Firstly I must apologise for the gap between this and my last post. It has been a tad busy what with a trip to London and some time off in between.
An and I went over to London with Pia, her best friend. The trip is almost an annual event where we go over to shop for shoes and then take in a musical when we have time. I am pleased to say that after another trip I am well on the way to completing the directory of shoe shops to be found in all parts of the Greater London area. Actually our programme was quite comprehensive, which I shall now relate.
We set out at silly o'clock in the morning in a bid to miss the rush hour traffic on the Thursday morning. We had to travel down from Aarschot, past Leuven and on to the ring road, then traverse the most congested part between Zaventem and the turn off to Antwerp (we carried on to the Gent exit), after that the run down to the coast was uneventful. In fact we were quite lucky, apart from two drivers who I scared the crap out of by doing some enforced manoeuvres brought on by the erratic driving of other motorists. We made it to the Eurotunnel in plenty of time and made the crossing ahead of schedule. That was the 2 1/2 hour drive out of the way on this side, we noted the severe traffic jams on the opposite side of the road and were grateful to be heading in the other direction. As we exited the tunnel and got underway things were going just fine until we hit an unexplained traffic jam as we got up towards the M20/M25 junction, we had plenty of time though as we did not need to be at the Albert Hall until 15.00. I cannot remember when we got to the hotel in Ealing but it was around 11.30 ish. We left the hotel not long thereafter and headed into town.
For those who do not know, the Victoria and Albert museum is in South Kensington, which is not too far away from Ealing relatively speaking. We bought some Oyster cards, a very good tip, as they could be given credit which you use as and when you travel. If you happen to reach the point where a travel card would have been cheaper then it caps the cost at this level, otherwise it takes fares as you use them. The Oyster card has a deposit of £5, which can be reclaimed along with any unused credit at the end of your trip. One point of warning though, you cannot get a refund from a combined Tube/railway station, it has to be just a tube station. Don't ask why but that is the way it is. We stopped off in South Kensington for lunch at a Pain de Quoitidien, one of An's favoured hostelries. During lunch we played a game to spot those ladies who do not have to work for a living and decided that those carrying backpacks were definitely tourists.
Now I didn't know this, but the V&A is right next door to the Natural History Museum and both of these are well worth a visit. We were a bit early for the David Bowie exhibition, which was being tightly controlled by using timed access. We took the opportunity to traverse the shop, actually you could not get round this, very clever marketing. There were a large number of kids in the shop who were, along with others, barging about and getting very excited about the souvenirs available in the shop. It was not long to wait though and my feet were already protesting at the length of time I would be standing, a sad feature of my trips to London.
David Bowie is not someone who I am a particular fan of but then it is always nice to learn something new and to understand a bit about his work. I have to say the two key points I picked up on was that he had had a fight when a boy and suffered a punch to the eye which left him with a permanently dilated pupil, the other was that he is called David Jones and changed his name to differentiate between the singer from the Monkees. Both were a revelation to me and now I shall look closely to every picture of him that I look at from now on! The rest of it was an education as well but he was really before my time. We bought a platinum album which included songs from the 60s, 70s and 80s, clearly this had some dross on as far as I was concerned but I recognised quite a few of the well known ones.
When we left the museum we headed off towards Chelsea for the first of our marathon walking/shopping expeditions. It was not far to go and to cut a long story short I ended up reluctantly buying a pair of shoes for £145, these were comfortable, initially but not when worn for the entire day the following day!
We got back and had supper at the hotel, the service there was very good I have to say. I did get an odd phone call asking if I still wanted to keep both rooms, which was odd as I was standing in one of them as I took the call. It would appear that I had booked two rooms by accident, although I did not get the customary confirmation email when I did so. More importantly the man I spoke to when checking in did not think to question the double booking at the time. Thankfully I did not get charged otherwise I would have been most unimpressed.
The following day we took a trip up to Camden Town, where the girls bought no less than 5 pairs of shoes between them, including a pair of Doc Martin boots from the British Boot Company. Camden Town is an amazing place, full of market stalls and interesting shops, I would strongly recommend a visit. There is also a world foods area where you can get a whole range of different food to sit and eat either there and then or by the lock gates. It is a place where you could spend a while with a camera and get some great shots. I met an American Artist who had a tag which was called the Killer Bunny, he combined rabbits with movie and TV scenes with some quite disturbing images. Not for the kids I have to say but fascinating as an idea. He told me that he got his inspiration from Watership Down and chose to combine that with the Movies and TV. I showed An the picture he had of Smurfs being nailed to the wall, she was not impressed (Smurfs originating from Belgium). Check out the website but be prepared to be shocked! http://www.killerbunny.co.uk/egn2/
We continued our trip by heading to Spitalfields and then Brick Lane. Really it was just a shopping trip disguised as a sightseeing tour. Brick Lane was not what I was expecting but Spitalfields is worth a trip. We finished up by heading to my Aunt and Uncles place in Clapham and had a nice curry. We made our delivery of Neuhaus chocolates and caught up with the family, apart from Max who was out at the time.
