Sunny Brussels
It's a beautiful, warm, sunny Thursday here the European Capitol city of Brussels. This means that the creme de la creme of European Union/Commission/Parliament trash will be oozing from every sidewalk cafe, bistro, pub and bar in the city. Everyone will be well in to their warm weather rituals. When you live in a city that has such long, dark cold winters, you crave the light and warmth and the vitamin D generating rays of sun.At lunch, every stairway, bench, fountain and spare bit of space showered in sun outside will be covered with bodies. Hippie chicks wearing long summery skirts, crop tops with their ringed navels and plump love handles plopping about. Business people with their suit jackets off, bared arms, fashionista sun glasses, Evian and Vittel waters. Shoppers who stop for a rest with their bags crumpled and crinkly. Mothers with babies in their strollers, tiny little umbrellas shielding bambino's faces and moms stripped down to sleeveless knit tops. Women with head scarves, in tank tops and tight skirts. Even the women in burkas (full coverage a la Iraqi women)wearing summer sandals and letting their toes wiggle a bit.
In the evening - everyone on the prowl. NATO Soldiers off duty will take the tram downtown for a beer in Grande Place, get completely legless by 9 PM and be swaying to and fro to some good 80's pop music at Celtica by 10 pm.
Place Luxembourg will look like an ad for Dippity Do hair gel and Dolce & Gabanna knock-offs. There will be so many people at the bar tables outside that you can't tell which tables belong to which establishment and people will be sitting on the public benches surrounding the bus stop. There will be 1 million cigarette butts on the cobblestones, some scrunched out, some still burning under foot. At least one Commission Secretary level 2 will dance in the fountain raising her skirt and giggling.
Kitty O'Sheas will have all their windows thrown open and a few scraggly chairs and tables outside. Die hards will be inside The Hairy hardly noticing the weather while little old ladies who 'Pub' will be sitting at the small tables outside 'people watching' - lending a respectable air to the place.
My neighbours - who have 3 kids under 3 years old - will be on their balcony which overlooks my garden. They are on their balcony 18 hours a day because they want air and space but can't afford a house right now. They eat every meal out on the balcony. They start the morning sunbathing out there while the twin boys sit in tubs of water and splash each other using plastic cups. The baby girl screaming in her bouncy chair. The father steals 5 minutes here and there for some 'work' when he feels like it. She concentrates on her tan and dead-heading the pots of flowers around her. I am in the office right now - I can picture exactly what she is doing - maximising her time before the sun moves and the porch is shaded - babies screeching.
I know Bunny Dog is waiting for Ghislaine - his French dog walker. He is sitting half on the windowsill and half on the radiator - keeping watch until the big heavy doors to the garden swing open. Ghislaine will take him to Parc Cinquintinaire for a romp in the freshly cut grass. He will play with other nice dogs and come home an hour later exhausted and thirsty - ready for a nap in the sun on my bed.
I have the windows in my office thrown wide open and I am working with the sun on my shoulders and a cool breeze drifting by.
posted by Brussels Confidential @ 10:29 AM
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