The House Split Between Two Countries

Some people go to bed in one country and wake up in another. Tag the friend who cannot pick a favorite country. In a small town between Belgium and the Netherlands, the border does not run around the houses. It runs straight through them.

Neki ljudi legnu u jednoj zemlji, a probude se u drugoj. Označi prijatelja koji ne može izabrati omiljenu zemlju. U malom gradu između Belgije i Nizozemske, granica ne obilazi kuće. Prolazi ravno kroz njih.

The line between the two countries zigzags through streets, gardens, and living rooms, because of old land deals between local lords centuries ago. When it cuts through a front door, the house gets two street numbers, one for each country. People here decide which country a house belongs to by checking where the front door sits.

Linija između dviju zemalja vijuga kroz ulice, vrtove i dnevne sobe, zbog starih dogovora o zemlji između lokalnih plemića prije stoljeća. Kad presiječe ulazna vrata, kuća dobije dva kućna broja, jedan za svaku zemlju. Ovdje ljudi odlučuju kojoj zemlji kuća pripada tako da provjere gdje se nalaze ulazna vrata.

For years, families sometimes moved their front door a few steps to one side, just enough to land in whichever country charged lower taxes that year. One house has its front door exactly on the line. Nobody has ever agreed which country that family belongs to, and nobody seems to mind.

Godinama su obitelji ponekad pomicale ulazna vrata nekoliko koraka u stranu, samo toliko da završe u zemlji koja je te godine naplaćivala niže poreze. Jedna kuća ima ulazna vrata točno na liniji. Nitko se nikad nije složio kojoj zemlji ta obitelj pripada, i čini se da nikoga to ne smeta.