BRUSSELSBELGIUMEUROPE

DEC 16 2011 JAN 12 2012ISSUE 8€4.95

THE NEW BELGIUM

New faces, new plans, new taxes and what they mean for you

DEP

OT

BRU

XELL

ES X

INTERVIEW

We meet football’s forgotten hero Jean-Marc Bosman

LIFESTYLE

Fancy a spin? Pole dancing in Brussels

DENMARK

Highlights of the Danish EU Presidency

CULTURE

Diary dates for 2012

5 THE BULLETIN

Editeur Responsable /Verantwoordelijke uitgever: John Stuyck, A. Gossetlaan 30, 1702 Groot-Bijgaarden. Opinions expressed in The Bulletin are those of the authors alone. For reasons of space, street names in Brussels are given only in their French version.

7 News In Brief

12 Focus – Belgian GovernmentWe take a look at who’s in, who’s out and what lies in store for expatriates, now that a new Belgian Government has been sworn in

18 Interview – Jean-Marc BosmanHe ushered in a new era for football in 1995, but now the man behind the famous Bosman ruling lives in relative obscurity. We catch up with him 17 years on

22 Your Money

23 Know-howOur guide to where to spend New Year’s Eve in Brussels

24 The Brand – DandoyChristmas is coming, so we head to Dandoy, bakers of fabulous cookies since 1829

27 DigitalWhat’s new in the virtual world

29 Events In Brief

30 14 DaysThe Bulletin’s cultural highlights for the fortnight ahead – in Brussels and beyond

35 Offers to readers

38 FilmReviews of the latest films to hit the big screen, plus not-to-miss cinema highlights and DVD gift ideas for Christmas

41 TVEssential viewing on the small screen

42 Focus – Cultural highlightsWe cast a look at the next six months of cultural offerings and select the best for your 2012 diary

46 Focus – Danish EU PresidencyJanuary 1 marks the start of the seventh Danish EU Presidency. We preview the top dates in its small but sustainable programme

49 Lifestyle In Brief

54 Food – Love at First BiteBelgian chocolatier Jean-Philippe Darcis gives us the inside scoop on his foodie favourites

56 Focus – Pole-dancingTo your poles! We get to grips with the latest fitness craze to hit Brussels, pole-dancing

60 Up My Street

62 TravelHome of the spa, Belgium offers several aquatic ways to relax this new year. We try one out

65 Behind the Scenes

66 Community

71 Property76 Classifieds80 Jobs

82 Capital LifeA member of the international community opens up her diary for the Bulletin

Contents

Politics & Business

Culture & Events

Lifestyle & Community

1 2 3

p11 - EU in Brief p46 - Danish EU Presidency highlights p56 Pole-dancing

18 POLITICS & BUSINESS THE BULLETIN

Jean-Marc Bosman doesn’t look like a champion, even though he could claim a remarkable triumph. Balding, pudgy, nervous and emotionally drained, he stares ahead as he recounts his travails since single-

handedly taking on the global football establishment more than two decades ago, and winning. It was a Pyrrhic victory: while football today is bigger than ever, Bosman himself was left behind in a vortex of debt, depression and alcoholism. “It’s been an ordeal,” he says, gently trembling as he paces around the kitchen of his modest Liège house. “I’m still suffering.”

No footballer in the world can say they changed the game like Bosman: his five-year court battle paved the way for today’s players to earn multi-million-euro wages. Now 47, he looks back at the defining event of his life with a twisted blend of defiance and disgust. “Yes, I stood up and fought. But perhaps I should have just let it go,” he says.

Bosman will forever be associated with the December 15, 1995 ruling by the European Court of Justice that bears his name. It is arguably the only European Court ruling that people are aware of, and Bosman himself, though he never even represented Belgium at senior level, is the country’s most famous footballer. The landmark decision by the judges in Luxembourg ended an archaic regime that allowed clubs to trade players like livestock: before his case, a club that was selling a player could charge a transfer fee to the buyer even if the player’s contract had expired. After the Bosman ruling, players became free agents once their contracts ran out.

Now he is part of the sporting lexicon: ‘do-ing a Bosman’ has become shorthand for seeing out a contract so a subsequent move will avoid transfer fees. By doing a Bos-

man and therefore saving clubs money on transfer fees, players in recent years have gained the power to demand higher salaries and bonuses. Thanks to Bos-man, the likes of Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney, Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo can command up to €250,000 a week.

But the man himself never saw any of football’s cur-rent riches. He was denied any credit for his courageous campaign and was branded a pariah. Now he scrapes by on state benefits of about €750 a month. “I’m really struggling,” he says. “People think I made millions with the court case, but I didn’t. I’ve just spent my time trying to recover my life.”

