If it's Tuesday, This Must be Belgium - 4/8/08

Row, row, row your boat...gently 'cross the sea

Please don't roll over...and drown the books of me

Okay, so I won't win any song-writing awards.  But my stuff is on its way.  The movers came last Wednesday and reduced my entire house to a series of cardboard boxes.  Even my 2 sofas became boxes, as did my desk, tables, chairs, etc.  And of course my books.  Not too bad actually.  I think there were only about 30 (big) boxes of books.  Granted, I still have a 100 (or 200) that I didn't ship and I now have to sell or donate within the next 2 weeks.

So, a quick status update:

1) I'm a landlord!!  Well, almost a landlord.  On the day of the move I signed an agreement with a local property management firm to rent out my townhouse while I'm stationed in Brussels.  That was Wednesday.  On Friday it was listed on MLS (or whatever it is called these days).  Over the weekend I had three realtors bring people through for a look see, with another on Monday [and as I was writing this I got a call for another showing this afternoon].  I actually wish they wouldn't yet, because it still needs to be cleaned up and some painting needs to be done.  Oh well, hopefully it will mean it's rented out quickly (since I kind of need some rental income to help cover some of the rent I have already started paying in Brussels).

2) That said, I finally was able to wire transfer my rent on 3/31 (it was due 1/1).  Now I still need to set up a bank account in Brussels and also set up a separate "deposit" account into which I need to place 2 months rent that neither me or the landlord can touch for 3 years.  Ugh.

3) On Thursday I got the wonderful news that my work permit arrived!!  Woo hoo!  Oh, it arrived in our Brussels office and was sent by DHL to my office in DC.  But here it is mid-day on Tuesday and still no work permit in sight.  And DHL is having some sort of "scanning delay" and doesn't know if they will deliver it today or not.  Wonderful.  It's already too late to go to the Belgian Embassy here in DC (the Embassy is only open from 9 am to Noon each day).  So Wednesday I'll go to the Embassy to apply for my work visa (assuming DHL can get it's act together today or tomorrow before 10 am).  I already have the rest of the paperwork lined up and ready to go (i.e., yet another pair of passport/visa photos, my medical exam paperwork, my FBI report and fingerprints [which has been to Brussels and back already], and my passport.  Then it's another week or two (I hope not more) before I have to go back up to pick up my passport w/visa. 

4) I'm hoping the Embassy will give me a definitive date so I can make my flight arrangements.  I'm planning to bring my car up to Massachusetts, so hope to fly directly out of Boston to Brussels (assuming they have direct flights).  So I should be over there by the last week of April (just in time to pay my May rent).

I can tell you - I really want this process to be over so I can get settled and started in Brussels.  Argh.

On a better note, I already have a one-day meeting in Paris scheduled for May and I found out today I will be able to go on a tour of ancient Rome when I'm there in early June for a conference.  I had previously thought I wouldn't have time to tour, but this is part of a networking arrangement the conference organizers put together.  Woo Hoo!  [I also have plans to do Spain in June...but I'll save that story for another week.]

No photo essay this week, but here's a photo I took in Scotland a few years ago.  I actually had a puzzle made of this one [Note: it looks a little dark in the Gather editor...it's actually much better onscreen.]