We have met a lot of nice,
interesting and kind people in Brussels because of Meetup. When we first arrived here, we only knew our
friends from the church in Smyrna. We
needed a way to meet other people, and we had heard of Meetup.com before we
left. We researched what kind of group we
could do and decided that we would start one about English conversation while
doing fun things around town.
So, we registered and paid our fees, and
then we chose the initial event. It was
at Cook and Book, a nice book store/restaurant, kind of like Barnes &
Nobles. We went ahead of time and
reserved a table. When the day arrived
we went and explained to the server that we didn’t know how many would come. We sat there by ourselves for an hour. The next month – July, we tried again and
this time six people signed up and two came besides Liz and me. We were on our way! We have found that, to get started at least,
people like to get together and just chill.
They don’t want to do an active event like hikes and movies. When we have combined coffee and a hike that
worked, but they want to have the community time together.
It now has been fourteen months, and
they just keep getting better and better!
The group is up to over 300 registered and 20 to 40 people come to an
event. Some of the people have never
gone to anything, kind of like church or a fishing club. Usually about half to two thirds of the
people who RSVP for an event come, and some come who haven’t responded. Everyone enjoys each other’s company and many
friendships are formed.
Meetup was started after 9/11 by
someone who felt that they did not know their neighbors. They knew lots of people through social media
and work but they did not know anyone locally.
For us it is a very pleasant experience.
No one expects anything or tries to influence people about an idea or
products; it is just a pleasant experience in your busy life. We recommend it to people everywhere!