Bosman ushered in a new era for football. It wasn’t just about transfer fees, but foreign players too: the second part of the Bosman ruling was a lifting of the cap on the number

of non-European players an EU club could hire. This instantly opened up the market for ambitious club owners seeking to buy success: top teams saw an influx of foreign players, making European football the multicultural mix it is today. And it forced football’s governing bodies – European authority UEFA and world authority FIFA – to overhaul their transfer rules. A consequence is that there are now just two transfer windows for players to move clubs: one during the summer, and a one-month mid-season period that begins on January 1. Indeed, clubs will rush to spend millions to strengthen their sides when the window opens on New Year’s Day, and that frantic player switching is essentially down to Bosman.

But Bosman barely follows football anymore: he would like to watch the occasional game, but his meagre benefits mean fewer luxuries like a Belgacom TV subscription, with its coverage of the Belgian league.

It was certainly not the outcome he expected after the trial. Bosman received an initial compensation pack-age, but it was swiftly eaten up by legal fees and taxes. He’s used to people showing disbelief at his plight and, unprompted, he shows me documents like the letter from the benefits office, a job application at the nearby Ikea, and correspondence from local politicians making promises that were never kept. “People say, ‘Bosman, he’s loaded, why does he want a job here?’” he says. “I’m 47, I have no diplomas or training or anything. And so I’m pretty much finished.”

His girlfriend, Carine, does not share his house: she

Football’s forgotten manJean-Marc Bosman: His name lives on, but what became of the man who opened up the transfer market and changed the face of football?by leo cendrowicz portrait by natalie hill

Focus

19 POLITICS & BUSINESS DECEMBER 16 2011 - JANUARY 12 2012

“People say, ‘Bosman, he’s loaded, why does he want a job here?’ But I have no diplomas or training. I’m 47 and pretty much finished”

21 POLITICS & BUSINESS DECEMBER 16 2011 - JANUARY 12 2012

works, but if they lived under the same roof, his benefits would be slashed. That is especially tough for Bosman, who is desperate to spend more time with his two sons, two-year-old Martin and nine-month-old Samuel. How-ever, he admits that he still has “intimacy issues” related to the trial, and often needs to spend time alone anyway. “It’s not ideal, but we trust each other,” he says. “I need my space, my solitude. It’s bizarre, but that’s what I’m like now.” Until recently, that would mean long walks with his Labrador Retriever, Grelotte, but with her health fading he had to spend €150 to have her put down.

Despite the setbacks, Bosman is still the dutiful, gener-ous host. He serves up some homemade orecchiette pasta with Bolognese sauce, and offers some sparkling wine. Although he doesn’t drink with us, I cautiously ask about his well-publicised battle with the bottle. “It’s okay now,” he says. “I can show you the tests that show I’m clean. I can even drink a glass with friends on occasion.” Yet at its worst, his alcoholism was almost life-threatening: he was downing five to six bottles a day, falling over in his house. A friend, a sporting journalist, later tells me that it was sheer willpower that turned Bosman around: he wanted to make the change, and did it on December 27, 2007. Bosman himself says, “When I stopped drinking, it was like waking up.”

Bosman’s story could have been so different. He grew up within sight of the Standard Liège stadium, and always dreamed of play-ing for the side. He showed promise from an

early age, and captained the Belgian under-21 football team. He was 25 in 1990 when his contract with RFC Liège, the city’s second club expired. USL Dunkerque in France were keen to sign him, but under the-then rules, he could not move unless the French side paid a transfer fee. Bosman saw this as an infringement of his basic European rights of free movement of labour, and sued. Yet he had to wait a full five years before the case wound up in Luxembourg, and missed out on the prime of his career.

By then, his marriage had collapsed. He moved back in with his parents, and lived in their garage for two years while he trained for his grand comeback — which never happened. He tried to return to the game at a different level, including spending nine months playing for a lower league club on the French island of Réunion, but he never came close to recapturing any of his former form.

Nowadays, all players have agents and managers to help ease them into civilian life after their playing days are over. Bosman didn’t. He admits to being too trusting, and lost money to charlatan businessmen who persuaded him to waste money on various ventures. One, to launch a line of T-shirts, even had a website, but it was poorly managed and marketed, and he only sold one unit online.

Bosman doesn’t play anymore thanks to a titanium hip replacement he had five years ago. “My bone was worn down,” he says. “I waited seven years before getting the operation. I couldn’t move. When the surgeon saw it, he asked how I could have endured the pain for so long. I said, ‘I’ve learned to live with suffering.’” The only sport he does is rowing, on a basic machine in his garage.