Saturday was also going to be a bit of a shopping day but we also planned to take in a Salvador Dali exhibition followed by a show in the evening. There was a plan to get to Libertys and I wanted to get some photographic kit from nearby Wardour Street. It was this day, with regret, that I wore my new shoes and paid the price with my feet. I only had the whole day walking for God only knows how far. You would think after having reached the age of 40 that I would know the risks associated with buying new shoes and then breaking them in. When looking for the photographic shop on Wardour street I of course turned the wrong way down the street and walked the entire length of it before realising that the shop was in the opposite direction. I had neglected to make a note of the number and knew only too well that had I abandoned my search down one end it would have been but 10 metres further on. Anyway I did find it and it was disappointingly tiny but yet well equipped. I was after a background support, which they had. I also bought a couple of other things spending around £200 in the shop and now looking like an assassin carrying a rifle in my black elongated bag that held the stands. It was heavy and awkward, but I was willing to bear the burden. I also took in a trip to Hamley's, I could not walk by without checking it out as usual.
Once the shopping phase was done we headed off to see Rock of Ages, this is a show that takes well known Rock songs and mixes it with a typical story of hope, love and celebration. It is really very funny the 'compere', for want of a better word, was outstanding. I don't know what came first the show of the film but I just cannot imagine the movie because I cannot see how it would work. I won't spoil it for you but you will not be disappointed.
For Sunday we took in the Bluewater shopping centre on the way back and also stopped off to get some nice things from a branch of Sainsburys, this was topping up on UK stuff. Strangely enough we did this and then started the Dukan diet (a strict protein diet that lasts a while). I currently have two blocks of Wenslydale cheese, two malt loaves, some crunchy peanut butter, Hartley's blackcurrent jam, sandwich spread and Pringles. Thankfully they have a long use by date and we have some visitors in July so we will be breaking the rules then!
Saturday, 22 June 2013
Just Minding My Own Business
I am now commuting daily between home and work, which on a good day is about an hour and a quarter but on a bad day anything pushing 2-3. As you can imagine with most places the volume of traffic is rather predictable at given points. I am lucky in that most of my route is free moving most of the time.
Anyway as I was pootling along at 120km/h ish I was happily listening to the radio and avoiding the potholes and crazy loons with their last minute.com changes to road position. On the radio, once again freely airing, Rosana's 'What's My Mother f**king Name' was playing out uncensored and probably in multiple nursery schools across Belgium. Now I am used to the apparent lack of regard for explicit English swear words being used on the Belgian radio during the day but what nearly made me swerve into the central reservation and had me cursing at the radio was when the DJ and his guest had an exchange. The subject of the exchange escapes me now but the guest muttered under his breath God Damn It in Dutch and was told off by the DJ saying hey hey this is national radio, please! I mean what? I think my tirade at the radio lasted at least 2 minutes. It made an otherwise routine trip just a tad more interesting.
Anyway as I was pootling along at 120km/h ish I was happily listening to the radio and avoiding the potholes and crazy loons with their last minute.com changes to road position. On the radio, once again freely airing, Rosana's 'What's My Mother f**king Name' was playing out uncensored and probably in multiple nursery schools across Belgium. Now I am used to the apparent lack of regard for explicit English swear words being used on the Belgian radio during the day but what nearly made me swerve into the central reservation and had me cursing at the radio was when the DJ and his guest had an exchange. The subject of the exchange escapes me now but the guest muttered under his breath God Damn It in Dutch and was told off by the DJ saying hey hey this is national radio, please! I mean what? I think my tirade at the radio lasted at least 2 minutes. It made an otherwise routine trip just a tad more interesting.
Tuesday, 4 June 2013
Home
One day I was driving over from the UK, back from work to my new home. I have driven the route from Portsmouth up the A3, along the M25, down the M20, through the tunnel, then from Calais through France towards Brussels, round the ring road and then up towards Leuven and then the last stretch to Aarschot. I got so used to this that I started getting the welcoming feeling as I passed Leuven. It is the kind of feeling you get when you have been away from home and the familiar landmarks begin to appear as you near the area of your youth, your upbringing. The thought occurred to me that, although I feel welcome, I have very little local knowledge of the area in which I live. Back home in Gateshead, in the UK, I know the area down to the finest details. I don't need to orientate myself because I just know where everything is. Mind you growing up in a conurbation such as Tyneside, you cannot possibly know everywhere, but I knew our territory very well. I know where to go to get things or indeed find things. In Aarschot I depend on knowing a lot less and being a little less orientated. I cannot tell you which way is North or indeed which way most cities are relative to where I am. Of course, I do know where things are relative to Aarschot on a map, but on the ground it is a different story. I can work out which direction North is by using the sun and my watch but I have never taken the time to do that.
