Discover Belgium

Be volunteer in Belgium

Belgium is a small, highly developed and densely populated country (10 million of inhabitants) at the cross-roads of Western Europe. Belgium is one of the founding members of the European Community, and its capital, Brussels, is also the capital of the European Union. It is a federal state, with 3 relatively autonomous regions: Flanders in the north, where the language is Dutch (“Flemish”), Wallonia in the south, where the language is French, and the centrally located Brussels, which is officially bilingual. Belgium’s rich history has left impressive churches, town halls, castles and works of art, dating back to the early Middle Ages, spread around the cities and country-side.

Belgium has possibly the highest “quality of life” in the world, as testified by its excellent food, housing, health care, education and infrastructure, its world records for high productivity and low poverty, and the appreciation of foreigners residing in Belgium.

Food in Daily Life. Bread and potatoes are the traditional staple foods. Most meals include pork, chicken, or beef, and seafood is popular in the northern part of the country. Beer is the traditional drink, but wine is imported in large quantities. In northern cities, popular dishes include mussels with fries and waterzooia (literally boiling water), a stew made of vegetables and meat or fish. All accross the country, French fries are eaten with steaks or minced raw meat. Cooking is traditionally done with butter rather than oil; there is also a high consumption of dairy products. Moreover, immigration has ensured a diversity of “ethnic” restaurants and is gradually changing the eating habits of the residents in culturally mixed areas.

Food Customs at Ceremonial Occasions. Christmas is an occasion for large family meals with grandparents and cousins. There are many other occasions for long meals at public and private celebrations, such as weddings, funerals, and the days devoted to city and parish saints. Pastries are associated with religious and civil occasions. At Christmas, people eat sweet bread in the form of the child Jesus; at Easter, children are told that eggs are dropped in the gardens by flying churchbells; and sugar beans are distributed to those who visit a young mother.

Classes and Castes. There is a relatively even distribution of wealth, with 5 to 6 percent living close to the poverty line. The majority of the population is middle class. The vast majority has equal opportunities for education and a professional life. There is a very inclusive social security system.

Deep societal cleavages have led to the construction of “pillars,” integrated social structures based on ideology. Although “pillarisation” is becoming less important in social life, its influence is clearly noticeable. These pillars encompass every aspect of societal life, including youth, sports and leisure movements, education at all levels, trade unions, health funds, newspapers, and political parties. The three main pillars are the Christian-democrat pillar, the socialist pillar, and the liberal pillar. Until the 1990s, the positions of these pillars were mutually agreed on and anchored through a complex system of “political nominations” in which people with a philosophical affiliation to one of the pillars were appointed to key societal positions as magistrates, top public officials, and leaders of state-controlled companies. The public is turning against this aspect of the pillars, but their influence and power are considerable, especially when their interests are challenged.

The major cleavages are ethnocultural (Flemish speakers versus Francophones), philosophical (the church versus liberals) and economic. The importance of these cleavages has changed over time, often leading to the establishment of new coalitions.

Symbols of Social Stratification. Wealth is most often expressed through houses and cars. In general, there are few external behavioral class markers. The upper classes act discreetly, and people make little distinction between classes or social strata. Exceptions sometimes appear in youth culture, where fashion can turn into a means of social distinction.

Read more: here

Cost of living in Belgium is 5.59% higher than in United States (aggregate data for all cities, rent is not taken into account)

If you would like to have the daily life costs, click here.

You might want to note that most stores in Belgium close around 6pm (8pm for supermarkets) and that lots of stores are closed on Sunday.

  • “Pôle handicap” : Partners with projects with disabled people.
    – Arche
    – Côte à Côte
    – Les Pilotis
    – Accueil et Vie
    – Renaissance
  • Youth Hostels : Jacques Brel Brussels, Tournai, Generation Europe.
  • Project NOW
  • School Projects : Don Bosco, École des petits chemins
  • Le Fagotin
  • The Caves of Han