Today, Bosman is slowly rebuilding his life. He is talking to world footballers’ union FIFPro about setting up a programme to raise awareness about the reality of the footballing lifestyle, to show it is often far removed from the usual image of fast cars and lavish parties. He wants to show that many players are struggling wage-earners who in some cases find themselves in unfamiliar new environments, and at the mercy of unscrupulous agents and clubs.

At times, Bosman sounds bitter and angry about how things turned out; at others he sounds unrepentant. “Yes, I’m proud,” he says. “I won! UEFA and FIFA lost. They

thought they were exempt from EU law, and they were wrong. Before the ruling, it was slavery, and I ended it.” He is scathing about many modern footballers, who he says lack a sense of solidarity. “Many of them don’t have honour or pride, they only think about money,” he says. “They see themselves as gods and they live in a bubble.”

But after letting off a little steam about the state of today’s game, Bosman admits that his stubbornness gets him into trouble. “Look, I don’t want any more fights,” he says. He pauses. He’s tempted to scratch that itch again and lambast football’s powers that be, but he also recognises that it’s time to move on. “I’m just thinking of one thing now: how to raise my children. They make me smile, they lift me up every day. I really want to be with them when they grow up,” he says.

“Many of today’s footballers don’t have honour or pride, they think only about money. They live in a bubble”

In his footballing glory days: Jean-Marc Bosman

36 CULTURE & EVENTS THE BULLETIN

BEYOND BRUSSELS Belgium-wide highlightsMusic Exhibition

DECEMBER 17, 18 & 20

Bl!ndman

The innovative sax quartet returns with the final part of their Kwadratur trilogy, Kwadratur #3/Cube, fusing sound, light and architecture in an exploration of the perception of time and space. The group, founded by composer saxophonist Eric Sleichim in 1988, has succeeded in transforming the image of the instrument via its quest to push the boundaries of percussion and rhythm. The saxophone group was the first of Bl!ndman’s instrumental quar-tets, of which there are now four: drums, strings and voice have been added, all venturing into multiple disciplines and diverse repertoires. Concertgebouw, Bruges (Jan 6), de Singel, Antwerp (Jan 12), www.desingel.be

UNTIL DECEMBER 17

Images Sonores Festival

The 13th edition of the contemporary music festival devoted to live electronics delivers confrontational sounds in three evenings showcasing new multidisciplinary works composed and per-formed by Belgian and international musicians. They include pianist Mark Knoop playing Matthew Shlomowitz and Newton Armstrong plus carte blanche to Liège Conservatory students. Théâtre Universitaire, Liège, www.memm.be

UNTIL JANUARY 15

The Panamarenko Paradox

Nearly a retrospective, this excellent selection of draw-ings and objects curated by Jo Coucke is a temporary compan-ion piece to a new public sculp-ture by Panamarenko, one of the country’s most famous and, since 2005, when he announced his retirement from the art world, most elusive artists. Waving Crabs is a stainless steel fountain crawling with robotic crabs and installed in the Zege-meer, a water feature situated between La Reserve Hotel and the Scharpoord Cultural Centre. Although it’s solid and of necessity weather-proof, un-like so much of Panamarenko’s physically fragile oeuvre, the new piece bears his unmistak-able stamp, as the exhibition makes clear. The paradox in the title is a reference to the artist’s dual and seemingly contradic-tory roles as poet and engineer. Scharpoord Cultuurcentrum Knokke-Heist www.panamarenkoparadox.be

DEC 18-31 & JAN 11-21

Il Viaggio a Reims

Gioachino Rossini’s exuberant 1825 opera is transported from its original spa setting to the in-terior of an aeroplane by young director Mariame Clément. A group of European aristocratic tourists on their way to Charles X’s coronation in Reims become stranded and improvise their own festivities. This dramma giocoso is considered one of Rossini’s finest works, full of musical jokes, double enten-dres, and parodies of European folk songs. Rossini specialist Alberto Zedda conducts. In Italian with Dutch surtitles.Flanders Opera, Antwerp (Dec 18-31), Ghent (Jan 11-21), www.vlaamseopera.be

Bl!ndman sax quartet at deSingel

37 CULTURE & EVENTS DECEMBER 16 2011 - JANUARY 12 2012

BOOK NOWOur future favourites

JANUARY 13-28Le Songe d’une nuit d’été – African dreamInspired by the African continent, director Isabelle Pousseur stages Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream with a cast of talented black actors. Pousseur’s proposition is an imaginative variation on traditional presentations of the Bard’s romantic comedy, which allows for great freedom in its setting and staging. In French, with Dutch surtitles.Théâtre National, Brussels www.theatrenational.be www.kvs.be

