WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE BELGIANS?

What do we really know about their country,its people and language?

I know thet they have a bit of a strugle between the 2 major language groups.(there are 3)
That they are nice people (Im talking about the flemmings,I think the wallonians have a bit of a french attitude,like "Im not going to help you because my hands will get dirty)
Beautifull citties like G(h)ent,Antwerp,Liege,and ofcourse Brussels (to bad that everybody speaks french there...its in the middle of a flemmish speaking province...)

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker is an award-winning Belgian choreographer with an excellent reputation in the contemporary dance community. I haven't seen any of her works, but I've seen dancers and choreographers who have studied and worked with her, including London's Akram Khan, whose work I adore.

De Keersmaeker studied at the school of Maurice Bejart, an earlier Belgian choroegrapher whose work I didn't like at all.

I'm afraid that's all I know about the Belgians.

Does anyone remember the Monty Python sketch about the contest to come up with derogatory names for the Belgians (since there aren't any in English)?

My try at a derogatory name for the Belgians: Mussel slurpers!

Was the original Belgian thread earlier today deleted?

I know the Belgians have a really big, nice wood outside Brussel, the Zonïenwoud. I would really like to visit it one day, as I am mad about civilized, European leaf forests!

Was I do not know about Belgium is why they did not hand over Eupen and Malmedy to Germany after the war in stead of creating probably very costly federal institutions for those few Germans.

Falnders has lovely cities. But Flanders must be one of the few regions of Europe without any countryside sights. True?

And of course I appreciate Tintin!

And that the most loved Belgium woman ever was a Swede: Queen Astrid!

Fredrik from Norway ,

No countryside ? Look at this ...
http://users.skynet.be/fa220843/vlaams7.wmv
And that's only a small fraction of the countryside in my province ( West-Flanders)

I'm sorry to say this Sander ,
but I stick with my opinion :
If Limburgish is a language , so why doesn't West-Flemish get that privilage ?
Our language differs more from the standardform than Limburgish does , according to studies at the university of Ghent ...

Very nice, !, although I think the choice of music was not totally appropriate!
But are there any particular sights in the countryside?

hmm,
In my province:
-Fort Napoleon
-A lot of ruïns of bunkers in the region of leffinge..
-Flanders field
-Mills in the area of Damme
-De kemmelberg in Kemmel ( also a lot of mills )
-Pittoresque ( Am I saying it right ? ) villages like Meetkerke
-Brugs Ommeland ( The area around Bruges )
-Beisbrouck forest
-Tilleghembus forest
-...

Ok, I had no idea!

belgium is a very nice country,a lot of forest, beautiful architecture (Victor Horta),
wonderfull painters like Magritte, Bruegel,....,

the most beautiful place of the world "La grande place",
a lot of monuments,

delicious frites (potatoes, chips),delicious beer (bier, bière) and delicious chocolat (Leonidas, Nehaus, Cote d'or,Meurisse,...),

big personnalities like Jacques Brel, Raymond Goethals, Anny Cordy, Gelluck, RAymond Devos,Louis Michel, Guy Verhoofstadt.

sevreval institutions as UE, NATO, SHAPE,....

the people are very cool, very kind,they have opened mind, a lot of differentes nationalities.

the languages in belgium are french, dutch and german but french is beter!!!

the bad thing in belgium is the weather!!!

I agree, the music was to Celtic-like ...
( West-Flanders does have a celtic background ... Some scientists say a 'Belgian' celtic language was spoken here on the countryside until the 13 hundreds.That would be an explination for all the 'odd' sounds in our dialect and for words like : de Schelde , kaai ,... )

75 years Belgium !
Hip hip hooray !

It's really strange they didn't find any written material of this celtic language ...

Please provide us with more information about this language! I have never heard baout it.