Flenglish: To be a Large Woman
In Belgium there is a term for a "larger than life" woman. She does what she pleases, she's confident, and people respect her. She's a hele grote madam. I'm due for another Flenglish lesson, where I explain some cool things I've learned from the Flemish language and applied them to my english vocabulary. The first time I ...
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Urban Dictionary – Flemish Party Slang
Over Christmas, Billy and I went over to Belgium to spend the holidays with our family on the other side of the pond. During numerous nights out, I asked some of his friends what are some nightlife slang words in Flemish, or Vlaams. All of them were eager to share - it seems they are enthusiastic about my Vlaams studies. ...
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Cyclo-Cross: My New Sport Obsession
It's cold, wet, and muddy. I'm standing on the sidelines of a bike track with a beer and a cone of fries. Then suddenly a pack of racers, covered head to toe in mud whip by me, with muscles bulging out of their spandex suits and a fierce look in their eye. Within 10 minutes being a newbie cyclocross spectator I was ...
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Smoutebollen: A Dangerous Christmas Temptation
Christmastime in Belgium is filled with wildly delicious snacks and goodies. Belgians have a penchant for deep fryers and throw a wide variety of food into the heat such as fries, kabobs, and cervelas. The deep fryer’s kick into high gear during festive season to includes sweet treats. The result is a myriad of ...
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Belgian Beer Weekend: The 14th Edition
Back in September, the boys and I journeyed out of Leuven for the 14th edition of the Belgian Beer Weekend in Brussels. I haven't been to Oktoberfest in Munich yet, but I think this could rival the famous German festival in terms of quality beer. There were three beer stations set up in Central Brussels; the Grand ...
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Learning Flemish: Positivity, Equality, and Empowerment
After two full weeks of Flemish classes, I have made a few more observations and conclusions about the Flemish from their language. I realize that these are wide, sweeping generalizations but they are observations that have I had since my first month in Belgium as a tourist in 2011. 1. The Flemish are "glass half-full" ...
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The Grand-Daddy of European Festivals: Rock Werchter
On June 25th, I arrived in Belgium, my new home for the next year or so. Belgium is a fun and busy place to be in the summertime. There are multiple festivals every weekend in this tiny country and because of Belgium's size it's very easy to hit up as many as possible. In addition to the BIG festivals that are filled with ...
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