JANUARY 21, 22, 27 & 29Anne Teresa De Keers-maeker – Early Works 1982-1987The artistic beginnings of Bel-gium’s foremost choreographer are on display in four works performed over two weekends: Fase, Four Movements to the Music of Steve Reich (1982); Rosas danst Rosas (1983); Elena’s Aria (1984); and Bartók/Mikrokosmos (1987). The project shows how Keersmaeker’s distinctive minimalist style, frequently fused with music, film and theatre, makes her one of the most important dance-makers of her generation. de Singel, Antwerp, www.desingel.be

JANUARY 31UB40 – Back to workThe British 1980s reggae pop legends are on stage despite a bankruptcy ruling affecting four original members. It came one week after the Birmingham band was honoured with a music heritage award by their home city. Formed in 1978 and named after the then UK un-employment benefit form, they are famed for their colourful remakes of ’60s hits such as Red Red Wine, I Got You Babe and Kingston Town. Ancienne Belgique Brussels, www.abconcerts.be

MARCH 20 Bryan Adams – Heather Nova to supportThe Canadian rocker has invit-ed Bermuda singer songwriter Nova to warm up the crowd at his ‘greatest hits’ concert in Belgium. The Vancouver-born singer has had a string of successful singles and albums including the ubiquitous (Eve-rything I Do) I Do for You. Nova has just released a new album, 300 Days at Sea, a series of songs inspired by the discovery of her shipwrecked childhood home, the yacht ‘Moon’. Sportpaleis, Antwerpwww.c-live.be

Kids

UNTIL JANUARY 8

La Chasse aux étoiles

This month-long festival of creative family activities in the Sambre region includes theatre, storytelling, music, exhibitions, film screenings and workshops. The an-nual adventure for children (18 months to 12 years) takes place in museums, cinemas, cultural centres and librar-ies in Charleroi, Liberchies, Pont-à-Celles, Aiseau-Presles, Montigny-le-Tilleul, Seneffe and Fontaine-l’Evêque.Charleroi and environs www.sambraisie.be

DECEMBER 21

L’Histoire de Babar

Free lunchtime concert of Francis Poulenc’s musical take on Jean de Brunhof’s popu-lar children’s tale. Poulenc composed the piece in 1940, when his three-year-old cousin Sophie objected to the sound of his atonal works. She placed her copy of Babar upside down on his music stand and said, “Play this”. The result of Pou-lenc’s efforts enchanted Sophie, friends and neighbours and has proved universal and timeless. In this concert, his sonata for two clarinets plus L’Histoire de Babar is performed by Liège conservatory students directed by the extraordinary violinist Vincent Royer, who happens to be their professor.Salle Philharmonique, Liège www.opl.be

Exhibition

UNTIL FEBRUARY 26

Coca-Cola: 125 years of design

It is one of the most recognisable images in the world; as a brand it is a model of marketing power and an icon of American history. But how exactly did Coca-Cola become such an omnipresent image from its humble beginnings as a headache remedy invented by pharmacist John Pemberton? Celebrating the company’s 125th anniversary, the Design Museum has borrowed from its Atlanta archives to present the story of the design of the brand via photos, ads, bottles, cans, posters, vending machines and paintings. It shows how the shape of the famous curved bottle has barely changed in 100 years and how the company became an advertising pioneer. It achieved celebrity endorse-ment by recruiting Hollywood stars and pop divas such as Clark Gable, Aretha Franklin and The Supremes. And to stimulate winter sales, it even transformed Father Christmas from a grumpy man in green to a plump, friendly red-dressed Santa.Design Museum, Ghent www.designmuseum.gent

‘Fase’ , from Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s ‘Early Works’

More guides on www.thebulletin.be

46 CULTURE & EVENTS THE BULLETIN

Blame it on Poland for raising expecta-tions. When their six-month stint at the helm of the EU Council of Minis-ters ends on December 31, the Poles

will have presented 400 cultural events under the banner of the Polish EU Presidency – 60 of them in Brussels. That’s a hard act to follow, and Denmark, Poland’s successor as EU Council President, isn’t even trying – or so it might ap-pear to culture mavens disappointed to learn that there will be no major exhibition on Danish design or international symposium on the writ-ings of Isak Dinesen.

But EU Presidency cultural programmes are not Europalia extravaganzas: they’re add-ons to political agendas. Poland, a relative newcomer to the EU (it became a member in 2004), has used its first turn as EU Council President as an opportu-nity to display its mettle – cultural and otherwise. Denmark, which joined the Union in 1973, will be assuming the revolving Presidency for the seventh time. The Scandinavian country is well known

in the European arena and as Council President has a pressing mission to usher the EU intact out of a financial crisis that is menacing the Union’s very survival. Under such circumstances, a lav-ish government-sponsored culture fest is hardly to be expected, although, arguably, it is in such times of crisis that art is most critically needed.