The feeling of being at home is special, there is nowhere quite as welcoming for me as the North East of England. The accent is special and it honestly feels like everyone is part of my family when I am out and about. I could sit and listen in a bar all day just absorbing that feeling of comfort. Here in Belgium it is not that I do not fit in or I do not feel welcome, I know some fantastic people here, both friends and family and I love them dearly.
I suppose one way to look at it is that I have spent 40 years learning to express myself, be able to read and write in English and I would like to think that I can hold a decent debate given the chance. Unfortunately I am starting out somewhat behind the curve in Dutch. I am very fortunate that the people I have met are just as good in English as they are in Dutch so I don't have to have the advanced skills I need to be able to hold a complex conversation. It is not that I want to chat deeply about politics or some other technical subject it is just that I am a social animal and I like to interact!
It can be frustrating not being able to read and understand instructions in Dutch as I have a natural inclination to check things and to follow instructions, most of the time. I have to rely on An for most of this and this includes when I am not happy with someone and I wish to make my feelings clear. When I want to complain, half of me thinks can I actually get my message across and the other half thinks what is the point? Of course the way to get round this is to learn Dutch, I only have around 32 years to go before I get fully proficient and even then one must remember that as a child I absorbed a lot more information that I am probably capable of doing so now!
The other thing about home is that I spend a lot less time with my UK friends which can be quite testing. I have been used to being able to more or less drop by but over the last 10 years or so I have been less able to visit people. When I go to London I often meet up with friends and family and it is like an injection of energy. Unfortunately I know quite a few people further afield and it is quite difficult to reach them at times.
Sometimes it is difficult to imagine that An must feel as familiar with the local areas as I do when I am at home. Although she has lived away from home before, we are living in her town of birth and so she is or rather should be completely at ease with where everything is. This makes for interesting conversations when in the car looking for our destination and not knowing where we are, especially when the satnav is playing up. An often ignores the satnav, which then has a mental breakdown and then refuses to cooperate, then An will admit to being lost because the roads have in fact changed or are blocked. Roads are blocked more often than you would think. It is not just An though, I have had this in the car with her dad too, who questions the satnav and then, eventually, realises we do not know where we are. I don't have the luxury of local knowledge and therefore I depend upon the satnav, which usually knows where it is going!
Back in the UK and the North East I almost always use my satnav too, but this is because I appreciate the speed and distance information it gives me and not necessarily the directions. You do become less dependent upon signs and it is quite interesting that I will still read the road signs and yet some people either don't or they do but it does not sink in. That is my way of explaining some erratic driving. Because I have been away from the North East for the best part of 18 years, the road systems keep changing so it is as well to keep your eyes open for signage and road markings.
When I compare my home in Gateshead to my home in Aarschot, well there is no direct comparison possible. Gateshead is more dangerous from a crime point of view but then better from the aspect of choice of shopping (of any kind). Even Leuven does not offer anywhere near the range of choice, but it is a more picturesque place to shop even given the risk of being run over by pretty female students on bikes. At least I would have a smile on my face as I feel the tyres bump over my head. There are too many cars in Gateshead and simply not enough room for them and there are precious few bikes, the girls are still pretty though even if a little under-dressed.
A trip home is always a good one though!
The feeling of being at home is special, there is nowhere quite as welcoming for me as the North East of England. The accent is special and it honestly feels like everyone is part of my family when I am out and about. I could sit and listen in a bar all day just absorbing that feeling of comfort. Here in Belgium it is not that I do not fit in or I do not feel welcome, I know some fantastic people here, both friends and family and I love them dearly.
I suppose one way to look at it is that I have spent 40 years learning to express myself, be able to read and write in English and I would like to think that I can hold a decent debate given the chance. Unfortunately I am starting out somewhat behind the curve in Dutch. I am very fortunate that the people I have met are just as good in English as they are in Dutch so I don't have to have the advanced skills I need to be able to hold a complex conversation. It is not that I want to chat deeply about politics or some other technical subject it is just that I am a social animal and I like to interact!
It can be frustrating not being able to read and understand instructions in Dutch as I have a natural inclination to check things and to follow instructions, most of the time. I have to rely on An for most of this and this includes when I am not happy with someone and I wish to make my feelings clear. When I want to complain, half of me thinks can I actually get my message across and the other half thinks what is the point? Of course the way to get round this is to learn Dutch, I only have around 32 years to go before I get fully proficient and even then one must remember that as a child I absorbed a lot more information that I am probably capable of doing so now!
The other thing about home is that I spend a lot less time with my UK friends which can be quite testing. I have been used to being able to more or less drop by but over the last 10 years or so I have been less able to visit people. When I go to London I often meet up with friends and family and it is like an injection of energy. Unfortunately I know quite a few people further afield and it is quite difficult to reach them at times.
