I am in Brussels now, staying for three days, visiting a friend who
lives in Brussels and works for the European Council.
I do not know Brussels at all but what did not take me long to figure
out is that food there is delicious... really delicious. Cheap? Well,
that depends. Those used to prices in Paris or London and the like
will probably consider it cheap. Those however coming from cheaper
places like for example Vienna might find life there quite expensive.
Actually it reminds me of my time in London — sleazy apartment for a
ridiculous high rent. Well, I guess I am indulged because of the
excellent housing quality here in Austria which is pretty much the
best I ever encountered compared to most places I have been on this
planet. Germany has a high quality standard in housing too...
Anyways, after my first or so night there I figured although it is a
bit expensive, it is all worth it. Good food, fairly interesting
nightlife, beautiful city center, very interesting people... The
only thing that totally sucks about Brussels is its weather — always
foggy, light rain and cloudy... so not my thing! What I totally like
about Brussels is its cultural appearance — lots of art, music, quite
stunning architecture and very friendly and open-minded people. And of
course, chocolate... for those of you which are into all kinds of
chocolate, enter a plane to Brussels! Really, I mean it, chocolate
stuff in Brussels is just one of its kind. What I find also pretty
cool about Brussels is its train connections to Paris and London —
less than two hours for both.
Language? To my surprise most people just speak acceptable English in
Brussels. If you go to Germany or Austria for example, the English
spoken there is on a far more advanced level, even in Russia they
speak better English. The language spoken in Belgium/Brussels is
French... a beautiful language which I am still not fluent with. I
totally convinced myself that I will improve my French skills simply
because I like to be able to connect with people plus most spots of
cultural interests to me are those where the locals speak French.
The nightlife is heavily diverse. No matter what, there is something
for anybody — theater, Irish pub, table dance, club, lounge, five
star dinner with classical music... no problem, Brussels has it all.
For me, well, I did what can be done in three days, started with a
fancy dinner the first night, pub and some restaurants the second
evening/night and a very cool lounge/club for the last night in
Brussels. One thing that might be worth mentioning is that you have to
tip the bouncers. Hmmm...?
I am not kidding, this is one of the things no one talks about but
everyone knows and... well, accepts if he wants to visit the same
club more than once. I found that very interesting especially because
one might think, Europe, developed, smart, clean... Boy, not even in
Africa did I have to bung the bouncers... Africa, totally another
story of course; imho one of the greatest places to go.
I talked to one of the boys and found out that, yes, this is what is
common practice in Belgium (the tip that is) but then the boys and
girls are also very helpful and obliging and... I am not sure how
else to put this so: somehow they have a great style in making a night
for hundreds of people a pleasant one — no aggression, no hostility
and stuff like that which for example London I think has a lot of.
Generally, this just adds to my impressions of Brussels — people
there are very friendly, especially when they figure you are not a
local simply because your French totally sucks... try to find that in
Paris; good luck!... perfect French or.... well, I am soooo ignoring
you ;-]
Into that, it is quite interesting to watch how fast you are
understood in Paris if you are loaded ^^ This, also, another story...
Brussels has very high human fluctuation i.e. many young people at the
age between 20 and 40 that come to Brussels for a short period of time
in order to either work directly with politics or do something related
e.g. lobbying, which I found out many do. That said, it is no wonder
there are tons of kissing couples all around... young love that is
;-]
Brussels in a Nutshell
Great food, great culture (nightlife, art, music, etc.), diverse
population, friendly people, bad weather (at least while I was there),
acceptable housing conditions for ordinary folk but then I figure it
must be pretty expensive for a household with an cumulative income of
<= 40k per annum.
Looks like a great place for the young and high-educated who strive
for a career in the public sector, international law, politics and
lobbying... Gosh, this place is swarming with lobbyists ;-]
Young folks (<= 30) mostly stay there for no longer than 3 years then
they return home (especially those who do internships and the like at
the European council etc.). So it is hard to have life-time
friendships and relationships — they might start there but probably
continue some other place if at all they say. Also, you really do not
want to be in a relationship when you go there... there is young
folks hungry for life and filled adventurousness to the rim everywhere
(and also from everywhere; heck it is Brussels). That combination
makes it pretty much impossible to behave faithfully they say.
Bottom Line
I would not want to live there because its size is rather pointless to
me — neither is it a lovely little tranquil village nor is it some
exciting big and complex thing... it is something in between so end
up having neither really.
Also, it is to expensive for what it provides... London and Paris on
the other hand I do not mind being expensive because what you get in
return is marvelous (there is always something you can do). Also the
weather, a no go for me especially during the winter — it is raining
way to much and it is cloudy all the time from what the residents told
me.
Would I visit Brussels again? Yes, but only when the weather is to my
likings which means sunshine throughout the day. I just cannot stand
the combination of all weekend fog, clouds and light rain.