While no one will accuse Denmark of splashing out on its cultural agenda, the public will be treated to a smattering of the country’s

art, architecture, music, film and literature. Much of it will be presented at Bozar, which in recent years has become a main stage for EU cultural diplomacy and which has worked closely with the Danish Cultural Institute to organise the lion’s share of this Presidency’s cultural offerings. The centrepiece is a big exhibition of works by Per Kirkeby, the internationally known contempo-rary painter and sculptor. Other contributors include various Belgian cultural producers, such

Silent oldies

Film cycle devoted to the early production of Copenhagen’s Nordisk Film Company, which in its pre-World War One hey-day had international affiliates as far afield as New York. Some 30 silent films, many of them blockbusters in their time (1906 to 1926 – Carl Theodor Dreyer’s Blade af Satan’s bog is among them) will be screened. Cinematek, 9 Rue Baron Horta Brussels, January 23-February 22 www.cinematek.be

The Bear

Belgian première of Esben Toft Jacobsen’s new animated movie for kids. Bozar, February 12, www.bozar.be

Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival

This festival’s 30th edition, held in April, has a special Danish focus. Programme to be announced in late February.www.festivalfantastique.org

Highlights

Designed in DenmarkExtravagance is out, frugality is in. The incoming Danish EU Presidency’s cultural programme scores high points for restraint by sarah mcfadden

Focus

Bjarke IngelsWith his firm BIG (Bjarke In-gels Group), this OMA-trained Danish architect (b 1974) not only thinks big but realises massive, formally and techni-cally experimental, ecologi-cally conceived projects such as 8 House (see photo). He’ll be talking here about hedonistic sustainability and pragmatic utopian architecture – the kind he designs and builds. Bozar, March 20, www.bozar.be

EventsFilm-Y on the road

School groups and families re-alise their own film projects in a single one-day (school groups) or two-hour (families) session. Modelled on a programme run by Copenhagen’s Danish Film Institute.Bozar, February 26 to March 30, tel 070.344.577

47 CULTURE & EVENTS DECEMBER 16 2011 - JANUARY 12 2012

as the Brussels Philharmonic and the Flemish Radio Choir, who have proposed Danish-themed projects. And of course there is the Danish Cul-tural Institute itself, which, on a tight budget, is cobbling together an inventive programme that opens with a blast of jazz rather than a solemn symphony and contains a strong, surprising film component without the big titles you’d expect.

Aesthetic, social, environmental and economic concerns run as a single current through Denmark’s modest cultural showcase, much as they are

said to do in Danish society. “We see this [EU Presidency] as a unique opportunity to promote and create dialogue about values that we consider important: sustainability, concerns about the lives of children and young people,” said Klaus Bondam, director of the Danish Cultural Insti-tute/Benelux, in a recent conversation.

Happy cow, happy people: at the end of the metro line and on the edge of a nature reserve 6km from Copenhagen stands 8 House, a 60,000m² f igure-eight-shaped complex of nearly 500 residential units, plus shops and of f ices – by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG)

Peter Aalbaek Jensen

Master class with Lars Von Trier’s associate at Zentropa film production company. Bozar, June 26, www.bozar.be

Mini-fest of Danish films

Programme in the works.Danish Cultural Institute, Brussels, April, www.dkibenelux.org

MusicGodt Nytar! New Year’s concert

Danish conductor Thomas Son-dergard directs the Brussels Philharmonic in music by Dan-ish ‘waltz king’ Hans Christian Lumbye (his Champagne Galop starts with the pop of a cork) and his fellow Danes Carl Niel-son and Friedrich Kuhlau. Also on the programme: Norwegian Edvard Grieg’s Peer Gynt. Bozar, January 6, www.bozar.be

Les Witches

French ensemble plays music from the court of Danish King Christian IV, who ruled from 1577 until he died in 1648. Fifty-nine years on the throne gave him ample time to wage wars, father dozens of rivalrous heirs and develop a great ear. Royal Music Conservatory Brussels, January 20 www.bozar.be

ExhibitionPer Kirkeby and the Forbidden Paintings of Kurt Schwitters

Kirkeby, Denmark’s best-known living artist, is an emphatically independent painter, sculptor, printmaker and writer. His work is paired here with a series of anomalous figurative paintings by the Ger-man modernist Kurt Schwit-ters (1887-1948), much admired by Kirkeby.Bozar, February 10-May 20 www.bozar.be

48 CULTURE & EVENTS THE BULLETIN

The word ‘sustainability’ keeps cropping up. Bondam, a former actor and theatre director, and mayor of Copenhagen from 2006 to 2009, defended Bozar’s choice of Kirkeby, whose 2009 retrospective at Tate Modern is still fresh in many people’s minds. “Kirkeby,” he says, “is absolutely the right choice. His work has been very signifi-cant in the development of Danish art over the last generation. He’s very colourful, very accessible, and he works in close connection to nature. He’s a geologist by training, and that links him to the whole sustainability issue.”