Sometimes it is difficult to imagine that An must feel as familiar with the local areas as I do when I am at home. Although she has lived away from home before, we are living in her town of birth and so she is or rather should be completely at ease with where everything is. This makes for interesting conversations when in the car looking for our destination and not knowing where we are, especially when the satnav is playing up. An often ignores the satnav, which then has a mental breakdown and then refuses to cooperate, then An will admit to being lost because the roads have in fact changed or are blocked. Roads are blocked more often than you would think. It is not just An though, I have had this in the car with her dad too, who questions the satnav and then, eventually, realises we do not know where we are. I don't have the luxury of local knowledge and therefore I depend upon the satnav, which usually knows where it is going!
Back in the UK and the North East I almost always use my satnav too, but this is because I appreciate the speed and distance information it gives me and not necessarily the directions. You do become less dependent upon signs and it is quite interesting that I will still read the road signs and yet some people either don't or they do but it does not sink in. That is my way of explaining some erratic driving. Because I have been away from the North East for the best part of 18 years, the road systems keep changing so it is as well to keep your eyes open for signage and road markings.
When I compare my home in Gateshead to my home in Aarschot, well there is no direct comparison possible. Gateshead is more dangerous from a crime point of view but then better from the aspect of choice of shopping (of any kind). Even Leuven does not offer anywhere near the range of choice, but it is a more picturesque place to shop even given the risk of being run over by pretty female students on bikes. At least I would have a smile on my face as I feel the tyres bump over my head. There are too many cars in Gateshead and simply not enough room for them and there are precious few bikes, the girls are still pretty though even if a little under-dressed.
A trip home is always a good one though!
Sunday, 2 June 2013
The Cultural View
I was 16 when I first went to London with my grandfather, we travelled down by train and stayed at my Uncles' house in Streatham. There is no easy way to say this but I had never seen so many people of West Indian or African descent. In the North East of England there was at that time a sizeable Jewish population and to a lesser extent those of Indian and Pakistani descent. The Indians and Pakistanis ran most of the local convenience shops in our area. Naively, I thought I had grown up free from any exposure to racist behaviour, the reality was that I had not noticed and therefore thought it didn't exist.
London is how you would describe as cosmopolitan, it is a rich mix of ethnic groups, cultures and traditions. The reality is that in the UK the population composition has changed a great deal since the Second World War, we have people from all over the world coming from Commonwealth countries, what we used to call the British Empire before that term became a bit embarrassing. Since the UK joined the European Economic Community, the forerunner to the European Union, the UK has become even more diversified with citizens from all over Europe, former Eastern block countries and now asylum seekers from all sorts of countries. In essence the UK is a big mixing pot and our culture and identity is changing as a result. Now this is not meant to be a debate about politics, the rights and wrongs of taking in asylum seekers, border controls, the future membership of the European Union, no. My aim in starting this off was to explain why I think London is a much more dangerous place to drive and the people seem less friendly than back home in the North East. I put this down to a lack of understanding and uneven cultural attitudes to driving.
So what has this to do with Belgium then? Well I think that Belgium being in its central position in Europe and having its connections with former colonies has a similar mix of cultures, particularly in the big cities. Where it does differ is that the two predominant language groups of Flemish and Wallonian are very conscious of their identity. So even if there are three official languages in Belgium; Dutch, French and German, they do not really do a lot to help other non-natives out. If you buy some drugs at a pharmacy in Belgium you will get a leaflet out and the chances are the instructions will only be in either Dutch or French and if you are lucky German. In the UK if you buy some drugs then the leaflet will most likely be printed in about 8 or 9 languages. In the UK we seem to bend over backwards to cater for people who do not speak English, in particular in the cities.
I consider myself extremely fortunate that a lot of people in Belgium speak English very well, mainly I have to say this is on the Flemish side. In the Wallonian side they speak English to a lesser extent and this is probably due to the dominance of French speaking TV and radio. The Flemish TV has a great deal of programmes and films in English. These are dubbed in French in Wallonia. Do I think that they are losing their identity because of this, no, not at all. I know where I am and the locals are rightly proud of their heritage and they maintain it very well. You just have to visit one of the local towns when they have an event in the main square, they all have markets and festivals and there is usually a town Prince, which is an ornately dressed person I can best describe as similar in appearance to a Pearly King only more outlandish.
My original intent was to talk about queues and the different attitudes to them, somehow I got onto the composition of the population! Oh well, next time.
London is how you would describe as cosmopolitan, it is a rich mix of ethnic groups, cultures and traditions. The reality is that in the UK the population composition has changed a great deal since the Second World War, we have people from all over the world coming from Commonwealth countries, what we used to call the British Empire before that term became a bit embarrassing. Since the UK joined the European Economic Community, the forerunner to the European Union, the UK has become even more diversified with citizens from all over Europe, former Eastern block countries and now asylum seekers from all sorts of countries. In essence the UK is a big mixing pot and our culture and identity is changing as a result. Now this is not meant to be a debate about politics, the rights and wrongs of taking in asylum seekers, border controls, the future membership of the European Union, no. My aim in starting this off was to explain why I think London is a much more dangerous place to drive and the people seem less friendly than back home in the North East. I put this down to a lack of understanding and uneven cultural attitudes to driving.
