Moving to Brussels - any advice gratefully received

In My Humble Opinion
1

Just wondering if Dopers have any insight, or indeed if anyone might already be living in Brussels or anywhere in Belgium?

Long story short, my husband has been seconded to work in Brussels for minimum 3 years and we’ll all (myself, husband and baby) be moving there in the next couple of months. Would anyone have any advise on nice areas to live in, things to do/see, tips on settling in?

Very excited about the move but a bit nervous too. Any advice from those who have made a similar move, not necessarily to Brussels, would also be much appreciated. Thankfully it’s not that far from home (Ireland) so keeping in regular contact with family shouldn’t be a problem and I am really looking forward to some time in another country and brushing up in my French (extremely rusty at best) although I know English is widely spoken!

2

I lived just outside of Brussels for about two years, working for an American contractor. The actual work was all over eastern Europe, and our office/warehouse was in the small town of Paal, which is a ways from Brussels, but I was fairly familiar with the city. I lived in a small suburb by the name of Leefdaal. Brussels is French-speaking for the most part and most of the rest of the country speaks Flemish.

Traffic in Brussels is fast and hectic. There are constant accidents, it seems. Rents were expensive back then, which is why we lived on the outskirts, and have probably gotten more so. There is an international school in the city.

Check Google for “Brussels Square” for photos of the beautiful architecture. Lots of little shops in the square. Just off the square on one of the side streets is an alley that has nothing but seafood restaurants. Mussels are a specialty in Brussels, as are the pommes frites, which I still have not found the equal of in the US. Many of the pubs serve an excellent steak au poivre, one of my favorite meals. Belgian chocolate is excellent, as are some of their beers.

I highly recommend seeing the sights in the city, but you should also get out to see the countryside. There are some historical battlefields in the area. You should also go see Antwerp. The great thing about Brussels is that you are only a few hours from most of Europe. You can make it to Frankfurt in four or five hours, and to Paris very easily for a weekend. The Hague is just up the road. I envy your assignment.

3

Alas, I have no advice based on experience. But I’ve heard Bruges is worth a visit…

4

Yeah, Bruges (or Brugge) is worthwhile. Very quiet and picturesque.

I should note that my experience was from 1990-1992, so may be way out of date.

5

Chefguy thank you for all the tips, it’s great to get insights from someone who has lived there. Very exciting to read about the plus points to the move, helps reduce the nervousness.

Thanks Bridget Burke, yes Bruges is definitely a must see. That’s probably what I’m most looking forward to, all the opportunities for travel, particularly as many places are reachable without the hassle of flying. For example I’ve been informed that Paris is roughly 1hr 30mins by highspeed train? I think I can live with that!

6

I’d rather put it this way: Belgium consists of two halves; the Dutch speaking Flanders and the French speaking Wallonia. Brussels is a French speaking enclave in Flanders.

7

As I understand it, by national law, all public signage (road signs, train station or airport info, etc.) must be printed in both French & Flemish throughout all of Belgium.

I think Brussels is an absolutely lovely city, and in my opinion Grand Place (the city’s truly stunning central square, dating from the 13th Century, although rebuilt in the early 1700’s after the French destroyed it) is the single most beautiful man made structure I have ever seen in person.

8

Before visiting Bruges, see the movie “In Bruges”. One of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen.

9

Now that I have seen. Despite Colin Farrell’s character complaining about how boring the place was it did look beautiful in the movie and I’ll definitely be visiting.

10

Potato, potahto for my money.

As noted, most signage is in both languages, including things like friterie/frituur for a fried food outlet. Fries are the national bird, and deservedly so, IMO. Twice-fried and served with house-made mayo: yes, I’m obsessed with them.

11

I lived in Belgium for my high school years in the early 90s with my family. We lived in the Wezembeek Oppem/Kraainem region. Not having a car I managed to easily get around town using the trams and metro.

As Chefguy said, the drivers are fast and crazy. I seem to recall the average speed on the ring road to be ~140kph.

