Discovering Antarctica - marine biologist wants to go to Antarctica (Jul/22/2009 )
pito on Jul 26 2009, 08:05 AM said:
This thread has gone from "blog Ana's way to Antartica" to "discovering Belgium" and now to "bashing Brussels and beers" ...thanks for your "honest" comments about Brussels..and I had such good memories...actually, I think it's in every country that you have these seedy/dangerous places where the natives and even the cops avoid so I'm not surprised. And these are spots that you don't promote to the tourists of course. I've no time now but I can post more later....
Offcourse is this true for every country, but its just something I point out because lots of people, tourists seem to forget this. They only see the beauty.
But what would rather have? That tourists will only see unsavoriness and then have such a bad impression /experience that in the end, they will not return nor will they recommend such countries for visiting? It's a good thing that you're working in the lab and not for the tourism industry (which for some countries is a major source of revenues)...
..if you really wanna know a country then you have to be living there to experience the good as well as the bad. But tourists are usually only there for the short haul and they spend money to explore, to enjoy, to "learn" and not to be traumatised....I'm still trying to think if we have the equivalent of that park and that metro station tho...
... -casandra-
pito on Jul 26 2009, 01:14 PM said:
Beer =/= beer.... it all depends, there is a real difference between heineken and belgian beers or german beers. German beers are mostly just water.
Do keep in mind that the best beers in the world are alsmost belgian beers... almost every year its a belgian beer that is voted as best beer of the world. However those are not the commercial beers everyone knows about.
To give an example: there is a special "trapist" beer in belgian, thats monks brew at a certain place and they only make X bottles each year. Well every year when its time to sell those bottles you will have people waiting with their cars to go and buy the beer and every person is only allowed Y bottles of beer... its really amasing. Some people hire others to go and get beer for them or they sell and buy in on the "black market".
You can only buy the beer at the monks home.. so its not in the shop or anywhere else.
It is even important what kind of water you use to brew the beer!
The flemish people in brussels are mainly people that are there for work or during the weekend on some sort of city trip. But there arent a lot of flemish people living there.
A lot of the people in brussel are immigrants. There are some parts of brussels that have 95-100% immigrant levels, wich is causing some distress from the "native" flemish or francophones there.
You can compare it with some sort of "chinatown" but with other nationalities.
And flemish people are indeed taught french at school... but the other way around isnt true: francophones are not forced to learn dutch. They can pick between dutch or english, most pick english. And that is also one of the things a lot of flemish people hate: they speak french, but the francophones do not speak dutch or rarely do.
And there are exact stats about how many people live in brussels and the fact is that some parts are now 100% french speaking and a lot of those arent even "francophones" but immigrants.
I do not know if you ever went to the parts around the cellars of kuregem ?
Thas just one place to show you how brussel can go wrong: trash on the ground, people literally trow their trash out of their window on the streets etc... things being stolen uit of cars right in front of your nose.. they dont even act like they are doing nothing, they just steal the things in the car in front of you watching at it... or maybe even the car.
There are other examples like that. However this region is still +- save , you will not be robbed or attacked normally.
A few years ago there was a park in brussel that you should not enter after 18.00 untill 11.00 or you would be attacked by people using pitbulls as their weapon etc...
There are some parts over there where cops dont even dare to enter.
There are some metrostation that when you enter those you are almost 100% garanteed you get robbed.
Those things arent well known by tourists because they only visit the "nice" part of brussel, the touristic regions.
Do keep in mind that the best beers in the world are alsmost belgian beers... almost every year its a belgian beer that is voted as best beer of the world. However those are not the commercial beers everyone knows about.
To give an example: there is a special "trapist" beer in belgian, thats monks brew at a certain place and they only make X bottles each year. Well every year when its time to sell those bottles you will have people waiting with their cars to go and buy the beer and every person is only allowed Y bottles of beer... its really amasing. Some people hire others to go and get beer for them or they sell and buy in on the "black market".
You can only buy the beer at the monks home.. so its not in the shop or anywhere else.
It is even important what kind of water you use to brew the beer!
The flemish people in brussels are mainly people that are there for work or during the weekend on some sort of city trip. But there arent a lot of flemish people living there.
A lot of the people in brussel are immigrants. There are some parts of brussels that have 95-100% immigrant levels, wich is causing some distress from the "native" flemish or francophones there.
You can compare it with some sort of "chinatown" but with other nationalities.
And flemish people are indeed taught french at school... but the other way around isnt true: francophones are not forced to learn dutch. They can pick between dutch or english, most pick english. And that is also one of the things a lot of flemish people hate: they speak french, but the francophones do not speak dutch or rarely do.
And there are exact stats about how many people live in brussels and the fact is that some parts are now 100% french speaking and a lot of those arent even "francophones" but immigrants.
I do not know if you ever went to the parts around the cellars of kuregem ?
