15 reasons to still be in love with Bruxhell

I would be lying if I told you that me and Brussels haven't been going a bit of a rough patch recently. Between a lockdown, a despicable terrorist attack, the ever-present military on the streets and a terribly planned and implemented pedestrian project, that has transformed the very center of the city into a grey ghost-town, it's safe to say that it has been a bad year for our little city. Yet spring is here and nature is in full bloom so I thought I would share some of the oh so many reasons that Paris's ugly cousin is still worth your love.

1. The Marolles!

Since I moved in this part of town nearly 8 years ago I fell in love. Though this little gem is located in the center of Brussels and is swarming with tourists and life during the weekend it keeps its Belgian charm intact and let's face it who doesn't enjoy living in a cabinet of curiosities. We also happen to have one of the best flea markets (Jeu de Balle)  that's open every single day!

The ultimate map of our hood

Places to love in the Marolles:

The Chaff

also known as our local, right on the square of Jeu de Balle and perfect for a soup bowl sized latte (known as lait Russe) in the sun apres le flea market

PIN PON 
Located in an old fire station, perfect for an afternoon apero in the sun and delicious food is served upstairs under a glass roof

Les Brigittines 

Al Jannah 
The Lebanese solution to culinary boredom

The Bio Market at Tanneurs 
cause my quality of life increased exponentially since I started shopping there!

L'Idiot du village

Le Wine Bar des Marolles 

Recyclart

All the vintage shops

Chapelle skater park

2. The concerts

It's not like the Belgian crowd is particularly lively or has an exquisite musical taste however Brussels is on the way during any European tour and this means we get the chance to enjoy anyone who's on tour at a really reasonable price and at relatively intimate venues. It's not by chance that the Ancienne Belgique  is repeatedly listed as one of the best venues to play in and well at Botanique you get to see the newest bands before they explode into superstardom, or not, in a botanical garden! Hard to beat that! I remember that when I lived in London concert tickets had to be booked months in advance and cost a tiny fortune. And I will let you in on a little secret, you can show up on the eve of any sold out concert and find a ticket for the show at the original price, all you need to do is practice your negotiation skills or acquire some dodgy italian connections. 

Casually chilling with Ariel Pink after his gig.

God is in the house...

3. The food

Le Selecto

Resto Henri 

SAN

GRAMM 

Notos 

Jack O'Shea 

Viva M'boma 

La Guinguette en Ville

Les Filles 

4. The parteys

Well up until recently there was at least one party every weekend in the hood that is currently referred to as the cradle of terrorism, your beloved Molenbeek, and guess what every weekend the gays, the freaks and the hipsters invaded abandoned industrial spaces and danced the night away. Things may have slowed down a little but we still have incredible Djs, such as Matias Aguayo, who recently graced us with his presence at Beursschouwburg and restored our faith in the magic of the night. 

Keep an eye out for

HOLGER 

LEFTORIUM

VICUNA

CatClub

Bruxsel Jardin for when the days start getting longer

Blue Cheese a party organized by 2 of my favorite boys in town

5. BOZAR

A reason onto itself, probably along with MOMA one of the most progressive Modern Art Museums in the world, amazing exhibitions, electro parties, film premiers, classical music concerts and you even get the opportunity to meet some of your favorite authors and film directors! They also host an ultra geeky fantastic film festival in their basement every year, what is there not to love! Did I also mention they have an incredible CINEMATEK with impeccable programming and a delicious Brasserie in the beautiful building that was designed by Belgium's finest, Mr Horta himself.

6. That we all believe in the magic of the night and the power of alcohol AKA The Freedom 

The fact that bars don't close at 2:00 like in gay Paris or London and the fact that you are free to consume alcoholic beverages in parks

What used to be my first ever afterhours home in Brussels.

7. Cinema Nova

Those of you who have the pleasure of knowing me personally are aware of the fact that going to the cinema is possibly one of my all time favorite activities and I must admit regardless of all the silver screens I have seen Cinema Nova is SPECIAL!

8. Pierre Marcolini 

Well Belgium is sort of synonymous to chocolate, along with beer, peeing boys and mussels, and guess what you should definitely believe all the hype! I recently paid 4 euros for the tiniest of ice creams from Pierre and it was totally worth every cent! I am not know for my sweet tooth yet I loooove chocolate and Marcolini takes it to the next level.

9. THE PEOPLE AKA ALL MY FRIENDS 

Anyone who's mad enough to give this insane little city a chance to become a home is worth loving, or at least in need of some sort of psychiatric help, so this one is for all the beautiful people from all over the world that make this city AWESOME!

10. ICON 

One of my all time favorite stores where you can find gems from ACNE, Isabelle Marant, Alexander Wang, Phillip Lim, EACH x OTHER, Roseanna and many many more

11. Parckfarm 

for all the eco-warriors out there

12. our very own little hidden park Egmont 

13. all the dance 

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, The Great

14. This sky 

Cause Magritte was on to something

15. THE EU!!!!

Cause I work in the European Parliament and get to be an infinitesimal part of this incredible peace project!

2016: Resolution for the New Year: No lying, No biting

A peculiar and rather difficult year has come to an end and I expect a lot of you will be compiling lists of resolutions we so enthusiastically make and easily forget; so I thought I would share an unusual story and some odd and possibly inspirational maxims by 2 very talented artists. 

2016: NO LYING, NO BITING

Ladies first, so lets begin by this brief story by one of my favorite tortured souls, Ms Sophie Calle 

PS: For all the beautiful people living in or visiting Brussels one of her installations is on display at BOZAR for the Imagine Istanbul exhibition.

