Tales from a Brussels bar – Brexit 3 The bar was quieter tonight. The usual suspects were there – we had planned to discuss Brexit again. But no-one wanted to tallk about it immediately – Maj and co. had gone off to play darts, others […]

          Tales from a Brussels bar – Brexit 2 Stassos was quoting Shakespeare, but in slightly modified form. “Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of European fortune – or to take arms … that’s what you want to do.” He […]

          Tales from a Brussels bar – Brexit 1 It was a fine Spring evening in Brussels, the sun lingering on the pavements – quite the best time of the year in the city. Steve the Bar had put a couple of barrels and stools outside, […]

Tales from a Brussels bar 04/12/2016 Update. EU’s new VAT rules likely to make ebooks cheaper. Glum faces lined the bar last night, though it was Friday. Even Costas was not his usual ebullient self. Apparently it had been snowing in Athens, so it wasn’t just the whole of the […]

Tales from a Brussels bar   It had been cold outside all week, so I was happy that night to wedge myself against the radiator, pint in hand, and peruse the headlines. A quiet evening – there was just a sprinkling of customers – the usual suspects. And I wasn’t […]

Tales from a Brussels bar “Honestly, what is wrong with the EU constitution, apart from the thousand pages of it?” It seemed I’d walked straight into a distinctly heavy conversation. Ordering a beer to fortify myself, I sought out a comfy seat. It was Maj talking, of course. “A real […]

Tales from a Brussels bar Tam the barman suddenly exclaimed “ffff” – that was what started it. He was under pressure –

Tales from a Brussels bar An interesting topic came up on Monday evening last week. Outside temperatures had risen by at least eight degrees in the previous two days, and Brussels was showing the first welcome signs of spring. 

Tales from a Brussels bar I caught up with Maj in the bar yesterday after a particularly confusing euro meeting, so I was happy to get beer in hand and think about things less complicated. Barely had I settled in my seat, however, before the discussion slid to that bane […]

Tales from a Brussels bar I was joshing with my old mate Maj last night – we were exchanging news and solving the problems of the world. And he started getting philosophical. Don’t get me wrong. Philosophy and the deeper state of being are not something we normally get up […]