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Living overseas

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Original poster

Moving to Brussels in August

18 replies

whitford · 03/06/2013 20:10

Hello, We will be moving to Brussels in August. Our two young children are down to start at the European School II Woluwe and I was wondering if anyone has any tips on where a good place to live near there would be. Would the Chant D'Oiseau area be close enough to drive them to school in the morning? My husband will be working near Arts-Loi. Thanks!

OP posts:
marchmad · 03/06/2013 21:50

Chant d'Oiseau is fine, it's up to you how close you want to be. The school buses are effectively free for category 1. Chant d'Oiseau isn't so near to much after school activities though. If I were lucky enough to have children eligible for an EEB, I'd be as near to local activities and school, for EEB2, I'd go for Roodebeek to Vandervelde area.

marchmad · 03/06/2013 22:23

Lots more activities up Roodebeek way and nearer to school. You can walk to school from there, walk to activities, walk to the metro, walk to the supermarket. That's just me. I can't think of anything I'd walk to from Chant d'Oiseau other than the park.

Longtime · 03/06/2013 22:54

I like the Chant d'Oiseau area very much but I agree with marchmad here.

Original poster
whitford · 04/06/2013 06:38

Thank you very much. I haven't been to Brussels yet, but when I do I will have a look at Roodebeek and Vandervelde as you suggest. Being able to walk to school would be wonderful. Do you think it is easy to find houses with gardens in that area?

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marchmad · 04/06/2013 07:03

Chant d'Oiseau is far more beautiful, quite serene in places.

Here is a house which you could just about class as walking distance, it's a good cycle ride, nearly all on dedicated and flat paths. I am guessing it is opposite Woluwe Shopping centre, on the quiet side of boul de la Woluwe.
www.immoweb.be/fr/Rent.Estate.cfm?IdBien=2425795&xgallery=gallery&xpage=1

Original poster
whitford · 04/06/2013 08:45

Is the area immediately around EEB2 purely residential or do you still have a sense of being in the city? A couple of people have suggested Place Dumon as a good place to live, but looking on the map it seems quite far from the school. Any tips most appreciated. Also, does anyone know how easy it is to drop children off at EEB2? I know the bus system is good, but I think my children (3 and 5 with no French) may be a little young for that and I'd rather accompany them myself.

OP posts:
marchmad · 04/06/2013 08:57

Our children are in local schools, so cannot help you on how easy drop-off is, I don't know any children that young at EEB2 either to ask, I only know primary aged children there are they all go on the bus.

The immediate area around EEB is all residential and modern and terribly boring, it's more city like around Roodebeek metro but still nothing like the centre of the city of Brussels itself. Go on google maps and you'll see what it's like. Roodebeek metro is the nearest metro, but it's still about 1.5km away.

Place Dumon which is in WSP (Stockel quartier) is nearer EEB2 than Chant d'Oiseau quartier which is about 5km away. Place Dumon is about 3km from EEB2. It's also more expensive to live than Chant d'Oiseau but has the advantage of being near lots more things.

Portofino · 04/06/2013 09:03

This one is 200 m from the school and a bit cheaper....

Portofino · 04/06/2013 09:09

Another fairly close.

Original poster
whitford · 04/06/2013 10:31

Thank you for the link to the house Marchmad. Are there cycle routes all over Woluwe then?

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Original poster
whitford · 04/06/2013 10:45

Thanks everyone - just off to study the map!
Marchmad, just out of interest, are your friends who have children at EEB2 happy with the school? We have been lucky enough to get places there but I won't be able to visit the school until the end of the month. Also, do you think most parents there live near the school (I'm thinking playdates...)

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Portofino · 04/06/2013 10:56

As an aside - we have a closed FB group for Benelux mnetters. We go out and everything. Grin PM me if you would like to join.

Original poster
whitford · 04/06/2013 11:43

Thank you Portofino, will do!

OP posts:
marchmad · 04/06/2013 16:01

I'd say most EEB parents are happy. It's hard for me to comment on them, given my circumstances.

There are 3 Woluwes, which one? There are some cycle paths in Brussels, it's improving all the time, the area around EEB2 is better than average.

marchmad · 04/06/2013 16:07

No I'd say most kids DON'T live that near to EEB2 because most families settle before the children get to school age. EEB parents don't get an absolute choice of school so when they settle, they can do it near their preferred school, but chances are now that the vast majority of English section children are allocated EEB4 and still few live near there.

Take a look at EEB2 buses, you'll see where the children live that way.

marchmad · 04/06/2013 17:46

But since you have the advantage of knowing the school before choosing an area to live, I'd take advantage of the situation.

If you do want local playdates, you're better off choosing a local school, but you might just get lucky. You will find that a reasonable number of children at EEB2 do live within about 5 or 6kms radius. It's the most popular of the 4 schools, it's not that far to where most parents work, you'll find many living in 1150, 1200, 1950 and 1970 post codes.

Original poster
whitford · 04/06/2013 17:59

Good points Marchmad. Thanks to all for all your help.

OP posts:
marchmad · 04/06/2013 18:05

For cycle paths, if you go on this link, click on the square in the top right corner and choose "cycle map", then you can see the cycle paths.

www.openstreetmap.org/

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