I had several friends that lived in the Waterloo area. I seem to recall that there were a lot more people who spoke english in that area. Just keep in mind that it is a good distance out of town and not on the metro line.

I have no idea about the cost of living since we were living in a house paid for by the government.

12

Watch out for the dog shit on the sidewalks.

13

Yeah, once you’re out of the city proper, public transit is pretty spotty. We lived in an embassy apartment for a few weeks that was situated right on the ring road. There were car wrecks every single day between ring road drivers and the cars merging from the city streets.

14

The traffic in Brussels didn’t strike me as worse than in other parts of Europe. As a matter of fact, I’d say it’s much better than say in Paris and a walk in the park as opposed to Italy (especially the southern part).
However, I was told by locals that there is something to watch out for. Apparently it’s an oddity that’s particular to this city. Large boulevards / main arteries may not have the right-of-way relative to the traffic incoming from side streets. Often there are no signs regulating these intersections and as a result someone driving on a three-lane boulevard may have to give priority to the right to vehicles coming from much smaller roads. Not only this is counter-intuitive (and a source of many incidents), apparently there are individuals actively seeking to cause accidents. So I was told, anyway.
Bruges is certainly worth visiting; so are Gent, Namur, Charleroi, and many other places. One of the main reasons Brussels is the “capital of the EU” is that it’s relatively close to many important cities and at the crossroads of several cultures. Amsterdam is within reach (and not to be missed), Cologne is not that far, for a taste of France Lille is a (relatively) short drive away, and so on.
For advice on where/how to move I’d try to contact the expat community. Good places to start are the local church and… the pubs. I think it’s worth a shot, since they will probably know best in which neigbouhood it’s worth looking for a house, and other such info.
Good luck.

15

That’s the same situation as in Paris. Everybody coming from the right has the right of way, no matter if you’re on a one lane road or held hostage in the six-lane horror that is the traffic circle at the Arc d’Triomphe. Paris is one city I never had to drive in. I either walked or took the excellent metro system.

16

I lived in Brussels (Forest) in 1994-95, so my information is very out of date. But I was a student and I had nothing but free time and train tickets. There is no shortage of things to do and see. Definitely use the time to brush up on your French.

I really liked Le musée de la bande dessinée, the Atomium, mini-Europe.

La Grande Place is a great people watching spot and the Mannekin Pis is nearby.

The Horta Museum, the Fine Arts Museum. They have a dedicated Magritte museum now. I would love to see that.

I also really liked Beersel Castle and the Abbey of Villers la Ville.

Public transit was easy and plentiful. I often took the train to other cities for some site seeing.

Definitely see some other cities. Liege and Leuven are two that I haven’t seen mentioned yet. Also, go to the Ardennes, lovely country there.

Battlefields, castles, museums, food, people watching, beer, art and culture. Love it.

One more place to visit, an art gallery that intrigues me, Espace Art 22.

Since you will be there next year, by all means, go to the Mardi Gras festival in Binche. Get there early!

Now I really want to go back.

17

Check out the sprouts.

18

Witloof, more likely.

19

Thank you all so much, the list of places to visit and things to do has now grown much, much longer. I have also noted all the tips re driving, especially as we already have to watch out as driving is on the opposite side to what we are used to here, so extra care would be needed in any event.

20

Actually, from memory, I don’t think this is true. I lived in Antwerp for four years, Louvain La Neuve (Wallonia) for 3 months (and worked there another 3) and Brussels for 3 months.

There is a crossing point, near the border where a lot of the signage is in two languages. But a lot of the time in the Flemish and the French side, the opposite language disappears. I can’t remember seeing any flemish on any signs in Wallonia, and only the big ones were bilingual in Antwerp, most were in Flemish.

Its very strange. You are on a train in Wallonia, signage is in French, French is spoken exclusively (indeed, I found more english spoken in southern germany) and then as soon as it hits Brussels stations, the announcements become bilingual. Change to a train to flanders and the french disappears and flemish is exclusively spoken.