So what has this to do with Belgium then? Well I think that Belgium being in its central position in Europe and having its connections with former colonies has a similar mix of cultures, particularly in the big cities. Where it does differ is that the two predominant language groups of Flemish and Wallonian are very conscious of their identity. So even if there are three official languages in Belgium; Dutch, French and German, they do not really do a lot to help other non-natives out. If you buy some drugs at a pharmacy in Belgium you will get a leaflet out and the chances are the instructions will only be in either Dutch or French and if you are lucky German. In the UK if you buy some drugs then the leaflet will most likely be printed in about 8 or 9 languages. In the UK we seem to bend over backwards to cater for people who do not speak English, in particular in the cities.
I consider myself extremely fortunate that a lot of people in Belgium speak English very well, mainly I have to say this is on the Flemish side. In the Wallonian side they speak English to a lesser extent and this is probably due to the dominance of French speaking TV and radio. The Flemish TV has a great deal of programmes and films in English. These are dubbed in French in Wallonia. Do I think that they are losing their identity because of this, no, not at all. I know where I am and the locals are rightly proud of their heritage and they maintain it very well. You just have to visit one of the local towns when they have an event in the main square, they all have markets and festivals and there is usually a town Prince, which is an ornately dressed person I can best describe as similar in appearance to a Pearly King only more outlandish.
My original intent was to talk about queues and the different attitudes to them, somehow I got onto the composition of the population! Oh well, next time.
The 'h' isn't silent in think!
Something that did not occur to me until I started learning Dutch is that there are some sounds in English that are just not replicated in other languages and I suppose the opposite holds true. In this case I often hear An fail to pronounce the 'th' sound when she speaks English. You have to form this sound by placing your tongue between your teeth and then expel out as you say the 'th' bit. It is hard to describe but then not having to think about it, you just know rather than have to explain. In An's case she 'tinks' about it and does not put her tongue between her 'teet'. She trows things, tanks people and is very 'toughtful', most of the time.
I can't think of the equivalent in Dutch but they do have the long ij in makkelijk (easy). In English this combination ij is not found, as far as I know, therefore we don't readily know how to pronounce this or even how to try. When I was learning I found out that it is essentially the same as saying 'air'. In this case you extend it out, there is the shorter version which is 'ei' as in eieren (eggs). As a general rule in Dutch when you have double vowels it means that the sound is longer, single vowels are pronounced shorter. It is here that I miss-pronounce my wife's name I actually say Aan but it is spelt An, it is meant to be abrupt, almost curt really. I say it with a longer 'a' sound.
It works both ways I remember going to the baker for my father-in-law's salt free bread, which had been pre-ordered. When I asked the lady behind the counter, 'u heeft een bestelt voor Rene, zout vrij brood?' she did not understand me, I probably said it a bit quietly and now I was beginning to question whether I was in the right shop or whether the order had been placed at all. I repeated several times and the thing is it was the name she did not understand. Eventually another one of the ladies came through and said who it was for, at which point the other lady did a fantastic impression of the waitress Yvette in Allo Allo as she growled out 'ah rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrennnnnnnneeeeeeeeee'. I should have rolled my 'r' and held it but then I would feel rather stupid saying that as though he were a long lost relative...
By the way if you have not heard of Allo Allo then catch this from Youtube at the link here.
I can't think of the equivalent in Dutch but they do have the long ij in makkelijk (easy). In English this combination ij is not found, as far as I know, therefore we don't readily know how to pronounce this or even how to try. When I was learning I found out that it is essentially the same as saying 'air'. In this case you extend it out, there is the shorter version which is 'ei' as in eieren (eggs). As a general rule in Dutch when you have double vowels it means that the sound is longer, single vowels are pronounced shorter. It is here that I miss-pronounce my wife's name I actually say Aan but it is spelt An, it is meant to be abrupt, almost curt really. I say it with a longer 'a' sound.
It works both ways I remember going to the baker for my father-in-law's salt free bread, which had been pre-ordered. When I asked the lady behind the counter, 'u heeft een bestelt voor Rene, zout vrij brood?' she did not understand me, I probably said it a bit quietly and now I was beginning to question whether I was in the right shop or whether the order had been placed at all. I repeated several times and the thing is it was the name she did not understand. Eventually another one of the ladies came through and said who it was for, at which point the other lady did a fantastic impression of the waitress Yvette in Allo Allo as she growled out 'ah rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrennnnnnnneeeeeeeeee'. I should have rolled my 'r' and held it but then I would feel rather stupid saying that as though he were a long lost relative...
By the way if you have not heard of Allo Allo then catch this from Youtube at the link here.
