Brusselina’s weekly top 5: The first of many

Brussels. The pros.

OK, I'll probably spend a fair amount of my online time bitching about my adoptive city. Still, plenty of reasons to go Belgian and choose Brussels over any other European capital -

1. You can get away in a flash.
Wherever it is you’re headed, chances are it’s not too far away. Whether it is a football game in Barcelona, a shopping trip to Milan or a weekend skiing in Austria - you can get there and back before anyone noticed you're gone. Now, try that from Helsinki, Lisbon or Sofia.

2. In comparative perspective, housing is still cheap.
If you're unconvinced, try to buy property in Amsterdam, Paris, London, Dublin or pretty much everywhere else in Europe.

3. You are not wasting away in a never-ending traffic jam
Belgians die to live in the country while working in town and they rush back and forth daily. Foreigners know better.

4. You get to feel good about yourself.
If for no other reason, then simply because you are more likely to speak the indigenous languages than the locals themselves.

5. If lucky, you can eat well.