globetrotter
Belgian expat in Spain
Forum posts
156
Contacts
5
About me
Belgian
Lives in Madrid
Speaks Dutch, French, English, Spanish
Registration: 28 May 2008
About
My expat journey
Madrid, Spain
Toulouse, Midi-Pyr茅n茅es, France
Trying to offer our son some stability as my husband is being sent on short term missions to other countries.
Still expat house wife and mum, and going strong.
the weather, the food (baguette, croissant, saucisse de Toulouse),
the traffic (45min to get to school and 7min back home),
Doha , Qatar
Unpacking our possessions and packing them again soon after. I'm exaggerating of course, but that is how it felt like. Hardly enough time to do anything else.
Wife and mother
the weather in winter, the safe compound life (especially for children)
the weather in summer, the lack of nature/green zones, boredom, horribly dangerous traffic
Surrey, England
Blogging and hopefully getting involved in some new volunteer work.
Expat housewife and mother
better housing prices (garden! off street parking!), bit easier to find a place in a good school
bit too calm for my taste (I guess I'm more of a city girl)
London, England
being an expat wife and since end 2009 an expat mom / maybe look for a (part-time) job once our son goes to school
excellent public transport to explore this lovely city, lots of friendly (expat) people, the edgy fashion, the bars and restaurants
the weather, the high housing prices, the school waiting lists
Paris, France
being an expat wife and since end 2009 an expat mom
volunteer translator full-time mom
close to Belgium, my home country, the delicious bread and "patisserie" and the typical fashion sense
rather arrogant people, often cold and wet
Toulouse, France
being an expat wife
mostly enjoying a life of leisure and the occasional household work ;)
friendly people, sunny weather, eating outside, living alongside the river
not really a fan of "canard" or "cassoulet" (sorry!)
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
being an expat wife
enjoying a life of leisure since we lived in an apart hotel with cleaning services included
never bored, splendid shopping malls, always bigger and better
heavy traffic,the lack of nature, historical buildings, too hot to go outside 6 months a year, living in utopia
East Flanders, Belgium
was born and raised here, met my husband, bought a house together and got married
5 years as HR assistant
the food, the culture, fashion, nature, beautiful cities
the political problems, the weather, the growing feeling of xenophobia
Activity
Trying to pick a neighborhood by SFAndy
My husband and I have decided to relocate from San Francisco to Madrid as soon as we have things tied up here. If all goes as planned that should be possible by the end of 2021/beginning of 2022. Even though it's still a ways off in the future ...
Maybe check out La Moraleja, just outside Madrid. Lots of expats live there because of international/bilingual schools. Lots of gardens, semi-gated communities, chalets. Not cheap though and honestly a bit posh (like the Salamanca neighbourhood in ... Read More
Looking for High School recommendations for expat family by lindocarlos
Planing to move from USA to Madrid next Summer ('21). My son will be a rising sophomore by then. Interested in recommendations for an international high school. Ideally American, British curriculum, IB certificate option and strong athletic ...
I would check out schools in La Moraleja area. My son goes to ICS (International College of Spain) an IB school with MYP and DP (Middle Years Programme and Diploma Programme). Read More
Secondhand furniture. by mannyellis
Hello all. Any help would be appreciated. Could anyone advise me of the best place to buy a cheap secondhand furniture/shops in the Andalucia area. I am currently in the middle of purchasing a house in Andalucia, and would love furnish it ...
I would say check Wallapop or local specialised Facebook groups. Read More
Moving from USA to Madrid by andresko
Hello Everyone! My family (wife and 3yr old) will be making a giant leap from Los Angeles to Madrid in about 4 months! I was hoping to get a few tips regarding areas to live between Madrid (centro) and Fuenlabrada. Work will be in Fuenlabrada but ...
How about Pozuelo de Alarcon or La Moraleja? We live in La Moraleja because it's very international due to the many international schools there. Not cheap though... Read More
New members of the Spain forum, introduce yourselves here - 2018 by Julien
Hi all, Newbie on the Spain forum? Don聮t know how to start? This thread is for you聽;) We invite you to introduce yourself on this topic, to share with us your expat story if you are already living in the country, or to tell us more on ...