Lina Christensen, attaché at the Danish Embassy, explains the Danish Presi-dency’s unconventional choice for an opening concert: “EU Presidencies

usually open with symphony orchestras. We thought jazz would convey a more modern and true representation of Denmark, where jazz is really an established musical form. The Copen-hagen Jazz Festival has been a landmark event for years now. Also, it’s quite a lot cheaper to bring a jazz orchestra than a symphony orchestra.” And it goes without saying that a jazz ensemble produces a smaller carbon footprint.

Bondam links the programme’s film compo-nent, which includes everything from production workshops for kids to screenings of early silent films, to the impact of TV and cinema on Danish society as a whole. “Danish film and television have had a lot of success over the last ten years,” he says. “And it’s on all levels: the Lars Von Trier, Thomas Vinterberg, Susanne Bier level, and the level of the TV series The Killing, which is very big right now in the UK, Germany and Holland. But it’s also in comedies and documentaries that don’t get international recognition. With national TV successes, you have a tool that communicates to the whole population about values, ways of living

and communicating. That isn’t the aim, but that is how it works. In a small country like Denmark, it is very important for different social groups to try to understand one another’s agendas and ways of talking.”

Of course, the best way to discover the cul-ture of any country is to experience it in situ, and Bondam hopes the EU Presidency will inspire people to do just that. He points out that if you book ahead, flights from Brussels to Copenhagen can be cheaper than the train ride to Paris.

“Copenhagen has managed to promote itself on a world level as a very liveable city with a very high degree of sustainability,” Bondam say. “Forty percent of Copenhagen’s workplaces and study places are reached by bicycle every day of the year, and organic food consumption stands at about twenty percent.”

It’s also a leader in the development and use of clean technologies. Denmark’s production levels are rising while its energy consumption remains stable. According to Christensen, the Danes see green growth as one of the ways ahead – out of the financial crisis.

“We are not perfect,” says Bondam. “We have to think not only about ecological sustainability but also about how to survive as a society. One of our biggest issues is opening up more to Europe. The Danes don’t always see themselves as part of the European family. What I hope will come out of the EU Presidency is a strengthened dialogue about common European values and the values that we want to communicate to the rest of the world. And secondly, at least in Denmark, I think grow-ing respect is needed in intercultural dialogue. Danes are very direct sometimes – they can be a bit straightforward.”

“We are not very polite,” Christensen adds straightforwardly, “and we have a very rude sense of humour, so you have to forgive a lot.”

Culture highlights

THE BICYCLE MAYOR

Klaus Bondam, the director of the Danish Cultural Institute/Benelux, earned this title when he was mayor of Copenhagen, between 2006 and 2009. His responsibilities have changed but his reputation still stands, and he’s still advocating. On request, Bondam gives lively talks in English on what makes life so great in the Danish capital. info@dkibenelux.org

The Emperor’s New Clothes

Danish-born Bo Hulten, former director of the Brussels Phil-harmonic and Vlaams Radio Koor, conducts his erstwhile charges in a family concert featuring his own score set to compatriot Hans Christian Andersen’s enchanting fairy tale. Projected drawings by prize-winning children’s book illustrator Ellen Vrijsen add a captivating visual dimension. Flagey, May 19, 15.00 www.flagey.be

Concerto Copenhagen

Danish early music ensemble plays Bach’s Four Suites for Or-chestra on period instruments. Bozar, March 30, www.bozar.be

MusicJazzy presidency

Opening concert of the Danish EU Presidency features Dr Big Band jazz ensemble and soloist Sinne Eeg.Flagey, January 26 www.flagey.be

DECEMBER 16 2011 - JANUARY 12 2012

Lifestyle & Community

3

49 THE BULLETIN

ABERCROMBIE & FITCH GOES AB FAB: The arrival of Abercrombie & Fitch in Brus-sels earlier in December was met with the kind of hysteria usually reserved for boybands. Given the product (preppy American classics), target audience (impressionable teens with doting parents) and modus operandi (semi-nude instore ‘models’ selling clothes in what looks like a private members bar turned frat house), it’s hardly surprising. But nor is it novel. Big brands have been using hairless male beefcakes to shift units ever since the Nick Kamen ads for Levi’s. I’m not sure we saw quite as much pubic bone as the A&F boys put on show, but hey ho – sex, as Abercrombie have successfully proved, really does sell. Abercrombie & Fitch, 21 Boulevard de Waterloo, Brussels, www.abercrombie.com

Hello boys!