Tuesday, 28 May 2013
The New Roof
When we bought the house in October 2007 An and I had a long term aim to replace the flat roof with a pitched one and to also replace the windows in the entire house. No small measures here then, the two projects combined would be around 50,000 euros.
I do not really have much to compare this with when it comes to the UK. I once bought a set of UPVC double glazing back in 1995, that was 5 windows and 1 door and it cost £1500, the fitting and quality was poor and I paid up front for it. In Belgium we bought 7 aluminium windows, a garage door and a front door. One of those windows is a sliding door that is about 3 metres wide. The whole lot cost 16,000 euros and we paid something like four months after fitting, no deposit or any form of security. It was quite worrying not being asked for any money. They waited until the last few bits were complete before sending the bill. Mind you they did make their money. We also got tax back, it is part of the incentive to become more energy efficient.
The roof, however, was a far more taxing affair to deal with. We had to secure borrowing and to do that we needed to hire a solicitor and go through a broker, it was just like getting a mortgage. More importantly we had to get an architect in to do the plans and give us advice.
We held a meeting once we had identified a suitable architect, he was recommended although I am not sure why. During the meeting we discussed a number of crucial objectives such as: timing of how long it would take, planning permission, fees and overall cost of the project. All of our discussions were utterly pointless, whatever we said it was either ignored or agreed with and later ignored. As an example, I stated that the cost of the project should come in at no more than 25,000 euros and I asked if this was possible. What the architect should have said is no, what he did say was oh yes it will come in at around that price. The architect's fees eventually were about 4,000 euros, this is a ridiculous 20% of the cost of the project. We did not know this at the time and have learnt our lesson, but 9% is a more common figure. The legal costs were around 1500, but that related to the borrowing being arranged. I cannot remember how much the planning permission cost but this was another screw up by our architect.
When our plans were submitted the architect did not take pictures of the surrounding area or highlight that of the estate of around 100 houses, almost 25 had pitched roofs. So amazingly enough the planning authority in Leuven said we could not build our roof as it was not in keeping with the local area and in addition we could not have solar panels (something we were considering). Our neighbour directly across form us, less than 30 metres away has a pitched roof, so why were we being declined? The neighbour next to her had solar panels on her garage roof and the houses in the surrounding area had stacks of them, another strange decision. Anyway I ended up marking up each house on the estate with a pitched roof and then took it to the architect and said just show them that. This he did and we got our permission (still without the solar panels). I must add at this point that when we called into the town hall for advice, the quality would vary depending upon who you spoke to and indeed what time of day it was. It seems to be a common trait that you don't generally get the same answer twice and therefore my instinct is not to trust what I have been told. In fact the best thing to do is to get them to write it down and sign it off, they then backtrack and make sure they have it right!
The next phase was getting the quotes from the builders, again we held a raft of meetings with several builders to outline our requirements. Any quote takes two weeks to produce and bears no resemblance to any discussions that you may have held with the contractor. I have no idea if this is the case with UK builders. In my experience I have known people to be able to estimate there and then not to wait for two weeks. What inevitably happens is they forget what you have discussed and then have to go for another two weeks whilst they re-do the quote. There is a silver lining to this cloud, which I will get to. The quotes varied wildly between each builder and of course each was using the best quality and construction techniques. We discussed them with the architect and he advised us on the various offers. Eventually we chose one, which was around 19,000 euros but did not do everything that we wanted. In essence it would be a shell with no plasterboard or electrics installed. It also did not include the brickwork for the gable ends, we had to get a separate quote for that. More of that later.
The timing was all shot to bits, this was due to weather and workload of the builder as well as the delays with the plans having to be submitted again. The original timeline was for the work to take place in Jul but in the event it was late August. I had taken time off work to be there and for most of the construction I was not there, more delays. The work took around 3 weeks to complete and I had to harass the builder to turn up once the gable ends had gone up. It was like having two large unstable sails on the house and the flat roof had been compromised.
The gables ends took about a week to put up and I humped brick and blocks from the ground up a rather rickety lift and onto the roof, whilst our brickie did the work. We did not benefit financially from that, the price was fixed, something that has both advantages and disadvantages. The good thing is that it is never more unless you significantly change the requirement and even then it is reasonable. It can, however, end up far too much if it has been overestimated. This happened with the tiling in the bathroom which took around half as long as he expected, we got ripped off here and we made our displeasure known. It was an extremely hot August and toiling with these bricks in the sun was quite something. I have to say the view from the top was also quite impressive.
I had to go back to work for the next phase so I missed the joy of seeing it go up. The roof is made of a wooden construction with essentially 4 triangles running the length of the house. The first triangle is the one form the ridge of the roof to the sides of the house, the big one. Two are one each from each side going in maybe a metre. This way you have no supporting structures spanning the main space and getting in the way. The last one was along the ridge and connecting each side together. I have drawn a rather crude diagram below.