Hello Spain, we are a Belgian (Flemish) serial expat family. We will be moving to Soto de la Moraleja, Madrid this July and our 8-year old son will start at the International College of Spain in September. If anyone lives close by, has useful tips ... Read More
What Language do you need to speak to live in Belgium? by topez
Is there a place in Belgium for English speaking person?
To be honest, if you don't speak either Dutch (Flemish in the north) or French (Walloon in Brussels and the south) it will be very hard. Here a few sites with info about Belgium and Brussels ... Read More
Living in the suburbs of London ??? need some info by Ninaa_persian
Hello everyone, I would need some information , I would like to move to England and to work in London, but its really hard to find something to rent with my budget in London; I would like to know if there is or nearby suburbs that are connected by ...
Have you tried looking at the train lines? For example I live in Surrey and trains from Guildford or Woking take about half an hour to reach Waterloo station. Maye worth looking into. Bonne chance! Read More
WANTED: German Tutor by DarthMalkirn
Hi all, I want to find a patient tutor to teach me the German language.
You could also consider launching this request on the general forum and get worldwide coverage. I'm sure there are many Germans scattered around the world as bored as you are willing to Skype and teach you basic German conversation skills. Widen ... Read More
Bored House Husband stuck in this boring city Brussels by DarthMalkirn
Help, I am a British house husband totally bored in Brussels it would be nice to have an intelligent conversation with people who are in the same situation.
Bored?! Life is too short to be bored. I wrote a few posts on Brussel in my blog. You can take a look here: http://allthecontinentsinonelifetime.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Brussels If none of it appeals to you maybe you could tell us what you ... Read More
Assisted dying by El_Jost
Just saw a program on BBC TV discussing how one old British guy came to Switzerland to end his life. Apparently Swiss law is a bit more liberal in that sense compared to UK law. In the UK if you helped by procuring or giving something to someone ...
I am all for euthanasia. I even wrote a post about it in my blog when my terminally ill father-in-law made it clear to us (in 2013) that he was considering it (because it is legal in Belgium, my home country). He didn't do it in the end, ... Read More
Moving London with 2 kids aged 6 &9 by A.Erfidan
Hi, I am from turkey, Istanbul. My husband have a new job offer in london. His company is in Brentford. I have some questions about accommodation and education off my kids. Which borough is the best for living with 2 primary school age kids? How is ...
I actually lived in Chiswick until May this year. We were planning to send our 5 year old son to the International School in Gunnersbury but at the last minute my husband's company decided it was too expensive. I applied for numerous state ... Read More
New country = new experiences. Let's share.
I've lived in a few countries now but only in one outside Europe (my "comfort zone"). Dubai is the place where my husband and I had the most culture shocks and new experiences: a sandstorm the desert climate (sizzling hot 6 months a ... Read More
Please Help by Skywalker1
Hello, I am writing for the first time in despair, I read a lot of 大咖福利影院s and shared stories with people. At the moment I even get professional help which to my opinion, doesn't help. I considered myself as a very strong woman who could concur ...
Hello Skywalker1, I agree with Bob K. I was depressed for one year (postnatal depression) and you feel tired, sad and desperate all the time. I managed to struggle through on my own because I realised I was wasting my life, worrying my husband and ... Read More
Visiting "home" by Bob K
For those of you living as expats I was curious as to how often you go back to visit your "home" country. For me not very often. In fact in the last 8 years (since moving to the Dominican Republic) I have been back in the United States a total of ...
Well, it used to depend on where we lived (far --> once or twice a year / close --> 5 to 10 short visits). But since becoming a mother we go as often as we can (school holidays) because our son really wants to see his Belgian family and ... Read More
Nice to read, even better to reply ;) by Rems34
Hi everyone, My last post in French didn't obviously make a huge success (even if 57 people apparently read it), so I try once again in English... I just arrived in the city a couple of weeks ago and I think it would be nice to meet other people, ...
Bon soir Remy, I'm based in London so a bit too far away, but I really hope you have better luck in finding friends this time around! Au revoir et bonne chance. Globetrotter Read More