“I met him in a bar in December 1989. I was in New York for a couple of days. He offered to let me stay in his apartment and I accepted. He gave me the address, handed me the keys and disappeared. I spent the night alone in his bed. The only thing I learned about him came from a piece of paper that I found under a cigarette box. It said: “Resolutions for the New Year; no lying, no biting.” Later, I called him from Paris to thank him. We decided to meet and made a date for January 20th, 1990, Orly airport, 9:00 a.m. He never arrived, never called and did not answer his phone. On January 10th, 1991 at 7:00 p.m., I received the following call: “It’s Greg Shephard, I am at Orly airport, one year late. Would you like to see me?” This man knew how to talk to me.”

The Resolution
© Sophie Calle

And now for the fun part, on the back cover of the recent book "Werner Herzog—A Guide for the Perplexed" by Paul Cronin, are 24 maxims by the German director, find your golden rule! 

1. Always take the initiative.
2. There is nothing wrong with spending a night in jail if it means getting the shot you need.
3. Send out all your dogs and one might return with prey.
4. Never wallow in your troubles; despair must be kept private and brief.
5. Learn to live with your mistakes.
6. Expand your knowledge and understanding of music and literature, old and modern.
7. That roll of unexposed celluloid you have in your hand might be the last in existence, so do something impressive with it.
8. There is never an excuse not to finish a film.
9. Carry bolt cutters everywhere.
10. Thwart institutional cowardice.
11. Ask for forgiveness, not permission.
12. Take your fate into your own hands.
13. Learn to read the inner essence of a landscape.
14. Ignite the fire within and explore unknown territory.
15. Walk straight ahead, never detour.
16. Manoeuvre and mislead, but always deliver.
17. Don’t be fearful of rejection.
18. Develop your own voice.
19. Day one is the point of no return.
20. A badge of honor is to fail a film theory class.
21. Chance is the lifeblood of cinema.
22. Guerrilla tactics are best.
23. Take revenge if need be.
24. Get used to the bear behind you.

2016: STAY OPEN 

Life under Lockdown in Belgistan

I never use my blog to write about politics or current affairs so I promise that, regardless of the title and the fact that the charming city I call home is now entering its 5th day under lockdown, this post is mainly about love and art and all things beautiful and worth celebrating.

On Saturday morning (21/11/2015) when I woke up to read that Brussels has been placed under the highest level of alert due to information pertaining to a terrorist attack similar to the tragedy that hit Paris last week, my reaction was disbelief. A fellow Brusselonian, who knows a Belgian detective, and my dad, who claims to have friends in high places, had been warning me for days and advising me to avoid crowded places. Scaremongering I thought! So after shock came relief, as I had planned to go to London and would thus avoid this surreal weekend that seemed to come out of a Hollywood B-movie.   And what a weekend it was! I was reunited with my family that recently moved back to London after 10 years in LA over dinner at a cosy Italian restaurant called La Famiglia. Toconoco with its delicious and reasonably priced Ramen soup and Bread and Butter, for the first flat white of the day, were our local gems. There was also the fascinating and politically engaged and enraged exhibition of Ai Weiwei at the Royal Academy of Arts

as well as some serious brunching at the elegantly hip Ace Hotel, shopping at A.P.C. and fuelling our vanity at Barber & Parlour in Electric Cinema.

My only experience from Lockdown had thus far been the empty streets on Saturday morning, how infuriatingly difficult it was to find a cab (nothing new there snce the taxi mafia of Brussels shut down Uber!) and that Eurostar allowed me to change my ticket to Brussels free of charge so I could enjoy an extra day in The City. 

 However the media was going mental with images of police and uber sleek army officials roaming the empty streets of Brussels, twitter was flooded with initially witty and humorous photos of cats under the hashtag #BrusselsLockdown and my phone kept beeping with Facebook notifications that all events in Brussels have been cancelled. 

The worst was Sunday when the police advised all Brusselonians to remain indoors and stay away from windows (!) as several "operations" were taking place across the city.  Following the sensationalistic media coverage, my phone kept ringing as family and friends kept calling or messaging to check whether I'm safe and sound

5 days after "Lockdown" was declared, the metro and several schools have partially reopened, people have started showing up for work and life has started assuming some sense of normality. However all forms of cultural and artistic activities are prohibited. Cinemas remain closed, dance performances are cancelled, all concerts have been indefinitely postponed and I wouldn't count on next weekend's parties to be entertained. This curfew will last at least 9 days. Under the guise of this threat of terror some of the most essential elements of our lifestyle, have been put on hold. The result of this zombification: 21 arrests, but 15 of these suspects have already been released and Europe's most wanted remains at large whilst rumour has it he made it across the border to Germany. Don't get me wrong I love Brussels, its chaos and grime is infinitely charming and does breed creation. Its illogical and ineffective public services and policies entail a strong element of surrealism that somehow adds up to a fully functional society. However giving up so much of my freedom in the name of safety makes me uneasy and I can't help but wonder how will our beautiful surreal little city get back to what it calls normal; when no major steps have been taken to address the root causes of this radicalisation of BELGIAN citizens? When no prime suspects have been caught, when the ineffective police and judiciary system has not been reformed, and when Brussels still abides to the rule, as long as something sort of works why change it? Are we experiencing the end of an era? Has fear permanently entered our daily life?

Photo from Art Brussels 

The answer is no, as long as you remember that all is Love. A friend made the perfect playlist to combat the BrusselsLockdown blues, All of Me Wants All of You, lovesongs to be played at full volume on repeat. 

And my first real night under lockdown was spent with 5 beautiful loved ones who came over for dinner, wine, a little dance to the rhythm of Syria's most prolific wedding singer that I had the pleasure of seeing last time in Molenbeek with my mum!!!

 

And a fantastic movie, Sorrentino's Le conseguenze dell'amore...

PS: a photo of your favourite asylum seekers from Belgistan after their safe arrival in London!