Now the thing that most people dread is when the builder starts to deny all knowledge that you had agreed to do a particular bit of work and that it was included in the price. In our case in involved the removal and disposal of the roofing felt and the installation of a floor. Thankfully we had a written and signed contract that included both of these things and they duly carried out the work without fuss. The architect earned some of his money by being on hand and carrying out inspections. I have to say in this respect he was very good. He made sure the floor was of a decent thickness and questioned and changed their construction when needed.
The things that needed to be changed were:
We ended up with a 5 x 7m space, my man cave. The loft was insulated but not fitted out for electrics or with plasterboard. I will do a separate blog on that one as it was some effort to do that. We had a loft with three windows and one hole in the floor for the stairs when they were installed, again another time with that one.
Once again the lessons from this are get a written and signed contract, get quotes (including more than one architect) and then make sure they do the work they have signed up for. The loft is a great space and it was not long before An was eyeing it up for alternative uses...
Photos to follow.
I do not really have much to compare this with when it comes to the UK. I once bought a set of UPVC double glazing back in 1995, that was 5 windows and 1 door and it cost £1500, the fitting and quality was poor and I paid up front for it. In Belgium we bought 7 aluminium windows, a garage door and a front door. One of those windows is a sliding door that is about 3 metres wide. The whole lot cost 16,000 euros and we paid something like four months after fitting, no deposit or any form of security. It was quite worrying not being asked for any money. They waited until the last few bits were complete before sending the bill. Mind you they did make their money. We also got tax back, it is part of the incentive to become more energy efficient.
The roof, however, was a far more taxing affair to deal with. We had to secure borrowing and to do that we needed to hire a solicitor and go through a broker, it was just like getting a mortgage. More importantly we had to get an architect in to do the plans and give us advice.
We held a meeting once we had identified a suitable architect, he was recommended although I am not sure why. During the meeting we discussed a number of crucial objectives such as: timing of how long it would take, planning permission, fees and overall cost of the project. All of our discussions were utterly pointless, whatever we said it was either ignored or agreed with and later ignored. As an example, I stated that the cost of the project should come in at no more than 25,000 euros and I asked if this was possible. What the architect should have said is no, what he did say was oh yes it will come in at around that price. The architect's fees eventually were about 4,000 euros, this is a ridiculous 20% of the cost of the project. We did not know this at the time and have learnt our lesson, but 9% is a more common figure. The legal costs were around 1500, but that related to the borrowing being arranged. I cannot remember how much the planning permission cost but this was another screw up by our architect.
When our plans were submitted the architect did not take pictures of the surrounding area or highlight that of the estate of around 100 houses, almost 25 had pitched roofs. So amazingly enough the planning authority in Leuven said we could not build our roof as it was not in keeping with the local area and in addition we could not have solar panels (something we were considering). Our neighbour directly across form us, less than 30 metres away has a pitched roof, so why were we being declined? The neighbour next to her had solar panels on her garage roof and the houses in the surrounding area had stacks of them, another strange decision. Anyway I ended up marking up each house on the estate with a pitched roof and then took it to the architect and said just show them that. This he did and we got our permission (still without the solar panels). I must add at this point that when we called into the town hall for advice, the quality would vary depending upon who you spoke to and indeed what time of day it was. It seems to be a common trait that you don't generally get the same answer twice and therefore my instinct is not to trust what I have been told. In fact the best thing to do is to get them to write it down and sign it off, they then backtrack and make sure they have it right!
The next phase was getting the quotes from the builders, again we held a raft of meetings with several builders to outline our requirements. Any quote takes two weeks to produce and bears no resemblance to any discussions that you may have held with the contractor. I have no idea if this is the case with UK builders. In my experience I have known people to be able to estimate there and then not to wait for two weeks. What inevitably happens is they forget what you have discussed and then have to go for another two weeks whilst they re-do the quote. There is a silver lining to this cloud, which I will get to. The quotes varied wildly between each builder and of course each was using the best quality and construction techniques. We discussed them with the architect and he advised us on the various offers. Eventually we chose one, which was around 19,000 euros but did not do everything that we wanted. In essence it would be a shell with no plasterboard or electrics installed. It also did not include the brickwork for the gable ends, we had to get a separate quote for that. More of that later.
The timing was all shot to bits, this was due to weather and workload of the builder as well as the delays with the plans having to be submitted again. The original timeline was for the work to take place in Jul but in the event it was late August. I had taken time off work to be there and for most of the construction I was not there, more delays. The work took around 3 weeks to complete and I had to harass the builder to turn up once the gable ends had gone up. It was like having two large unstable sails on the house and the flat roof had been compromised.
The gables ends took about a week to put up and I humped brick and blocks from the ground up a rather rickety lift and onto the roof, whilst our brickie did the work. We did not benefit financially from that, the price was fixed, something that has both advantages and disadvantages. The good thing is that it is never more unless you significantly change the requirement and even then it is reasonable. It can, however, end up far too much if it has been overestimated. This happened with the tiling in the bathroom which took around half as long as he expected, we got ripped off here and we made our displeasure known. It was an extremely hot August and toiling with these bricks in the sun was quite something. I have to say the view from the top was also quite impressive.
