Strike!

There may be no better example than the general strike on Monday (to protest high prices and a general decline in pouvoir d'achat) to illustrate the animosity between Flamands and Walloons.

We had been warned to keep food supplies on hand, as many stores might be closed. However, about half the stores in Brussels remained open - provided the majority of the employees were Flemish-speaking*. Apparently, the Flamands did not agree that there was much to protest and certainly did not want to get caught supporting an initiative they viewed as largely Wallonian in origin.

*Information provided by a new friends in Brussels, a category that is actually beginning to exist. Yay!