#eustudyabroad

My study abroad experience might be very different from my classmates because we did not live in Brussels city limits, but I am enjoyed being in the city during the day and Linkebeek in the evenings. Having spoken with Philippe, my host dad, I learned about some of the challenges that Linkebeek residents face –transportation. It is common for many Brussels residents to own “Mobib” passes, which is essentially a monthly membership to the public transportation system, but the stop from Linkebeek is not covered in this membership. Consequently, Linkebeek residents must purchase additional tickets, even though they live just a few stops from the city. Imploring further, I discovered that this dilemma was very complicated. Belgium is divided into three regions based on language –Flanders, Brussels-Capital, and Walloon Region. Mobib covers travel within the Brussels-Capital region; so many Linkebeek residents wish to become party to this region. Philippe expressed deep frustration regarding the regional lines. Particularly interesting is that Flanders is the Flemish region, Brussels-Capital is Flemish and French, and Walloon is French. Philippe estimates that of the small Linkebeek community of less than 5,000 people, roughly 85% speak French, even though they are districted in the Flanders region. In addition to the public transit issue, a Flanders representative, who does not want to promote their interest to join the Brussels-Capital region, represents the Linkebeek people. Philippe will occasionally argue with the train attendant when asked for his ticket, arguing that he does not agree with the system and should not have to pay additional fees to ride a few stops into the city. He even gave us a few tips on how to avoid paying for the train ride, and was adamant on “pulling the foreigner card.” I considered using my high school Spanish skills to pretend that it was the only language we knew to confuse the attendants. Even still, this political boundary conflict is problematic for Linkebeek residents and has created barriers to their access of the city. The picture here is a view of my walk to the train station each morning in Linkebeek. Beautiful!