Life could be worse...

Our return stateside has been delayed by the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano. We'll survive somehow...


Barefoot with Aunt Bunny in the backyard...



A knowledgable smirk...


The only thing left to do is sing:

In Bruges (Part I)

We saved the best for last. The city of Bruges in northwest Flanders (Belgium) was untouched in the world wars and is considered a "medieval gem." We did the smart thing by leaving at 7 this morning to get there at a little after 9. Within an hour, what seemed like thousands of tourists invaded the city after us.


All of us walked the 366(!) steps up the Belfort, the city's belfry tower, begun in the 1200s and finished in 1501. The higher we got, the narrower the winding staircase.


The view from below before we climbed the tower...

And from above at the top, where we got a great view of the Grote Markt (grand place) of Bruges (known as Brugge in the native Dutch).

Over one of several canals that pass through the "Venice of the north."

The main canal and the Belfort tower (which we climbed) in the background. It was a beautiful day with 20C/68F weather. This was the nicest city we've been to on our vacation (in my opinion Trier is a close second).

More pictures later!

Belgian Twilight

We left the Scourmont Abbey (see posting below) quite late, at about 7:00. Here are some shots I took on the road back home...

Above and below: Route N53 in the province of Hainaut, between Beaumont and Charleroi.

The sun setting over the Meuse/Maas river, north of Liege, about 2 km south of the border with the Netherlands.

Back home with our take: 24 freshly bottled ales from the source!

Scourmont Abbey, Forges (Chimay), Belgium

As far as European monasteries go, Scourmont is not old (it was only established in the early nineteenth century). It is an important place for beer enthusiasts, however, as it is the place where Chimay ale is made by the Trappist monks. (The Trappists are a branch of Cistercians who follow the rule of St. Benedict). After eating in Chimay yesterday, we drove south toward the French border to visit the monastery.


The front door. The simple, solid abbey is built of gray stone.


Inside the courtyard. We only saw five people the whole time we were there. It was very quiet, even outside.


The inside of the abbey church is pure white and unadorned. It was only after I took this picture that I noticed the monk sitting in quiet contemplation near the front of the nave on the left (click on the picture for a better view).

We walked through the graveyard, where we saw the graves of local monks...

... and nuns!

Overall, this was a very peaceful place. After 45 minutes of strolling the grounds, we drove back to Sittard through Charleroi, Namur, and Liege.

Sur la route de Chimay

We're back from our trip to Chimay, which took us through the rolling hills of southern Belgium. It is a small town near the Abbey of Scourmont, where Belgium's most famous beer is brewed by Trappist monks.
On our way there, we drove through a corner of the Ardennes department of France.


The Ardennes region of hills and forests is located primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretches into the Champagne-Ardenne region of France. The word comes from the Celtic "Ar denn," meaning "the forest."


The ruins of the Fort de Charlemont from the sixteenth century in the French town of Givet. The town is about 150 km southwest of Maastricht on the Maas (or Meuse, in French) river, but it took two hours to drive there.


A very late (3:00 pm) lunch in Chimay. On the left is carbonnades (beef stew) made with Chimay Blue. We also had fondue, salad, and frites. We are all drinking Chimay Blue (except for Josie, who was drinking her requisite fruit juice).

The roundabout at the entrance to town features a copper kettle used in brewing.

The market cross and city hall on the main square, in front of our restaurant. As you will see from more pictures I post tomorrow (including those from the abbey where the beer is brewed), Chimay is a very small and remote town that is 50 km from any city (Charleroi, not exactly a recognizable metropolis, being the closest).

Interestingly enough, a film by the French directory Dany Boon was being filmed in the town square while we were there. Our waiter was quite excited about this; I obviously could not recognize Boon in the crowd outside, since everyone in the film production, cast and crew, were in their 30s and dressed in a very similar fashion.

Today's forecast: Mostly sunny with a chance of France

(Aren't you supposed to say dorky things on blogs now and then?)

We're taking a pilgrimage to Chimay in southern Belgium today to visit the monastery where the most famous Trappist beer is made. Check later for the report!

Even Josie was excited to see Charlemagne's remains!
(Tuesday in Aachen)


A different point of view...