Thas just one place to show you how brussel can go wrong: trash on the ground, people literally trow their trash out of their window on the streets etc... things being stolen uit of cars right in front of your nose.. they dont even act like they are doing nothing, they just steal the things in the car in front of you watching at it... or maybe even the car.
There are other examples like that. However this region is still +- save , you will not be robbed or attacked normally.
A few years ago there was a park in brussel that you should not enter after 18.00 untill 11.00 or you would be attacked by people using pitbulls as their weapon etc...
There are some parts over there where cops dont even dare to enter.
There are some metrostation that when you enter those you are almost 100% garanteed you get robbed.
Those things arent well known by tourists because they only visit the "nice" part of brussel, the touristic regions.
1. Brussels is a bit dirty, but honestly it's a very safe city, compared with the places I lived. Lisbon is very beautiful (in fact is the most beautiful city in the whole world....
), but the suburbs are the most horrible places ever (they remind a bit the architecture of old communist countries plus they can be as dangerous as the ghettos in NY). As before, is just a matter of comparison. Still, I think Brussels is great for its variability and multicultural side! I love the market in Gare du Midi, the Matongué mood, to make pic-nics in Bois de La Cambre, or to walk in St Gilles. People: save your money and documents, take a very old camera and walk trough the city, is just great (and also take your waterproof jacket).2. Still, I don't like beer, but I loved to discover Krieks and similars!!!! What a great idea.
3. Yesterday I was with a lot of Flemish, I went to Baarle-Hertog and had my foot on both Belgium and The Netherlands several times. What a funny village. And the area is very beautiful (the weather also helped a lot yesterday).
4. DON'T FORGET TO KEEP DISCOVERING ANTARCTICA: http://www.blogyourwaytoantarctica.com/blogs/view/204
(sorry, but I have to keep reminding you... anyway, thanks for the votes that came from here, I might not win, but I'm having a lot of fun)
Cheers
AC
-Ana C-
Belgium . . . isn't that where Tintin is from? and the chocolates. .. should vote then.
Casu-hime, now U r sounding more like one of them but I always thought U were one of 'them' (the other 'them'). U work for google or something?
-Nabi-
How many will be going?
U need almost 15 times more votes than you have now. Hope we could help you more.. . . I will spread the words.
-Nabi-
Thanks Nabi! I know that by now Luís (who is actually a friend of mine) has a lot more votes! But as I said, I am having really a lot of fun with this game. Is great to find new forums and meet new people.
Still, spread the word! Let's see how it all will go!
Cheers
AC
-Ana C-
i think Tintin is living in Germany, haven't seen him for a while.
in Canada I suppose violence at parks is very reduced, since there's no one on the streets for 8 months approximately
-toejam-
Tintin is from belgium. Kuifje is his name in dutch
-pito-
Ana C on Jul 27 2009, 10:06 PM said:
Thanks Nabi! I know that by now Luís (who is actually a friend of mine) has a lot more votes! But as I said, I am having really a lot of fun with this game. Is great to find new forums and meet new people.
Still, spread the word! Let's see how it all will go!
Cheers
AC
But as I said, I am having really a lot of fun with this game. Is great to find new forums and meet new people.Still, spread the word!
Let's see how it all will go!Cheers
AC
But Luis aint sending us no postcard from antartica. is he? So, we want U to go and we mail our postal address and wait for postcards. Deal?
It must be fun eating icecream over there. . will that be in hot menu or cold - I wonder.
-Nabi-
Nabi on Jul 27 2009, 08:26 AM said:
Belgium . . . isn't that where Tintin is from? and the chocolates. .. should vote then.
Casu-hime, now U r sounding more like one of them but I always thought U were one of 'them' (the other 'them'). U work for google or something?
Casu-hime, now U r sounding more like one of them but I always thought U were one of 'them' (the other 'them'). U work for google or something?
BB-san....I have neither been one of them nor the other "them".....I've always been one of "us"....the "himes....or, why couldn't we all be citizens of the earth....
.....how does one work for google, btw... -casandra-
Nabi on Jul 27 2009, 05:24 PM said:
But Luis aint sending us no postcard from antartica. is he? So, we want U to go and we mail our postal address and wait for postcards. Deal?
It must be fun eating icecream over there. . will that be in hot menu or cold - I wonder.
It must be fun eating icecream over there. . will that be in hot menu or cold - I wonder.
Of course I'll send you postcards! In fact, I can also send postcards from Brussels if you'd like. By the way, do you know "postcrossing"?: http://www.postcrossing.com/
You subscribe and you can exchange postcards with the world!!!! I'm there (my nick is zebrazuli). I haven't been active lately (PhD obligations), but I love the concept.
Ice cream with warm chocolate cake.... yummyyyyy!
Cheers,
Ana
-Ana C-