Cheap flight to Belgium

DépartDépart àRetour àTrouver des billets
Berlin23 avril 202427 avril 2024Tickets from 62
Barcelone8 juin 202412 juin 2024Tickets from 66
Venise21 mai 202423 mai 2024Tickets from 78
Budapest22 mai 202428 mai 2024Tickets from 89
Varsovie17 avril 202419 avril 2024Tickets from 91
Stockholm16 avril 202417 avril 2024Tickets from 99
Milan10 octobre 202414 octobre 2024Tickets from 106
Istanbul16 mai 202420 mai 2024Tickets from 111
Genève11 avril 202414 avril 2024Tickets from 137
Vienne26 juillet 202430 juillet 2024Tickets from 137
Antalya30 mars 20244 avril 2024Tickets from 141
Naples3 mai 20248 mai 2024Tickets from 144
Paris22 avril 202424 avril 2024Tickets from 147
Madrid8 août 202412 août 2024Tickets from 151
Londres22 avril 202428 avril 2024Tickets from 153
Rome27 juillet 202429 juillet 2024Tickets from 153
Tallinn31 mai 20243 juin 2024Tickets from 154
Nice3 août 20248 août 2024Tickets from 155
Séville8 mai 202412 mai 2024Tickets from 157
Riga9 mai 202412 mai 2024Tickets from 162
Lisbonne4 juin 20249 juin 2024Tickets from 165
Iassy2 mai 20246 mai 2024Tickets from 165
Prague31 mars 20246 avril 2024Tickets from 170
Helsinki28 avril 20241 mai 2024Tickets from 170
Citium15 avril 202421 avril 2024Tickets from 171
Málaga15 mai 202418 mai 2024Tickets from 173
Belgrade3 mai 20246 mai 2024Tickets from 173
Izmir2 avril 20243 avril 2024Tickets from 174
Valence4 avril 20249 avril 2024Tickets from 178
Cracovie19 mai 202423 mai 2024Tickets from 178
Vilnius25 mai 202428 mai 2024Tickets from 182
Erevan6 juin 202410 juin 2024Tickets from 190
Copenhague11 avril 202413 avril 2024Tickets from 195
Lyon23 avril 202424 avril 2024Tickets from 198
Chişinău15 mars 202516 mars 2025Tickets from 200
Athènes16 avril 202418 avril 2024Tickets from 203
Wrocław27 mai 202429 mai 2024Tickets from 203
Tivat1 mai 20245 mai 2024Tickets from 205
Thessalonique11 avril 202412 avril 2024Tickets from 209
Kutaisi7 mai 202411 mai 2024Tickets from 211
Tel Aviv-Yafo26 mai 202430 mai 2024Tickets from 215
Poznan29 avril 202430 avril 2024Tickets from 216
Reus20 juin 202423 juin 2024Tickets from 217
Podgorica28 avril 20243 mai 2024Tickets from 219
Turin8 avril 202410 avril 2024Tickets from 224
Gerona20 juin 202423 juin 2024Tickets from 228
Munich3 avril 20249 avril 2024Tickets from 235
Bordeaux23 avril 202427 avril 2024Tickets from 238
Gdańsk13 avril 202415 avril 2024Tickets from 240
Francfort29 mai 20241 juin 2024Tickets from 255
Tbilissi3 novembre 20249 novembre 2024Tickets from 269
Birmingham16 août 202419 août 2024Tickets from 274
Edinbourg29 mars 20241 avril 2024Tickets from 276
Paphos15 avril 202421 avril 2024Tickets from 310
Dublin30 mars 20241 avril 2024Tickets from 315
Bourgas8 septembre 202414 septembre 2024Tickets from 316
Hambourg30 mars 20241 avril 2024Tickets from 317
Bakou3 juin 20247 juin 2024Tickets from 331
Tampere10 mai 202416 mai 2024Tickets from 349
Ljubljana31 mars 20245 avril 2024Tickets from 368
Bilbao28 mars 202430 mars 2024Tickets from 414
Bichkek30 mars 20245 avril 2024Tickets from 430
Dubaï17 avril 202418 avril 2024Tickets from 430
Makhatchkala30 mars 20243 avril 2024Tickets from 441
Moscou2 avril 20244 avril 2024Tickets from 453
Almaty1 avril 20243 avril 2024Tickets from 458
Sharjah17 avril 202418 avril 2024Tickets from 462
Mineralnye Vody2 avril 20247 avril 2024Tickets from 477
Abou Dhabi12 juillet 202414 juillet 2024Tickets from 484
Bern31 mars 20246 avril 2024Tickets from 487
Adler13 mai 202419 mai 2024Tickets from 509
Saint-Pétersbourg1 avril 20242 avril 2024Tickets from 531
Groznyj29 mars 20241 avril 2024Tickets from 537
Kazan3 juin 20249 juin 2024Tickets from 549
Astana24 avril 202429 avril 2024Tickets from 633
Iekaterinbourg5 avril 20247 avril 2024Tickets from 658
Minsk18 avril 202422 avril 2024Tickets from 664
Vladikavkaz11 avril 202412 avril 2024Tickets from 666
Samara1 octobre 20246 octobre 2024Tickets from 677
Nizhniy Novgorod22 mai 202428 mai 2024Tickets from 700
Kaliningrad30 mars 20243 avril 2024Tickets from 725
Dushanbe13 mai 202416 mai 2024Tickets from 740
Tcheliabinsk9 avril 202414 avril 2024Tickets from 777
Novossibirsk10 avril 202412 avril 2024Tickets from 800
Nizhnevartovsk25 mai 202431 mai 2024Tickets from 888
Novy Urengoy30 mars 20242 avril 2024Tickets from 894
Magadan7 avril 202412 avril 2024Tickets from 1 034

Find a cheap plane ticket :