To celebrate my half way point of our Brussels tour I thought I would put together a good and bad list for Brussels. This should also help all those folks out there who are thinking about bidding.
Top Ten Good
1.
The parks
I cannot get over the parks. There are so many green spaces and parks to explore. There are playground parks, nature parks, castle parks. Oh! It is great. The parks shame any American park any day.
2.
Kids activites
There are so many family oriented places to take your kids. Indoor amusement parks, indoor playgrounds, puppet shows, aquariums, zoos, seriously a never ending list of family activities.
3.
Chocolate
Belgians don't mess around with chocolate. There are so many different chocolatiers and they are serious about their craft.
4.
Schools
For embassy folks, there are a lot of great schooling options. ISB is the main school used by most people but there are a lot of other options that are fantastic. (We are not going the traditional route this fall and I am happy and grateful for the options). There are free preschools available to all kids 2.5 and above, this comes with cultural strings attached.
5.
Housing
Its big. I was expecting a tiny place. Yes, my house has its quirks (NO SINKS IN BATHROOMS), tons of stairs, but it is big and comfortable, great location and we are really happy. Everyone we have met has a great place as well.
6.
Access
We get to go to the commissary for processed food and meat. This helps cut the grocery bill. The trek down there takes and hour so we only go every six weeks or so.
7.
More Access
There is an Army Garrison in Brussels with a library, shop, hourly daycare, summer camps, and boy scouts.
8.
It's Europe Yo!
When Belgium feels small you can easily drive to four other countries within 90 minutes. We have seen ten countries this year without much effort.
9.
The food
Yum, yum, yum. No shortage of delicious places to eat. Once you tire of frites and waffles there are a ton of yummy places to eat at.
10.
Visitors
People will visit you. This is a place people can get to and will come and visit.
The Bad and Ugly
1.
Hot boyfriend
Belgium is super hot and fun to be around but just like a hot boyfriend, he looks good but never calls or sends flowers. No one holds your hand and shows you the ropes when you get here. Yes, you will have a sponsor and work folks give good advice but this post is SOOO big and there are SOOO many US embassy and others that the expat community is huge and actually blend into local society. This means you have to be proactive about making friends and a lot of people have a hard time.
2.
French
Learn French if at all possible. I have had a really hard time with the language here. The little that I speak gets looks of disgust when I make an effort. If you don't speak French try to live in a Flemish commune, the Dutch speakers generally speak English better and from my non-scientific observation the local Flemish school kids seem to have better manners.
3.
Schools
Yes, its possible to be a good and bad. The local schools are free but there is a cultural cost to pay. Language barrier aside, they have their own way of doing things here and if you don't like it... tough. Every grade has a yeller teacher (luckily we didn't get one), there are stories from all schools of teachers ripping up preschooler art when they don't follow directions. This will be a blog post of its own soon enough. If I could do my tour over again I would try to move into a Flemish commune because the schools and kids seem gentler and kinder, although I have friends who disagree so take it for what it's worth.
4.
Weather
Sometimes I love it but after a month of grey it is going to the bad. The sun doesn't shine often. It never gets about 65. NEVER. Don't bother with capris or shorts. They are unnecssary. If you are coming here in the summer bring boots and a warm coat. Leave the sandals and shorts. (On the flip side winter is generally mild, we only had one snow day last January).
5.
Moneys
The dollar only goes so far here. Labor is EXPENSIVE and there are a ton of taxes included in goods. Traslation? Pricey. Example: H&M sells cheap clothes in the US there is a price. Say $5 for a t-shirt. In Belgium the exact same shirt costs 5 euros which is 40% more. Boo. I combat this by window shopping and using DPO to ship stuff.
6.
Smiles
People don't smile much, it can get to you. You can start to tell nationality by the amount of toothage shown. Your neighbors may never say hello or smile to you. (Of our 10 close neighbors I have spoken to five. I hope with hard work I will get that to 7).
7.
Home Alone
Because this is Europe and because it is expensive there are not a lot of resources to fix things and help you out. If your home has trouble, you will be expected to fix it yourself. When we moved in the walls weren't painted, the grout was missing in the bathroom. Things like this just don't get fixed, its just too expensive to do cosmetic fixes and you have to let it go, do it yourself, or go crazy.
8.
Rules, rules, rules
For all of the wonder and beauty of this city there is a lot that goes into it and Brussels has LOTS of regulations and community rules. No law mowing on Sunday, no stores open on Sunday, no sales unless its January or July, no leaving the home without your ackwardly sized government issued ID. Can you hear my eyes rolling?
9.
Tightness
Because this post is so big and there are three missions here, the community is huge and people are able to find their niche outside of the embassy community. A lot of people struggle with this and it can take a while to feel like you have friends. I don't mind it but it is something to think about.
10.
Light
In the winter it gets dark at 3:00, in the summer the sun stays up and keeps your kids up until 11. The light can't just be normal here. Bring black out curtains and a sun lamp.
We love Brussels and think this is a great family post. Feel free to email me if you have any specific questions about this place.