I had to go back to work for the next phase so I missed the joy of seeing it go up. The roof is made of a wooden construction with essentially 4 triangles running the length of the house. The first triangle is the one form the ridge of the roof to the sides of the house, the big one. Two are one each from each side going in maybe a metre. This way you have no supporting structures spanning the main space and getting in the way. The last one was along the ridge and connecting each side together. I have drawn a rather crude diagram below.
Now the thing that most people dread is when the builder starts to deny all knowledge that you had agreed to do a particular bit of work and that it was included in the price. In our case in involved the removal and disposal of the roofing felt and the installation of a floor. Thankfully we had a written and signed contract that included both of these things and they duly carried out the work without fuss. The architect earned some of his money by being on hand and carrying out inspections. I have to say in this respect he was very good. He made sure the floor was of a decent thickness and questioned and changed their construction when needed.
The things that needed to be changed were:
- Insulation in the gables, it needed to be thicker (more cost).
- The floor needed to be thickened up (more cost).
We ended up with a 5 x 7m space, my man cave. The loft was insulated but not fitted out for electrics or with plasterboard. I will do a separate blog on that one as it was some effort to do that. We had a loft with three windows and one hole in the floor for the stairs when they were installed, again another time with that one.
Once again the lessons from this are get a written and signed contract, get quotes (including more than one architect) and then make sure they do the work they have signed up for. The loft is a great space and it was not long before An was eyeing it up for alternative uses...
Photos to follow.
Sunday, 26 May 2013
The Wedding Anniversary
On Friday the 24th May An and I had been married for 5 years, we celebrated by heading to the restaurant where we got engaged and then later had our wedding reception. The Gelofte is a very special if small restaurant located in Aarschot. When I first started coming over to Belgium the price of a meal here was quite reasonable given the excellent quality of the food and service. Of all of the places I have eaten in Belgium, this has to be the best and it easily beats any food I have had in the UK.
With this sort of quality, however, you need to pay the price and now it is somewhat more expensive than it used to be, so much so that we really cannot afford to eat there as often as we would like.
This time round both An and I walked to the restaurant so we could both enjoy a drink. There was a fixed menu which was 45 euros per person, not including any drinks but I wanted to go for something on the main menu which meant paying a bit more. For starters An had a crab salad with apple, cucumber and radish. I had duck liver with pear balls and sauce. The description does not really do it justice. The duck liver was similar to foie gras, but with a consistency that was a little firmer and a lovely baked crust. It was, without any doubt, the best starter I have ever had. I cannot stress how exquisite this was. Our mains were rood baars, (I think this is red snapper but I am not sure) for An and lambs fillet with ratatouille and mustard sauce for me. Again this was very good. For dessert An had strawberries with a rhubarb sauce and special ice cream and I had a Dame Blanche. We had a glass of champagne each, some water and between us 5 glasses of red and white wine. In all it was an experience rather than just a meal out. The cost of the meal was 203 euros for the two of us. There were entrees as well before and after the starter. The first was something similar to prawn crackers but made from squid and quinoa with a mushroom mousse. The second was made with a St Jacobs escallop with beetroot and cauliflower.
The restaurant details can be found at the link here, along with details of the menu (although this has now changed since Friday!)
If ever you happen to be going by then I would strongly recommend you check it out.
With this sort of quality, however, you need to pay the price and now it is somewhat more expensive than it used to be, so much so that we really cannot afford to eat there as often as we would like.
This time round both An and I walked to the restaurant so we could both enjoy a drink. There was a fixed menu which was 45 euros per person, not including any drinks but I wanted to go for something on the main menu which meant paying a bit more. For starters An had a crab salad with apple, cucumber and radish. I had duck liver with pear balls and sauce. The description does not really do it justice. The duck liver was similar to foie gras, but with a consistency that was a little firmer and a lovely baked crust. It was, without any doubt, the best starter I have ever had. I cannot stress how exquisite this was. Our mains were rood baars, (I think this is red snapper but I am not sure) for An and lambs fillet with ratatouille and mustard sauce for me. Again this was very good. For dessert An had strawberries with a rhubarb sauce and special ice cream and I had a Dame Blanche. We had a glass of champagne each, some water and between us 5 glasses of red and white wine. In all it was an experience rather than just a meal out. The cost of the meal was 203 euros for the two of us. There were entrees as well before and after the starter. The first was something similar to prawn crackers but made from squid and quinoa with a mushroom mousse. The second was made with a St Jacobs escallop with beetroot and cauliflower.
The restaurant details can be found at the link here, along with details of the menu (although this has now changed since Friday!)
If ever you happen to be going by then I would strongly recommend you check it out.
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