Brussels, is anyone still here?! 😂
Some of my friends still are, but the city is slowly but surely becoming a ghost town. I even had a hard time finding events for the next few weeks to feature in the calendar! Where is everyone spending their holidays? Reply to this email; I want to know 🙂. I’m going home to the Czech Republic for a week, but otherwise, I will be in Brussels.
I’ve only been to one new place in the last two weeks (also, because I was cheating on Brussels with London), and that place was DRACHE Specialty Coffee Bar. It had been on my list for a while, and I can’t believe it has taken me so long to go there, because their iced latte was definitely one of the best I had in Brussels. And they have a wide selection of other drinks on offer.
I’ll take a short summer break from writing and will be back with a new issue on 19 August. Have fun in the meantime, and I’ll see you then!
In this issue:
💃 9 Belgian music festivals to attend in August
📱 My top 3 travel apps
🗓️ Upcoming events in Brussels (23 July-19 August)
9 Belgian festivals to attend in July
The music festival season is still going strong in Belgium, so if you still haven’t been to any or are aching to go to more, I’ve got you covered! And if your preferred day is sold out, you can always check TicketSwap or official festival websites for resales.
7-9 August: Suikerrock (Tienen) - Arsenal, Editors, Joost, Kate Ryan, The Kooks. Tickets are available for all days.
7-9 August: Dranouter Festival (Dranouter) - Blackwave, Mentissa, Pommelien Thijs, The Kooks, ZAZ. Tickets are available for Sunday.
7-9 August: Ronquières Festival (Ronquières) - DJ Snake, Hooverphonic, Macklemore, Oscar and the Wolf, Roméo Elvis. Tickets are available for all days.
14-15 August: Down by the Sea (Knokke-Heist) - Axelle Red, Clouseau, Luca Lawrence, Typh Barrow. Tickets are available for both days.
14-16 August: WECANDANCE (Zeebrugge) - Amiya, Cincity, Don Jordy, Masterdream, Noon. Tickets are available for all days.
21-23 August: Pukkelpop (Kiewit) - Florence + The Machine, Major Lazer, Sombr, Yungblud, Zara Larsson. Tickets are sold out for all days. Let me know if you’re coming! I’ll be there on Friday and Sunday 🙂
27-30 August: Maanrock (Mechelen) - Amber Broos, Clouseau, De Mens, K3 Live, Yong Yello. This festival is free.
28-29 August: Bomboclat (Zeebrugge) - Bamby, Heaven Sam, Karyo, Kyrba, Lila Iké. Tickets are available for both days.
28-29 August: Forest Sounds Festival (Forest Abbaye) - Edredon Sensible, Kingolo Kiniata, Sarab, Whoman, Yasmine. Tickets are available for all days, and you decide how much you want to pay.
My top 3 travel apps
I assume most of you will be travelling this summer. I tend to travel a lot (except for this year, you know, first year of freelancing 😅), and there are apps that I just can’t do without when I’m abroad. Let me tell you a bit more about them, and if you use my code or link, you may get a discount, and I may get a commission. Terms and conditions apply to all.
Revolut: I’ve been using this app for around 10 years already, and I just love it so much. When I was still living in the Czech Republic, this was my companion for all trips, as my country doesn’t use the euro. But even when living here, I’ve used Revolut in countries like the UK, USA, Turkey, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, or Thailand, as the app provides me with the best exchange rate and I see all my expenses immediately. On top of that, it worked perfectly when splitting group expenses with my friends in Malaysia; we just literally attributed our spending directly from the app. I also use it for a higher-yield savings account for VAT and taxes. And you can also buy stocks on this app, but I use a different one for that. Use my affiliate link to get started until 4 August.
NordVPN: I’ve been using NordVPN for two years now, and I’m really happy with the service as well. I use it for two main purposes: a) to protect myself and my data whenever I use a public Wi-Fi, and b) to connect to any country in the world if I want to change my offer on streaming platforms, view shops that are not available in Belgium, or even compare flight prices. Get 1 to 3 extra months if you use my affiliate link.
Saily: Remember the times when you queued for a physical SIM card at an airport abroad or checked local newsagents to get one? Or maybe you bought extra mobile data from your provider? As long as your phone supports e-SIMs, you don’t have to do this anymore. I specifically bought my new phone last year with this function, and used Saily as my e-SIM on my Southeast Asian trip in January this year. It worked perfectly in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand, and when I had an issue, their human (!) customer service was stellar. Use my code ANDREA36983 to get 5 USD off your first purchase!
Upcoming events
🤝 = networking/meeting new people; 🎨 = crafts and workshops; 👚 = fashion; 🎸= music; 🎉 = parties and festivals; 🎭 = theatre, musicals and performing arts; 🚶 = walking and hiking; 🏀 = sport; 🎥 = film festivals and screenings; 🏋️ = fitness; 🎤 = talks; 🍔 = food and drinks; 🖼️ = exhibitions; 😂 = comedy; 🛒 = shopping and markets; 🎮 = games and quizzes
🤝 24 July: Brussels Social and Language Exchange @Time Out Pub (link)
🎉 24 July: Pub Crawl @secret venue (link)
🏋️ 26 July: Sunday Run (1st edition) - Zvezda Running Club @Place de l’Atomium 1 (link)
🍔 26 July: Brunch Club @secret venue (link)
🍔 26 July: Microbrewery Experience @Wolf (link)
🤝 26 July: Sushi Connections - Meet Through Shared Experiences, Not Interviews @Sabbar (link)
😂 30 July: Interactive Comedy @Wolf (link)
🎨 30 July: Light Painting Workshop @Malina More Studio (link)
🎨 31 July: A Magical Harry Potter Meetup in Brussels @Malina More Studio (link)
🎮 31 July: Nintendo Switch Tournament @secret venue (link)
🎉 6 August: VIBKES Rooftop Afterwork | Open Air | Albert @Royal Library (link)
🎉 13 August: The Day Club x Jardin Hospice @Jardin Hospice (link)
🖼️ 13-16 August: Brussels’ Flower Carpet @Grand-Place (link)
🎥 13-16 August: Cinair movie nights @Parc du Cinquantenaire (link)
🎉 14-15 August: XRDS Festival @Parc des Étangs (link)
🎉 14-29 August: Brigittines Summer Festival @Les Brigittines (link)
🎉 15 August: Hangar invites Boris Brejcha b2b Eric Prydz @Royal Palace (link)
🎉 16 August: Hangar invites Black Coffee @Royal Palace (link)
🎸 17-22 August: Hide and Seek Festival @various locations (link)
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