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Wednesday 8th May, 2002 - 11:00 BST
Ex-pat
diary - Belgium |
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Our
latest ex-pat diary comes from the land of chocolates and beer -
Belgium.
Simon tells us that despite being a great place to eat, there are
some Lincolnshire treats missing...
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Belgium is well known for its chocolates and beer |
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I’ve
lived and worked in Brussels for five years, but I can’t stay away
from Lincolnshire for too long. Any day now, I’ll be driving back
to the county on a vital mission.
You could say I’m in the food speciality import-export business.
Not professionally, you understand (my day job is actually in the
PR industry).
The problem with Brussels is the food. Not that it isn’t brilliant.
The restaurants are fantastic and Belgium makes the best chocolate
and the best beer in the world. No, the trouble is, you can’t
get a decent pork pie anywhere.
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| Famous
Mannequin Pis statue in Brussels |
And
(since Marks & Spencer’s branch in Brussels closed last year) no
one here sells proper Lincolnshire pork sausages either. You can’t
get haslet for love nor money. Or plum bread. You have to go to
Lincolnshire to fetch it.
So I’ll be driving 350 miles each way (not counting the Channel
crossing), with the cold box ready in the boot, to transport an
obscene quantity of Lincolnshire ‘soul food’ back
to Brussels.
Of course, I have to bring some Belgian chocolates northwards in
part-exchange (my Lincolnshire family are canny folk; no chocolate,
no bed for the night).
Strict BBC rules prevent me from naming the shop where I will make
my purchases. But if you happen to see a Belgian-registered car
parked next to a well-known butcher’s shop in Navenby, that’ll be
me, the sad exile, stocking up on pork pies for the journey home.
Are
you an ex-pat living abroad like Nicola or Simon? Would you
like to write a short ex-pat diary on a regular basis? If so,
we would love to hear from you. Email us today at:
lincolnshire@bbc.co.uk |
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BBC Lincolnshire
Radion Buildings
PO Box 219
Newport
Lincoln
LN1 3XY

Telephone: 01522 511411
E-mail: lincolnshire@bbc.co.uk
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