60 LIFESTYLE & COMMUNITY THE BULLETIN

Up my Street

The market placeInternet entrepreneur Michiel Van Deursen lives with his girlfriend, Aldine, in an old loft overlooking Marché aux Poissons and Place Sainte-Catherine – the location of a former fish market turned annual Christmas marketby katrien lindemans photos by dieter telemans

ESSENTIAL INFORMATION

PROPERTY

You’ll mainly find old, renovated houses in the area, but there are some new-builds as well. Renting a double-bedroom flat costs around €1,000; buying property starts at about € 2,800 per square metre (Vlan Immo)

TRANSPORT

Metro stations Sainte-Catherine and De Brouckère are both on lines 1 and 5. Buses 29, 38, 46, 47, 63, 66, 71, 86 and 88 and Noctis night bus N18 all stop at De Brouckère, as do tram lines 3 and 4

MEET THE NEIGHBOURS

A mix of expats and Dutch-speaking Belgians live in the area

Dutch émigré Michiel Van Deursen, 39, came to Brussels 10 years ago to launch the Belgian versions of Tweedehands (www.2dehands.be/www.2ememain.be), the classifieds web-

site he set up in the Netherlands in 1997. His quest for a living/work space saw him move around central Brussels before finally settling in Place du Samedi, a tiny square near Place Sainte-Catherine. “My loft apartment used to be a printing house, a place with a lot of paper. And now it’s become the base of my online company, which I entirely decorated with secondhand furniture found on the website,” Michiel says with a laugh.

At this time of the year, the neighbourhood smells of mulled wine and pancakes because of the Christmas Market (www.winterwonders.be), but for the rest of the year it’s best known for the fish restaurants along Quai au Bois à Brûler and Quai aux Briques. The former canal docks were covered in the 1880s and the resulting square housed a large fish market until 1950. The water features there now were created to give people an idea of how things used to look. The imposing Sainte-Catherine church (built in 1854 and designed by Joseph Poelaert) has been in the news lately as the city of Brussels is planning to renovate it. As a listed building, it cannot be knocked down, but since it is slowly falling apart, intervention is required. The church serves only a small congregation today and discussions over when and in what manner the renovation should happen are still ongoing. “I dread the idea of their turning it into a twelve-storey housing block, but I would be in favour of a covered market hall,” Michiel says. “A small but popular Saturday market is already held in front of the church.”

Living in an area packed with great restaurants is a blessing, especially if, like Michiel, you don’t like cooking. As a vegetarian, though, his choice is more limited. “Luckily, newcomer Ellis Gourmet Burger (4 Place Sainte-Catherine) serves delicious veggie burgers,” he says. “Bakery Charli (34 Rue Sainte-Catherine) sells

the best bread I have ever tasted. I also often lunch at Soup in the City (36 Rue de Laeken), only a few steps from home. Chinatown isn’t far off, either. I love the food at the Vietnamese and Thai restaurants in the area, especially the ‘vermicelli nem végétarienne’ at Gourmet d’Asie (14 Rue Van Artevelde).”

When it comes to having a drink, Michiel prefers the ‘authentic’ Brussels bars. “I enjoy the company and the dialect of the locals at Kafka (21 Rue des Poissonniers) and Au Daringman (37 Rue de Flandre). I also like to visit Rue des Chartreux for its many bars and restaurants. There are cocktails and tapas at Publico (32) and Italian food at Divino (56). The street is also known for its sec-ondhand stores, which is interesting to me, obviously.” If all goes well, the area will soon see another new bar, right in front of the KVS theatre on Rue de Laeken. Se-rial bar founder Frédéric Nicolay (Potemkine, Maison du Peuple, Bar du Matin) plans to call his latest project Flamingo, but nightcrawlers don’t have to wait until it opens to paint the town pink, as there is always a gig or party at Madame Moustache (5-7 Quai au Bois à Brûler).

Another of Michiel’s tips is the sky bar at the Viage Casino (30 Boulevard Anspach): “The city view from up there is stunning.” For another nearby spot with great views,

Michiel suggests the top floor of Parking 58 (1 Rue de l’Evêque). “I’m lucky enough to have a great view from my loft as well – the lights of the church and the Ferris wheel at night are simply beautiful.”

