Antwerp British and International Women

About The Antwerp British & International Women

The ABIW is a friendly group of English-speaking women of various nationalities. We try to help expatriates who have recently arrived to find their feet and to learn something about life Antwerp and Belgium.

Many of our members are here permanently, either because they decided to make their lives here or they are married to Belgian men. This means that the friends you make will not all be disappearing after a year or so!

See our membership page for more information.

Upcoming Activities

Non-members are welcome to many of our events.

You do not need to be an expatriate to join us. Just speak English!

There is a 5 euro fee for first-time and "out-of-town" guests at our General Meeting and some other activities.
The fee is reimbursed if you join. The fee for other guests is 10 euros.

Use our Contact Form to let us know if you would like to come.

For non-ABIW activities, see our What's On page.

February

February 7^th - General Meeting - Genius has no Sex

In April 1815, Mme De Staël wrote the legendary words, "Genius has no Sex" in a letter to Benjamin Constant. Later Heinrich Heine commented upon them as being “a bad joke”. In the 21^st century, we can come to the conclusion that Germaine de Staël was right: a beautiful mind can be born into a male or female body and talent is equally divided between the two sexes.

This also applies to the world of literature. In her lecture “How Female Writers Conquered the World” (in April of this year), Mary Watson-Kullmann showed us how, in the 19th century, women took their first steps on this unknown and tricky path called “the novel” and … not without success! It led them to Nobel prizes and fame on the cinema screen.

However, there are other female writers, whose lives were interesting and who have enchanted many readers, and not necessarily only adults! “Genius has no Sex” takes off where the previous talk left us. The lecture is again divided into 3 parts: women who wrote children’s literature, women who wrote in exile, and female writers of today.

Mary Watson has written book critiques for the Davidfonds and teaches literature at the Open Leercentrum of the Sint-Michielscollege in Schoten.

Place: Theater Hotel, Arenbergstraat, Antwerp.
Time: 10:00 for coffee; meeting starts at 10:30.

February 16^th  - Culture Club trip to deSingel

The opening of deSingel was the fulfilment of Peter Benoit’s dream. In 1867, this composer became the director of the Antwerp Flemish Music School, which obtained official recognition as a result of his unceasing involvement. In 1899 it became the Royal Flemish Conservatory of Music.

However, Benoit’s ideas extended further than educating students and training artists. He dreamed of involving the entire population in the international musical and theatrical scene. In addition to the music school, he wanted an auditorium where not only the students but also the public would have the opportunity to benefit from the range of cultural and artistic activities available. In this sense Benoit represents the first steps towards what would become deSingel international arts centre.

In 1958, the Ministry of Public Works commissioned the architect Leon Stynen to design an ambitious complex. The foundation stone was laid in 1964 and the new Antwerp Conservatory opened in 1968. The second stage of the building was delayed, but was eventually officially opened in 1980.

This guided tour will take in the entire deSingel site. Don’t miss this chance to see behind the scenes and find out more about the impressive architecture.

Meet: 11 am at the entrance of deSingel.

Price: €7. To register: contact us.

Tuesday 28^th February - Coffee Morning

Venue: The Passage, Beddenstraat 2, Antwerp. This cafe is located below the Grand Bazaar Shopping Centre at the bottom of the escalator.

Meet: outside at 11 a.m. No need to register—just turn up. Everyone welcome.

Wednesday 29^th February - The Book Group

Venue: The lobby of the Theatre Hotel (where we have our monthly meeting).

Time: 10.15

Please contact us if you are planning to attend.

Note: Non-members are welcome to attend one meeting of the club, after which they will be expected to join the club if they wish to continue coming.

Twice monthly - Friday mornings - Dutch Conversation Group

Our little group meets twice a month in a member’s home where we converse in Dutch for two hours with varying degrees of proficiency. There is a tea/coffee break. A pleasant morning is spent chatting in congenial company.

For more information contact us.

March

March 6^th - General Meeting Mahatma Gandhi’s life

Jonas Slaats will be presenting a talk to us about Mahatma Gandhi’s life. Jonas is a theologian and anthropologist who was educated at Gent and Leuven universities.

Gandhi’s life has great relevance to our modern lives. Gandhi’s spirituality and politics of non-violent resistance played a crucial part in the independence of India, but also gave an enormous thrust to some revolutions in the ethical framework of our world today. Gandhi breached colonialism, unmasked racism and dethroned violence. Besides making us think about the way in which we can fight social injustice, Gandhi can also gently inspire us to seek the genuine simplicity of life.

A lecture on the Mahatma therefore seems a necessity for those who wonder how the spirituality of “active non-violence” and “experimenting with truth” can still be of relevance today in our very own lives.

The meeting will be followed by lunch at a cost of €18 per person (non-members, extra) in the Theater Hotel for those who wish to stay.

Click here to see the menu.

Reservations: Reservations are required. Please contact us before 1^st March indicating your choice of main course.

Venue: Theater Hotel, Arenbergstraat, Antwerp.

Time: 10 am for coffee. Meeting starts at 10.30.

Disclaimer

Antwerp British and International Women, its officers and its members cannot be held responsible for the correctness of information given on this web site. Neither does it specifically endorse any of the services, organisations or companies mentioned. The contents of the web site do not necessarily reflect the view of ABIW members.