la basilique

I really like “la basilique“, this church on the Place Charles II a couple blocks from where I live. There’s a gorgeous mosaic inside, see a detail here.

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bike paths

One of my favorite things about Charleroi is the bike path along the Sambre that you can take all the way to France. On the way out of town you ride through a heavy industrial zone, which is where I shot this pic.

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the weather

It rains a lot in Belgium.

This is the view from my apartment a couple blocks from the Place Charles II.

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American Sandwich

There’s a dish they make over here called “filet américain” – it’s basically raw hamburger meat, known in English as steak tartare. A boulangerie near where I live does a really delicious version, very creamy and about the same toxic orange color as this stand at the street fair that comes to town twice a year.

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visible trash

My dad’s mother worked in a hosiery mill in Asheboro, NC back in the last century. Charleroi used to be a very industrial city, mostly with coal mining and steel. They also made glass here. Now so much stuff is made in China it’s depressing. Don’t buy it – fight globalization! Ok, I do sometimes buy stuff, of course, but my basic viewpoint these days is that we need to totally re-think the entire system of production, consumption and, of course, trash.

This pic is from the Sunday market near where I live.

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nightlife

After 17 years in NYC then 7 in Charlotte, NC as a social butterfly, I’m burnt out on nightlife. But there is some in Charleroi if you like that sort of thing. I did go see this concert by On Prend L’Air because that guy playing the accordion (Damien Noël) is the guy who helps me with my paperwork at SMart asbl, and boy do I need help.

By the way, if you’re a creative freelancer working in Belgium, you’ll probably have to go through SMart to get your paperwork in order. It’s not like in the states where you just send someone a bill, they pay it and that’s that.

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sweet tooth

My favorite food is homemade salted popcorn, but if you like sweets, Belgium’s got ’em. These are some marzipan things I photographed at the local Sunday market. It fills the streets of Charleroi’s ville haute (upper town) every Sunday, and on Wednesdays it’s in the ville basse (lower town).

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self by self

Here’s some self-portraits in case you were wondering.

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Charleroi, ville mythique

Here’s a set of pictures I did of Charleroi when I was first getting to know the city. And no, I haven’t been to this cocktail bar even though it’s near where I live. I don’t drink much anymore, but I like the sign.

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I live in Charleroi, Belgium now

Have been living here since 2007. Moved here from Charlotte, NC. Before that I was in NYC for 17 years, and before that was high school in CA and OR, and before that was the 70’s in Greece and Belgium, and before that was childhood as a Navy brat between the east and west coasts of the USA. I do freelance graphic design for a living.

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