5 reasons why I love living in Brussels, Belgium

I live in Brussels for two and half years now, so I want to share with you the things I love the most about the life here.

 

1. SITTING ON GRASS

You might not be aware that in Eastern Europe (where I come from) stepping on the grass is strictly forbidden and sitting on a blanket in the park on a sunny day is just a scene in a romantic movie. I’ve always dreamed of spending an afternoon reading a book on blanket in a park and my dream came true when I moved to Brussels.

In Belgium sitting on grass is permitted, therefore during sunny days the parks and green spaces are full of colored blankets, groups of friends or families having a picnic and enjoying the sun. And this I LOVE!

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Stiti foarte bine ca in Estul Europei in general (in Romania mai ales) calcatul pe iarba este interzis si statul pe patura in parc la soare e doar o scena dintr-un film romantic. Ei bine, in Belgia acest lucru e permis, iar in zilele insorite parcurile si spatiile verzi sunt napadite de paturi colorate, de grupuri de prieteni sau familii la picnic. Si imi plaaacee!

M-am gandit de multe ori de ce oare aceasta diferenta intre noi si ei? Ei bine, in Belgia zilele insorite in care se sta pe iarba sunt dominate de zilele ploioase interminabile, asadar iarba are timp sa se regenereze, pe cand in Romania e soare mai tot timpul, parcuri sunt putine si daca tot norodul ar da navala pe iarba zi de zi, fara incetare, atunci iarba s-ar distruge ramanand in schimb doar petice de pamant.

 

2. THE PARKS

Speaking of green spaces, the parks in Brussels are numerous, beautiful and taken care of. Actually, Brussels is one of the most “green” capitals in Europe.

Some parks continue into a forest (like Bois de la Cambre) while others are smaller in the neighborhoods (like Leopold Park near European Comission). So wherever you live, there is a park nearby.

Cinquantenaire Park and Woluwe Park are two of the most famous and therefore crowded in sunny days, but even the smaller parks have their charm, many having lakes or ponds with birds on them.

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In contextul ierbii de mai sus, parcurile din Bruxelles sunt multe, frumoase si ingrijite. De fapt Bruxelul e una din cele mai verzi capitale din Europa in care ai unde “evada” pentru momente de relaxare.

Unele parcuri se continua cu paduri (precum Bois de la Cambre), iar altele sunt mai micute printre blocurile din cartiere (precum Parcul Leopold de langa Comisia Europeana), asadar oriunde locuiesti ai un parc in apropiere. Parcul Cinquantenaire, Parcul din Centru si Parcul Woluwe sunt printre cele mai mari si mai cunoscute din Bruxelles, dar desigur si cele mai aglomerate in zilele insorite. Dar chiar si parcurile “de cartier” au farmec, multe din ele avand lacuri pe care locuiesc rate, gaste si alte pasari care mai de care.

 

3. LOCATION

Brugge, Paris, Amsterdam

Belgium is a tiny country and from Brussels you can easily get to its neighbors: The Netherlands, France, Germany. Paris is at 3 hours ride from Brussels, to Amsterdam it takes 2 hours by car and the beautiful Belgian cities Brugge and Ghent are very close to reach. How can you not love this?

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Belgia e o tara mica pe care o strabati in 2-3 ore cu masina. Din Bruxelles ajungi usor cu trenul sau masina oriunde in jurul Belgiei la vecinii sai: Olanda, Franta, Germania. Din Bruxelles in Amsterdam ajungi in doar 2 ore, la Paris in 3 ore, iar frumoasele orase belgiene Brugge si Ghent sunt la doar o aruncatura de bat distanta de Bruxelles. Deci spuneti si voi, cum sa nu imi placa aici?

 

4. CULTURAL DIVERSITY

Palestine, Jordan, Italy, Spain, Romania, Belgium, Russia, Turkey, Hungary, Slovakia

Brussels is a cosmopolitan city with lots of Turkish, Spanish, Romanians, Italians, English etc. This makes you feel less of a stranger and you get to learn about new cultures, interact and be friends with people from all over the world.

This can be a great thing, but also has a down side: people here come and go, many are just temporarily in Brussels. I’ve made wonderful friends here and I had to say good bye when they left towards the next city and adventure of their life, which was quite sad to tell you the truth.

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In Bruxelles se afla Parlamentul European si Comisia Europeana, ceea a atras o multime cosmopolita: musulmani, spanioli, romani nu mai zic.., italieni, englezi s.a.m.d. Toate natiile pamantului adunate in Brussel, ceea ce intr-un fel e bine, deoarece nu exista sentimentul de a te simti ca un “strain”. Pe langa asta, interactionezi si afli despre diverse culturi si legi prietenii cu oameni din toata lumea.

Din pacate (pentru ca exista si o parte mai putin placuta), oamenii aici vin si pleaca, multi fiind doar temporar in Bruxelles. Am cunoscut oameni minunati pe  care i-am pierdut cand au plecat spre urmatorul oras, spre urmatoarea aventura a vietii lor. Momente triste cand trebuie sa spui la revedere.

 

5. ARCHITECTURE

What I like a lot about Brussels is the architectural uniformity throughout the city. It’s pleasant to the eye, it’s beautiful in every corner, not just in the city center.

The buildings are usually 4-5 floors high, covered in brick. Tall blocks of flats exist, but they are rare.

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Ce imi place mult in Bruxelles e uniformitatea arhitecturala in tot orasul, in toate cartierele. E un oras frumos in orice coltisor, nu doar in centru (cum se intampla in alte orase unde exista doar un centru istoric, restul cartierelor fiind plictisitoare si neimportante).

Evident ca sunt cartiere cu zone rezidentiale mai fitoase, mai verzi si mai aerisite, iar altele mai aglomerate, cu multi emigranti, dar exista o uniformitate in aspectul cladirilor, majoritatea avand maxim 5 etaje si fiind acoperite in caramizi. Blocurile inalte exista, dar sunt rare. Strazile sunt destul de inguste, iar trotuarele sunt pavate cu piatra cubica.

Have you been to Brussels? Do you agree or disagree with me? Please feel free to add your Own reasons why you love Brussels in the comment section below.