Out of Luxembourg and into Belgium!

By the time we left Luxembourg, my impressions of the city changed. I thought Luxembourg was just a country that spoke French, but it turns out there are three official languages. I’ll never forget how I tried using the laundry machine there and couldn’t identify the language on the machine. I tried looking up the words in French and German… but it turns out it was all in Letzebuergesch. I also thought the people here, being in one of the wealthiest countries, would have some manners and be polite, but after hearing some stories of my classmates entering tourist shops, that is not the case. Apparently, if you don’t speak French or any language they know, they’ll be rude to you. One of my classmates got kicked out of a shop because she couldn’t communicate or understand anything the receptionist said. Altogether, Luxembourg is a gorgeous country filled with castles and wealthy people who aren’t very good at English and could be a bit more accommodating to their tourists...although, their economy doesn’t depend too much on tourists since they chase them out.

Now we’re in Brussels, and because it is a city right between Flanders and Wallonia, I expect to see a blend between two different groups of people: the Walloons and the Fleming. In addition, G. van Istendael’s article on Brussels mentions how “Brussels is a textbook example of a twenty-first century city: its inhabitants have blown in from all four winds, and it has experience in accommodating minorities and having many different cultures living together (242).” So I expect to see many different kinds of people in Brussels (besides tourists) walking the streets and working in shops of Brussels. Unfortunately, Geert Van Istendael also mentions how “Brussels is chaotic, because Brussels has been cruelly disfigured and violated… (242).” So I guess I’ll brace myself for a very busy, hectic city with some broken buildings and unexpected behaviors.