ULB and Erasmus

My idea about ULB is connected to my idea of what is an University like.

As I've studied and visited some universities in Brasil, I'm used to the kind of buildings that ULB has. Simple, squared, big, full of rooms, without color. Most of the buildings of ULB seems without life for me. All the rooms are very similar, very big, and I often feel stucked on this awful chairs attached to each other.



But there are two special spots that I think are really really beautiful and pleasant to be in ULB: the main library and the new building.

I think the main library is beautiful because it has space. Maybe not enough for the huge number of users it receives everyday, but enough to make them keep coming everyday. There you have access to many different kinds of publications, general and specialized, really new or sometimes really really old. But the way everything is displayed for you to have access, with tables that you can use all the material everywhere, without having to leave the library or necessarily registering all the things you just want to take a look. I like it so much!





And the new building is on my top list because of it is colorful. Like all the rest of Belgium, most of ULB lacks colors, specially during winter. So, this building comes to solve the problem I've mentioned before. Still a place that you dont feel free to stay, to feel welcome to hang out or so, but it is at least a little more cheerful.

My Eyes On Rue de la Fourche

Rue de la Fourche:

Rue de la Fourche as other words is a student place for drink. The Brussels governorship supports this idea and works to keep this place as alive. There are many students from European Union and around the world. Beer is one of the language that all students speaks. So, this area is the meeting point of young people. More consumers means more consumption and also more advertisement. Since consumers became a part of images, the marketing has to include the consumer as a producer of products by experiences (Cova,1996). I think, pubs in this area make advertisements with their many kinds of beers and keeps the area popular. For example, I went to a bar near to Rue de la Fourche with my friends that called Delirium. Delirium has more than 2000 kinds of beer. You can try any taste of beer. Some of my frieds taste traditional Belgium beers, I tried fruit beers. Because I already now most of the traditional beers. The place was so beautiful with a very specalised style. In my opinion, they could creat the sense of marketing their beer and place by harmonizing and giving the idea that there are beers for everybody.

References:

• Bernard Cova, The Postmodern Explained to Managers: Implications for Marketing,Business Horizons, Nov-Dec, 1996.

• Yi-Hua Yuan and Chihkang Wu, Relationships Among Experiential Marketing, Experiential Value, and Customer Satisfaction, Journal of Hospitality & Tourism ResearchAugust 2008.

Grand Place

Talk about Grand Place and its beauty for me is pretty simple. It is definitely my favorite spot in Brussels, even being always crowded with tourists.

The first time I saw Gran Place was in autumn and it was still sunny and full of flowers. And that is the idea that I will always keep on my mind, not because it was the first impression, but because it was exactly the "dream" I had about Europe. The beautiful buildings were just like the castles from a fairytale of my childhood.





There is always something going on there, and that is usually a motivation to keep coming back. Even though, I keep coming back because it is a way I know I will be happy to see whenever I arrive there. The gray buildings always have something colorfull to cheer them up (sometimes flowers, flags or pink lights like this Christmas)

It is a really good place to be a part of something, as things are always happening here and, even when you were not planning to, you end up in the middle of some presentation, artists painting, government events or just a beer festival. But the understanding of this place definitely passes through what I have as understanding of this place: sweet childhood memories.

Place Flagey

Place Flagey gives me the great sensation of "coming home". It is really close to my house, and I pass by this square everyday at least twice. I don't think it is a beautiful place, although I like the place itself.

I think it is a hostile place. Not a lot of trees, a huge open space where if rains you are under the rain, if it snows it is really hard to cross it, when is windy there is nothing to stop the wind. Because for me it is a big empty space.



In one side of the square you can find "Frit Flagey", that recently changed place from besides the lake to Place Flagey itself, making the square a little more cozy, because is something familiar that brings me the good feeling of typical Bruxelloise Food.



I don't like all the stores around the square either. As Flagey is a really open place, the stores have a big impact on what you see, and for worse I would say, as during winter the square is mostly empty, not a lot of people, so all you see is impregnated with that. Except for the Belgian Coffee (that is a little, just a little better) I don't like the way the set looks.



But just for the record: Flagey on sunny days seems really really different. Even beautiful I would say, full of kids playing, people chatting and drinking on the benchs to enjoy the sun. But that is another version of Flagey, where I see more people and less emptiness and stores.

(Credits to this picture to the group "La Bande d'Artistes")

Delirium Street

The question that I will try to answer here is: is Delirium street beautiful for me or not, and why. So I prefer to start with a brief description of what that street looks like to me.

