Get your spice on!
Not long after Andrew and I returned to Brussels, we discovered one major drawback to our trip to India – Indian take-away in Brussels just didn’t do it for us anymore. We love Indian cuisine and were blown away by the flavours we had in Bangalore, Goa and Kerala and by how each region varied so much in taste and ingredients.
Contractors VS Employees in Belgium
Over our past six years in Belgium, I haven’t written a lot about my working experience. Recently, a friend encouraged me to share my experiences, to benefit future expats or companies looking to move into the Belgian market. Please keep in mind my perspective is one of a North American working in Belgium and, more broadly, Europe. My opinions do not reflect those of my employers.
There are a lot of contractors in Belgium. This was one of the first things that struck me when I began working in the Belgian office of my previous employer. In fact, the entire Belgian organization was made up of contractors, including the management team.
Andrew and I love wine – Red, white, pink, bubbles or none. Like many North American expats in Europe, a whole new tasty world was revealed, when we discovered how affordable good wines are in Belgium.
While it’s easy to pick up a decent tipple at the local grocery store, sometimes it’s nice to pop the cork on a bottle of something extra special. There are a few wine shops in Brussels where we’ve received great service and bought some very, very nice wines. I thought I’d share my favourites with you.
I’ve never been one of those girls who lives to shop, but I must confess, the sight of an amazing bargain makes my eyes light up like the Las Vegas Strip. So when I discovered a bargain-hunter’s mecca, not 4 blocks from my house, I got a little bit giddy. If you like brand name fashion and don’t like spending a lot of money, you’re going to love Dod.
You’d be forgiven for passing right by the original Dod store on chaussée de Louvain. It looks a bit run-down and cluttered like the other shops near-by, selling low-quality goods. But if you watch the doors for a moment, you’ll see a steady stream of smiling women emerging, loaded down by bulging carrier bags filled with their bargain finds.
I first wrote this post waaay back when we arrived in Belgium. I was literally terrified every time I got in the car. I’m happy to say I’m a bit calmer now but, even five years on, I’m still not driving in Belgium. Interestingly, I’ve been in many other places in Europe where I’ve felt, ‘Hey, I could drive here.’ Granted, living in Brussels, I don’t have a real need to drive and Andrew is happy to play chauffeur when necessary.
I was reminded of this post when, on a recent outing, we spotted the sign in the photo. It pretty much sums up driving in Belgium.
Confused about language?
This second post in my Flashback series looks at the pitfalls of being an English speaker in Belgium. When I first wrote it, we were living in Flanders and struggling to learn Flemish. Five years later, I still don’t speak Flemish. In fact, since we moved to Brussels, the little bit of Dutch I had picked up has totally lapsed.
It is very easy to be lazy about language in Brussels, as so many people speak English these days; And it’s not just because of all of the expats in the city. Often, the common language among French and Flemish Belgians in English. There is more and more English popping up on signs and used in slogans. More websites are defaulting to English and English menus are more commonly available. Despite this, I still think it’s important to try and speak the local language. My French, although far from perfect is much better now that I use it frequently in Brussels. There’s still part of me that feels I should learn Dutch, even though I don’t have occasion to use it.
As I suggested when I wrote this post, I still can’t imagine how much more difficult it is to travel as a non-English speaker.
Mobile Operators in Belgium
Looking for more recent information? Check out our newest post on Mobile Internet in Belgium from May 2012!
In my last post, I wrote about Alison’s new phone, the HTC Desire. After bringing it home and setting it up, the next question was: which mobile operator should we use?
We hadn’t researched mobile operators before, as we hadn’t any need for fancy packages. A pay-as-you-go model was fine for years. Now however, the new phone would also need internet access. Suddenly we needed to learn what operators were available and what they offered for data plans (aka mobile internet, 3G). So, with my usual penchant for details, I began to dig into what operators exist in Belgium and their offers for mobile internet on your smartphone.
Chilling at the spa – image by duchessa
It’s been blistering hot in Brussels for the past week or so. Although I love to see the sun, after melting in my 30+ degree living-room, I was ready to cool off. Fighting for a square inch of sand on the Belgian coast didn’t appeal and we’ve decided not to renew our gym membership, so the pool was out. Wondering where I could escape the heat on Saturday, I realised we hadn’t been to a Belgian spa in over a year.
Bringing the internet home
Our ‘Web Guy’ takes a look at how to choose an internet service provider in Belgium.
Most expats wouldn’t dream of living without internet access. We’re becoming more and more connected with our iPhones/smartphones, netbooks and now iPads/tablets. I’ve mentioned how important computers are to expats in my article, “Computer Shopping in Belgium,” but what use is a computer without access? For expats, high-speed (or broadband) internet access is as important as a telephone, maybe even more.
Our expat life is manageable because of the internet and even a day without access can be very disruptive. So how do you know what service provider to choose in Belgium?