Maastricht, The Netherlands

The main city in Limburg, about half an hour from here and on the Belgian border is Maastricht, which comes from the Roman phrase for "crossing on the Maas."

I took this from across the river. The city has three main squares and two Romanesque churches, among many other interesting architectural buildings.


The city hall, reminiscent of the one in Amsterdam but smaller.


A Gothic church turned into a bookstore. An amazing place! Click here for more info.

The gloomy and imposing Onze Lieve Vrouwe Romanesque church. It was too dark inside to take any pictures.

A true medieval holy fortress.

Carolus Magnus

Thirty kilometres south of where we are staying the Frankish king Charlemagne had his seat at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle). On Christmas Day 800, Charlemagne, who had fought Moors in Spain and expanded his kingdom in wars against Saxons in Germany and Lombards in Italy, was crowned Imperator Romanum by the Pope in Rome. This was of course a misnomer, since the Roman Empire ended more than three hundred years before that date, and also because Carolus Magnus was a Germanic king born in what would become Belgium and probably spoke a language that was the precursor to Limburgish Dutch. Regardless, Charlemagne's relationship with the Roman Catholic church would lead to the formation of the Holy Roman Empire in the next century. The emperors were crowned in Charlemagne's cathedral for the next 600 years.
Aachen today is a university city in Nordrhein-Westphalia, very close to the borders wiht the Netherlands and Belgium. It is, fittingly, part of the Aachen-Liege-Maastricht international metropolitan area.

The map above shows some important HRE cities in this area. Treves is Trier, where Heather and I went last week. Bonn is just south of Cologne, and Liege is to the southwest of Aix-La-Chapelle (Aachen). Note the Rhine river, with Bingen (home of Hildegard), Worms (where Martin Luther was admonished by the Church), and Speyer, which along with Mainz and Worms is the location of a Romanesqe "Imperial Cathedral."


Note the varying architectural styles of the cathedral, which was begun over 12oo years ago.


This is the orignial octagonal section of the cathedral, from Charlemagne's time. It was the first post-classical cupola to be built north of the Alps.



Charlemagne's statue in front of the gothic Rathaus. Note his battle dress, scepter, and globus cruciger (in his left hand), which symbolises the church's dominance over the temporal world.

The stained glass, while beautiful, is quite modern, as Aachen cathedral was partly damaged during the Second World War. The "Radiant Madonna" carving hanging from the ceiling is from 1524.

This, along with Trier, was the most important historical place we have visited on this trip. I'll post more pictures of Aachen later, as there was much more to see in the city, especially fountains and Gothic architecture.

We're about to have lunch and then we're off to Maastricht...

Nana teaching Josie!

Riding a bike by the "snow trees"!

Josie teaching Uncle Raz how to have a dance party!

Liège Postscript: Obscure Splendor

A few days ago, as we approached the soot-covered cathedral in the city the Romans called Leodium, we did not expect much. Northeast Wallonia's industrial legacy is visible throughout Liège, and especially on the outside of this thirteenth-century gothic cathedral. We were in for a pleasant surprise...

Above: Grime-covered Lorraine stone.


We walked inside, and found ourselves in a beautiful, light-filled, cavernous space.
"The vaults of the nave and transept display an exuberant decoration of painted foliage scrolls... reproduced in the nineteenth century for the aisles." (Cathedral pamphlet)


This church was actually the collegiate church of St. Paul, but was elevated to cathedral status after the original Liège cathedral was destroyed in the post-revolutionary fervor of 1794 (under the French regime).

Note the fleur-de-lis at the bottom of the huge crucifix hanging from the ceiling.

At the end of our tour, I practiced my French with two nice old ladies who made sure that we realized that the relics of St. Lambert are located in the church.

We will visit Lambert's city of Maastricht, and, the most important church in this region, Charlemagne's Aachen cathedral, later this week.

Au revoir!

More pics from the Keukenhof Gardens, Holland

Solid trees near the entrance to the gardens.

Josie, Manuel, and Jessica (and Debbie's arm)

Daffodils!

A beatiful freezing day in the garden

This morning we went to the Keukenhof gardens in Holland, 26 km southwest of Amsterdam. They are only open three months during the year and are considered to be the world's best flower garden. There is not much else to say... Enjoy the pics!