Do and don't in Belgium

Dutch is the language of Gent. Depends on what language you will be working in.

Yeah to be honestive never heard french in gent apart from the kids learning it and I must say if we stay in Belgium well stay in Gent and I wont be learning french as I wont need it. So unless you need it for a job just take dutch frist

Dobe-Dave wrote:

Hi Ned, I am an Englishman and currently stay in Belgium. There are a few things you should know before you enter the EU. I would be happy to skype with you if you would like to chat. Just PM me.

Dave

Also in curious what things I moved to gent from uk and not really had any problems with anything expect for importing my car lol

I advise you to not talk about differences between Flanders and Wallonie, and about the french/flemish languages. This is a major issue, and a constant opportunity for discussions.
Don't touch it, even with a long stick.
Also, there are some non-friendly belgians - I have met some. But they are generally a minority: most of them are really helpful, especially if they understand you are a foreigner.
So, if you know how to speak french and you are in Flanders, do NOT use it - resort to english instead.

Hi HannahHadman, what do you think of the Belgian way of life?

Also what happened when you imported your car?

Dave

I have some do's and don't for Belgium (all be it this is true for  Wallonia)

Don't 1) Don't create a situation where you might be sent a package to a Belgian address. The postman or woman is so lazy and negligent that he/she refuses to deliver any of my parcels. Instead he/she posts the little white notices instructing me to collect the parcels from the press shop around the corner in two days time. The trouble is because I am here on business (setting up a succursale/Branch Office of a foreign company) I am not a registered Belgian resident. The person at the press shop refuses to accept my UK passport as valid identification because it is not a Belgian Identity card. Similarly packages addressed to my company cannot be collected even when I present the full set of company documents, that have been translated into French by an official notary translator and they clearly include the legal address of the succursale which is the same address that appears on the white notice (i.e. the intended address). I went to the hotel de ville to ask how this issue could be resolved, mais, cette une impasse... Cest la vie (En Belgique).

Your situation seem puzzling, DD.
I had no problems whasoever for collecting packages and such, even when I wasn't a belgian resident.
Coming from a country where you have to fight situation like these all day long, the best you can do is through intimidation: ask the clerk name (or his/her id number), the name of his/her supervisor, and then publically state him/her you are going to give all these details to your lawyer for suing the belgian post.
Oh, and find a good lawyer too in the meanwhile - you'll need him/her also for the company.

Hey sorry just seen your post about importing car. It was just a huge carry on frist u gotta get a cert of conformity from uk some people get it free in my case was100pounds
then i had to go to a importplace getting the adress was hell, and then people giving me miss info. Then came the techical that was ok I had to have euro headlamps put on 540 euros and then the plates. That took 4 hours standing in a line for a custams stamp lol

As for Parcels i think ur just unlcuk i get loads of stuff posted from uk to my Belgium adress and they allways turn up. Although the french side is like a differently country to flanders. I noticed that from even were my bf lives and thats ment to be flanders but is more overrun by french and a big polictal mess but gent is totaly different.

Well I have a lovely garage here in Nazareth and I cant prase them enough

Actually dave maybe u should just move out of wollina lol as you seem to hate the place

bigtdevon42 wrote:

MOST OF EUROPEANS ARE QUIETLY SPOKEN WE FIND AMERICANS ARE USUALLY LOUD ALSO SPANISH IT  CAN BE ANNOYING ON BUSES AND RESTAURANTS EXT NOT EVERY ONE WANTS TO HEAR YOUR PHONE CONVERSATION SO ITS POLITE TO TALK QUIETLY

Heheheh, Latins, we are the worst in that sense.

Well i dont have a problem with it lol Ive never seen belgiums have a problem with it to

Hi everybody I'm Emilio, I come from Ecuador and i'd like ask you about meeting any day to speak and make friends, like that we can share our experiences in Belgium.

About the question, I think one of the most amazing things to me is the time people (public administration) invest to do their tasks.

Salut Salut!!

hohoho

This is also a dont in belgium that came up in a convo with some friends. Dont assume that because someone lives in Brussels that they are french speaking Brussels in french and dutch speaking and according to polls more dutch speaking people do live there than french. I was speaking to my friend and she said she would find it very offensive if someone assumed she spoke French.

hannahhadman wrote:

This is also a dont in belgium that came up in a convo with some friends. Dont assume that because someone lives in Brussels that they are french speaking Brussels in french and dutch speaking and according to polls more dutch speaking people do live there than french. I was speaking to my friend and she said she would find it very offensive if someone assumed she spoke French.

As a Belgian native myself I know...and I can assure you that it makes me uneasy to speak bouth Dutch and French in Brussels as sometimes the person refuses to speak the language you use. It's political verry painfull, and some take it verry sereous. But personally I don't care, but there's one thing i don't like, and that's when you are with some people and they speak there language and your the soul person who doesn't speak there language, that's enerving.

Some other Do's and Don'ts, well be carefull with beverages..don't speak to loud, and try to wear reggualar cloths. People here judge you verry much on what you wear.

Belgians like food, but are reserved in the beginning,  so don't talk at first about finances, sex, politics, but more about food, the weather and such..

Something that i much apprecieated is that you learn the language or at least try to..but don't be suprized that you can't understand everyones dutch, each place has it's own dutch. At home i understand everyone, but here in Gent it's hard to understand every thing they say in dutch...our dicalects arn't always easy.

Well said

Do NOT refer to Walloon Belgians as "French".  Do learn French because most people in Wallonia don't speak English (or don't care to).  Do NOT wait until Sunday to do your grocery shopping, this ain't the states, if you want milk on a Sunday you'd best own a cow.