At the Helm

Time to wax lyrical [again] about the almost military precision of the organisation of the city’s affairs by the Town Hall, the Stadhuis. The processes could be described as a touch bureaucratic but it is a fearsomely efficient machine and has a human face, mostly! This mini-paean is brought on by the simultaneous appearance of the terraces of various cafes and restaurants on March 15. With the

Stadhuis, Brugge
 

smooth faultless perfection of a synchronised swimming team, many terraces were in place when I walked to the Crowne Plaza soon after 6.00 a.m. And during the morning, one could see the more ambitious, verandah-style constructions taking shape with numerous workmen intent upon their jobs. Some of the terraces are very chic like the glass elongated box in front of Tom Pouce in the Burg. Marvellous place to sit when warm or cool, windy or still, sunny or grey, but its construction is a complex undertaking. Ultimately, in place, it is a money-spinner one imagines for the Chinese owner.
 

The re-appearance of the terraces is one of the welcome signs of Spring following on from the dawn chorus which I noticed a couple of weeks ago; it greeted my leaving the hotel after my

 The extra-chic Spring terrace of Tom Pouce, the Burg.

swim around 7.20 but now sings its song from the dark as I leave home to go to the Burg at 6.05. This performance added to the gaiety of the sunny, warm days earlier this week as I dithered over no coat, long cardigan or what? I couldn’t wait to buy a camellia plant and several polyanthus on the Wednesday market to plant on the terrace, sun-ready, smiling under blue skies.

Elvis Costello has been and gone, after a stunning performance according to my enthusiastic informant. I am not a fan but elder daughter was devoted to him long ago when in her twenties I always imagine him as the thinking person’s pop singer, though he may have a more specific title. Whatever, my description greatly gratified my friend-who-is-a-fan! A tiring day Friday, with Dutch in the morning; Dutch in the afternoon and tax friend who came to advise me on ‘next steps’.

Elvis Costello

I have an ongoing struggle to gain proof of the status of my teachers’ pension [to continue being taxed in the UK] for the Belgian tax office here so that I can begin the process of trying to get a refund for tax paid on the other two pensions which are to move to the Belgian system for the years 2015-2017/18. Overall hangs a current bill for several thousand pounds of euros payable by March 24 to the Belgian tax system. Ik reis hoopvol which may mean, I travel hopefully! Interesting that I am still so upbeat after a phone call to the UK tax people on Tuesday which lasted for 41 minutes, followed by my failure to unearth promised information online and  another call of 39 minutes, a quarter of an hour later. I now watch the post with heightened interest.

And now to a heart-warming story involving the Mayor of Mechelen who is in all the media having won the World Mayor Prize for transforming his city, Mechelen, into a proud home for its diverse residents. Mechelen, between Antwerp and Brussels, has had Bart Somers as Mayor since 2001 and was the only Belgian city to ask the Government to send some refugees at the height of the recent crisis.

 Bart Somers, current World Mayor but for 15 years so far,
Mayor of Mechelen
 

The London-based City Mayors' Foundation was looking to celebrate mayors and cities that showed excellence in the integration and acceptance of refugees and newcomers into their communities. Mechelen housed 200 people, provided Dutch lessons as well as classes on social skills and involved around half of the 200 in volunteer activities.

This is a relatively small number of refugees [think Lesbos and Lampedusa] but it is the latest echo of the continuous and enlightened efforts of Somers to transform his city of 86,000 into a desirable and inclusive place in which to live. In 2001 Mechelen had been voted the dirtiest city in Belgium and crime was rampant. Somers focussed on greening the city with new parks and car parks, placing the spotlight firmly on cyclists and pedestrians. The Mayor says his three main aims have always been safety, improving public space and fostering inclusion. Fifteen years later, Mechelen [with 138 different nationalities] wins awards like the international Entente Florale and heads the Financial Times’ Cities of the Future ranking. Bart Somers feels simply that a good mayor should be able to affect how people feel about their city. “That is the most beautiful thing a mayor could aspire to”.

 Mechelen in flower

He is sure that it is not a new building project, not the level of local taxation, not the number of jobs. In fact he has succeeded in making the residents of Mechelen, the Mechelaars, feel proud of their city.