields of Flanders and hills of Wallonia, I would have never guessed that it would beat out countries like Kuwait and Quatar in terms of urbanisation.
All of these signs indicate who has priority at an intersection. Nary a one is found in our neighbourhood.
When your door buzzer shrills loudly at 8 o’clock on a Sunday morning, it can never be good news. As I rolled over groggily I realised the bell-buzzer could only be one of two people – a drunk or a cop. I was hoping for the drunk.
Belgium has a reputation for being a boring little country, but that is wrong. Here are 40 fun facts about Belgium you probably don’t know.
One of the things that really surprised me when I started to explore Brussels was how many beautiful green spaces exist in the city. In typical Belgian fashion, English information about many of these parks is scarce, so I thought I would start a series of my favourite green spaces here on CheeseWeb.
Despite Brussels’ reputation for having excellent seafood, one thing I miss most from my Canadian home is lobster. Say what you will about Maine, Irish or Caribbean lobster, but for me, the best of the best has to be Atlantic Canadian Lobster.