Too many people. A lot of restaurant tables, maîtres inviting you to sit, lots of moules frites. A bar with a lot of beers, another one with many kinds of absinthes.
I feel warm when I'm there, it is a easy place to mingle, but also because is a place full foreigners. Even though, for me this street really means a "Brussels experience".

So the feeling I get from this street is basically TOO MUCH. And too much is not really among my ideas of beauty.
All of that street seems fake, looks plastic. But one of the real issues for me is that, since is so crowded and "too much" you don't really have time to think about what you see, to feel, to breath. You are attacked all the time by people offering you a table, a funky hat, running over you to get to the bar, asking you for the girl who pees. And you throw yourself on the crowd, get to the (crowded) bar and get your beer. You can have fun, but is not the place you would pick to have fun, but because "everybody is going" or "everybody should go there once".

I like the bar, I kind of like the crowd on the street, but it is not beautiful. At all.

The article about Mediterranean thinking has a connection with the points that bothers me the most about this street: it leaves no space for us to create, to complete the image, to think for ourselves. I would prefer to avoid this excess.

Who is posting

My name is Elif and I am 23 years old. I am Turkish and currently studying at ULB as an Erasmus student for fall 2010-2011 semester. I am a senior economics student. In this project, we aimed to show different aesthetic views of marketing in Brussels. I mentioned my observes and hope to receive some feedbacks about my ideas and also your own comments about your favourite places in Brussels. (To see only Elif's posts click here)

My name is Meaghan and I'm 23 years old. I am Canadian and currently studying at ULB for my year abroad as part of my program in International Business. I currently already hold a Bachelor's degree in chemistry. I chose to take Advanced Marketing this year in order to broaden my learning while learning about marketing from a European perspective. As to why I chose to do this project, I felt it would allow me to voice my own opinions on the aesthetics of marketing in an interesting and current manner. I look forward to receiving any feedback on my comments and for others to share their own favourite places in Brussels. (To see only Meaghan's posts click here)

Hello! I'm Carol, 24 years old, Business Administration Student with a major degree in Fashion Business. I'm a Brazilian abroad since June and trying to visit and see as many places in Europe as I can until the end of February, when I will go back to my beloved country. I chose to take Advanced Marketing and specifically this project in order to make an exercise of reflexion and introspection about the country that I chose to live for a semester, and also to discuss a little bit about my idea of aesthetics. All my free time is taken to travel, to see different things, to try different food and for classic ballet. (To see only Carol's posts click here)

My name is Renaud and I am 24 years old. I am Belgian, living and studying in Brussels. I hold a Bachelor's degree in management, and I'm currently following a Master programme in international development at Solvay Brussels School-EM. I chose to go along with this marketing project because of its illustrative (and interactive) side. It sounded interesting to see people's feelings over these popular places, not only based on their aesthetic or structural characteristics, but also on their referential/symbolic value. Any feedback and experience-sharing would of course be greatly welcomed. (To see only Reno's posts click here)

Hey, my name is Vladimir. I am 21 years young. I am Canadian; however, I lived in Ukraine until I was 10 years old. Currently I am studying International Business at Carleton University. I came to Belgium to learn about Europe and learn French. I believe that e-presence is becoming very important for marketing efforts, that is why we chose to use popular web 2.0 tool – blogger - for presenting our marketing project. Working with people from different backgrounds was very interesting because each had unique perspective. (To see only Vladimir's posts click here)

Places we chose to visit

• ULB campus- This is an academic area where we spend the bulk of our time going to class and studying
• Place Flagey- This is a commercial area where we can shop for food, catch a bus, enjoy a meal or simply just do some banking
• Grand Place- This is a touristic spot who's reputation makes it impossible for someone not to visit and take in the sights
• Rue de la Fourche- This is a leisure area where you can taste the culinary delights of Brussels, go exploring or enjoy a beer with friends at Delirium

Why this blog was created

When we decided to look at the aesthetics of marketing we chose to go with what we knew which was in this case, Brussels. Seeing how all members of the group were from a diverse background we decided that it would add an interesting layer to our perception of beauty. However, since we were all students, this element of consistency allowed us to control for a certain demographics (age and income) while exploring the impact of other factors on our perception. For our exploration we chose 4 locations that we felt represented the student’s path. Starting with ULB where we spend the bulk of our time, moving to Place Flagey, then to the touristy Grand Place and finally finishing off in Rue de la Fourche. Each location presented a different view of Brussels and had a different meaning for each of the group members. The following entries are a personal and somewhat introspective approach examining the beauty of each location. Through the use of blog entries each student has commented on the aesthetics on each location and has attempted to determine which factors have impacted their decisions. We are analyzing their impact and whether they cast a positive or negative light, since each location itself is a form of marketing, promoting Brussels as a city.