h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

There is a remote possibility that I might get work in Brussels, (I have *just* realised where your name comes from... ), and I am trying to find out which researchers are already there, and some hints and tips about living and working there.

I've already lived and worked in Sweden, Denmark and Germany, so living 'abroad' isn't a problem, but Belgium ain't the nordics. Ok, Germany ain't the nordics either, but you know what I mean.

Any thoughts, hints, tips, warnings, other researchers, stuff like that?

(agc)B

I suspect Belgium is much less Nordic than Germany

The only hootoo regular who comes from near here is Lucky Star, in Luxembourg. About a year ago she asked me a similar question, so I've cut and pasted what I wrote then, and added some points which have occurred to me since then.

I think some of the good bits about living here are:

You can live in the green and peaceful residential areas around the South and East of the city - Ixelles, St Gilles, Watermael, Woluwe etc and if you're working anywhere near the centre you shouldn't have more than thirty minutes to get to work. The centre itself would be fun for a while but has the drawbacks you would expect from living in a town centre.

All the areas I mentioned are mainly French speaking - outside of town this will not necessarily be so. If your job is in the new business area near the airport you could have a grievous commute - there is very little public transport available and at rush hour the road out from the centre gets very busy. Living in one of the towns outside Brussels and then driving in could give you a similar problem.

There is a good choice of accomodation on the whole. Flats for rent are easy to find, houses less so. A garden is more tricky, but a nice big terrace shouldn't be a problem. A parking space can be very handy in some areas - Ixelles, town centre and EU area in particular. There are some real parking blackspots. Accomodation is cheaper than London, about the same price as Bristol I suppose.

People tell horror stories about car jacking and burglaries. I suspect that generally Brussels is pretty safe, certainly safer than London. The EU quarter has seen some muggings though - especially for lap tops.

Most areas are reasonably well served by public transport - tram/train/metro/bus. Be careful about taking a flat near a railway line - some of them are due for extensive work over the next two years! The Eurostar and Thalys to London and Paris are really good now - quick, cheapish and reliable.

Just south of Brussels, is the forêt de Soignes - very nice for walking and cycling. Ardennes not far away either.

The cultural and social life here is really good. There are loads of cinemas, theatres, restaurants etc - also a lot of stuff geared at expats - amateur theatre, sport.

Worst points. Brussels has a lot of areas with some charm/architectural interest. Unfortunately, from all of them you can see some sort of concrete monstrosity, built in the sixties. Also built in that period is the EU area - very ugly with big 5 lane highways in the middle of it. I wouldn't live in this bit.

No river. Pavements are quite often knackered and sometimes covered in doggy-do. Lots of people have company cars in Brussels, so they drive like madmen and women. Undertaking is standard.

Taxation is heavy and car insurance is atrocious. On an ex-pat regime, not so much a problem of course.

I don't know what languages you speak, but be careful about the language politics. Many Belgian companies work in English because it is neutral, but will you get all your admin info in Flemish? Most professional Belgians speak at least English + French or Flemish, but if you will need to deal with factories in Wallonia or whatever, the language skills could drop off. Bureacracy you would generally have to do in French, but you might get lucky and come across a clerk who speaks English. You could buy a mobile phone or a car in English, but not a loaf of bread - still, worst case scenario there is always pointing.

That's what springs to mind. I really like it here, but it can have its frustrations...

sprout

That all sounds doable. I stopped learning French when I was about 14, but it is good enough to shop in. I have been wanting to learn a language for some time. I can understand French better than German, but I will always pronounce it atrociously. *sigh* I would however take language lessons; being a monoglot is getting to me.

It seems as if a flat is available about 10 minutes from where I would be working, so I will take that until I find my feet.

They know that I only speak English, and it is a multinational organisation, (my favourite kind), so my plan is to learn French as fast as I can, and as soon as I get to the point where it would not be confusing to learn either German or Swedish. German might be easier.

Thanks for the info, as I said, it all sounds doable.

Cheers.

B