And shopping? “I enjoy a stroll down Rue Antoine Dansaert,” Michiel says. “Design shop La Fabrika (182) and book shop Passa Porta (46) are my favourites.” One of Brussels’ most charming secondhand books, Het Ivoren Aapje, can be found on Place du Béguinage, with books in French, English, Dutch and Italian, providing the perfect oasis to read a book – or escape from the Christmas market madness.

61 LIFESTYLE & COMMUNITY DECEMBER 16 2011 - JANUARY 12 2012

1.WINTER WONDERS

There are several rides at the Christmas market including this giant merry-go-round2.“CHINATOWN”

For the best pan-Asian cuisine, head straight to the streets between Place Saint-Géry and Place Sainte-Catherine 3.ELLIS GOURMET BURGER

One of Brussels’ newest burger joints, where you can get everything from veggie burgers to American milkshakes. 4 Place Sainte-Catherine

4.MER DU NORD

Tuck into a plate of fish or seafood while sipping a glass of white at this Brussels institution. 45 Rue Sainte-Catherine5.ICE-SKATING

This 60m-long ice-rink is one of the highlights of the Winter Wonders, which starts at Sainte-Catherine and snakes round to the Grand’Place

IN & AROUND

Place Sainte-Catherine

Michiel says: “Living in the centre of Brussels is very convenient, with shops, bars and restaurants everywhere. Because there are so many tourists visiting the area, I always see a lot of happy faces, plus renting in Brussels is cheaper than in Amsterdam!”

1

2

3

4

5

Place Sainte-

Catherine

Quai au Bois à Brûler

Rue Sainte-Catherine

Place Saint-Géry

Boul

evar

d An

spac

h

Rue Antoine Dansaert

Place du Béguinage

Rue Van Arte

velde

Rue de Flandre

1

2

4

3 5

More guides to Brussels on www.thebulletin.be

82 LIFESTYLE & COMMUNITY THE BULLETIN

CAPITAL LIFE Your city, your agenda

Chalks Corriette works with community networks in Brussels

What groups are you involved with and what do you aim to achieve?I’m president of Europe’s Chil-dren Our Concern and have a similar role with People To People International Belgium. Other groups I am involved with are Human Space, Networking Business In Bel-gium, Attitude, Re-Circle, 1st Brussels Scouts and a number of groups that have no official

THURSDAYJANUARY 12COFFEE MORNING

Each week we hold an informal networking coffee morning at Karsmakers café. Everyone is

welcome to drop in.20 Rue de Trèves

www.karsmakers.be

FRIDAYJANUARY 6

LILY LA TIGRESSE PARTYI’ll be spending tonight

at Knokke Out nightclub in Waterloo.

389 Chaussée de Tervuren www.knokkeout.com

THURSDAYJANUARY 5

COFFEE MORNINGAlong with Karsmakers,

Aloft is my ‘office’ in Brussels. There’s always somewhere to

sit and work or meet people Aloft Hotel, Place Jean Rey

THURSDAY

FRIDAYDECEMBER 23

DRINKS WITH FAMILYA chance to catch up with vari-ous friends and family before Christmas at a friend’s house in Wezembeek-Oppem.

SUNDAYDECEMBER 25

FAMILY LUNCHMy parents-in-law are hosting

a family lunch in Lasne. It’s an annual event that I and my

children very much enjoy.

SATURDAYDECEMBER 17

STOCKEL MARKETI get the best fresh lamb and chicken from Charlie’s stall, and there’s a fantastic selection of German bread here too.

TUESDAYDECEMBER 20

PEOPLE TO PEOPLEThe group’s newsletter is distributed every Wednesday morning, so I’ll be finishing it off today.

THURSDAYDECEMBER 22

SINGLES MEETUPTonight you’ll find me at this networking event in Schuman.Aloft Hotel, Place Jean Rey

Brazilian photography on show at Bozar

Cof fee and connections at Karsmakers

name. I want to show what can be done by determined people who want life to be more delightful for everyone.

What aspects of your work satisfy you most?I believe in people, and enjoy connecting people to them-selves, others, great products and services. It’s important to me that I am a role model for what’s possible. It’s wonderful to experience how many people connect with this thinking.

What makes a strong community, do you think?A community stands together and faces all difficulties for the My diary

benefit of each other. When people are in need, want to celebrate, feel strongly about something or want to improve their environment, a strong and united community makes a major difference.

Do you see a strong community in Brussels?That’s not an easy one to answer. What I see are a few strong but small communities, most of whom are working well but in isolation. Until we learn to collaborate and be more inclusive in what we do, a sense of community will not reach a wider group of people and offer them the hand of friendship.