St. Vith

Set against the rolling hills of beautiful Belgian countryside lies a town strewn with buildings that, to me, are like precious gemstones. These buildings contain furniture for purchase.

Typically, I favor Belgian antiques, and I definitely have a style that draws me in like a moth to a flame. I love the Flemish style of pretty much any furniture, topped with Italian marble. However, we have been planning on getting a new dining room table for a long time - pretty much as long as we have been married - and I didn't want something antique.

So, we drove to St. Vith yesterday where there are several modern furniture stores from which to choose. We picked Moebel Krings Maraite. We really got the best deal with this store, too. If I had closed my eyes, I probably would have thought for a moment that we were in the United States, what with all the ease of purchasing and customer service offered there.

We ended up with a beautiful new dining room table and chairs, and also purchased a new coffee table and matching end tables for our living room.

So, here's why I really appreciated this place. I ran the saleswoman ragged looking things up for me, and she was very helpful and friendly through all of my indecisiveness. She offered us something to drink and when she came back with our very tasty cappucini, she also gave us snacks. Since we forgot our VAT forms, she supplied us with two self-addressed stamped envelopes so that we could just send them to her. And, the company is going to deliver our furniture to us an hour-and-a-half away for FREE. I am loving this company.

As I mentioned VAT forms, I do need to mention that the thought of them made me smile out of sheer irony. As Americans, we get to deduct the 30% Value Added Tax that the Europeans pay on furniture at this store. This is pretty standard across Europe. However, now that we have "health care reform" in the United States, we can start getting used to having to pay this same tax, as I am positive that it is the only way our country will be able to pay for anything from here on out. I should enjoy not paying the tax while I can.

But, it was a nice day in Belgium. And, in eight to twelve weeks, I will receive my new furniture!