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The Move

Posted by Simon Butcher on
Belgium The view at the old place over Place Rouppe

A and I decided to move in together a little over a month ago, and having found a place we have spent most of this month moving in. After a bit of convincing, A agreed to an apartment in the area of the Marolles (where I was living), and we found a huge ≅150m² loft-style apartment right on the edge of the district, purely by accident.

Moving only a few blocks from my old apartment seems a bit odd, but I think I might miss my old ≅75m² place overlooking Place Rouppe… a bit…

I've added a few photos here of my side of the move, as I haven't really got much to say at this point.

All my worldly goods stuffed into the entrance hall at the old building
The plan was for a removal van to pick up A's stuff, then swing by and pick up my stuff, all before Comme Chez Soi (below my old apartment) started their lunch service. The removalists moved everything that was in the apartment down in the ground floor entrance in about 30-minutes' time in preparation for the van's arrival.
The bedroom seen from the kitchen through the living area
The kitchen, entrance and bathroom from the living area
The very basic kitchen
The view out the kitchen window to Chapel
The old apartment was basic, but still home for so many years.
It came as a shock to me that the place was emptied so quickly.
Moving van tetris on Place Rouppe
Moving van tetris on Place Rouppe
Moving van tetris on Place Rouppe
The van was late, and lunch service at Comme Chez Soi had started. Moving my furniture into the van was complicated by need to move the van at the same time, with the result being some form of Frogger-Tetris hybrid. I think it was only due to the skill of Michel (voiturier at Comme Chez Soi) that this was pulled off. In the end, my couch and a few other bits that didn't fit into the van as planned were carried on foot to the new place.
The lift to take all the stuff into the new apartment
The van conveniently blocking the traffic
Hello again, stuff!
I wandered over to the new place, following my couch, and found that A's dad was kind enough to come and help shift some boxes once they had arrived up the lift.
New place on the first night from the living area
New place on the first night from the kitchen
When I moved into my last apartment, I literally had nothing beyond what was in my suitcase and my backpack; but now after merging our two apartments, we had a lot to sort through. Our first night was spent wondering where to start — these photos only show about ⅓ of the stuff. Furthermore, Belgians like to rent their apartments without light fixtures for some reason, so I had to start wiring in some temporary lights so we could see what we were doing.
Still a work in progress: The spare room (for things we can't be bothered dealing with yet)
Still a work in progress: The office area
Still a work in progress: The office area
Still a work in progress: The dining area
Still a work in progress: The living area (with the first coat of paint)
Still a work in progress: The hallway area thing
It's been three weeks since we moved in, and we've gotten the light fixtures in place, the Ikea furniture rebuilt, and A's started to paint. It's going to be a while before we're really settled, I think.

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