Homeward Bound and on we go.

Tuesday 25^th April to Thursday 27^th April 2017

Our train was not due to leave Brussels until 12:52, so even with a late(ish) breakfast and coupled with a late checkout of 11am, it allowed us to have a bit more of a wander around.

 

Sad to say but there is graffiti in nearly every place we have visited

So we exited the hotel and headed in a mainly northerly direction and found ourselves back at the canal – some type of gravitational field operating in that regard; but this time there was actually a barge using the lock and so we hovered around watching it all – it was just like any single lock that we would have done a thousand times – except about 100 times bigger and it was all operated by a lock-keeper in the control room.

She's a bit larger than Ferndale, but the same process is followed

Lock full, gates open and then they come out

The ropes were just a little bit bigger than we would have had onboard at any time.

Slowly the water rose and then when ready, the gates slowly opened; there was no rush of water from the prop, but just enough to move the barge forward – certainly sticking to the 5 kmh speed limit.

About 400 metres up from the lock was a lift bridge – no windlass required – we had spotted one of the lock-keepers head off earlier on his bike to get the bridge ready for the barge to carry on beneath it.

Lift bridge - you can see the road level on the left - the operator is in that little
room on top of the bridge

There is always someone wanting to "photo-bomb" the photo

That was some excitement for us – to see how the bigger boys do it all – might have been nice with a Dutch barge doing all of that (even in Belgium).

After that we carried on back to the hotel; a last check in the room and then we were checked out and off around the corner to the station.

Through the Border Controls for both France and the UK and it was a relatively short wait and we were in our seats and pulling out of Brussels – we had had a lovely time.

 

We came when it was a bit dull and cloudy, but on leaving
Brussels the sun was out again

...and we looked out on Belgium for one last time on this trip

The scheduled stop at Lille was delayed as we waited for a connecting late train, after which we were off again, through the tunnel and in a brief time we were coming into St.Pancras – just 20 minutes behind schedule.

 

Back in Endgland and here we are crossing the Medway

We already had the train tickets to take us back to Lincoln – funny thing is that we took 2 hrs and 20 minutes to get from Brussels to London, but it was over 2 hours and 30 minutes to get from London to Lincoln (our connecting train at Peterborough was waiting and we caught it with just a minute to spare).

Not exactly sure where we are here, but there are certainly narrowboats down there

We were back on board Ferndale by 6pm; the fire was lit and the unpacking began; the solar panels had done their job, but we put the engine on to take care of the washing and by 8pm we were all sorted but a bit knackered as well.

The following day we took the boat back into Lincoln – it was actually easier and cheaper to do that than catch the bus, taxi or even a hire car.

The tickets that we had previously bought for Lincoln Cathedral and the Castle allowed us a return visit so we decided to use those as well as pick up Diane’s medications that we had left to be prepared before we left.

 

This is for Diane's sister Vivienne

It was to be one last trudge up the hill and later on, one more down – we took Marilyn’s advice and had our walking poles with us and they made it easier.

For the castle it was another walk of the walls and we took some time to have a look inside the County Court House – it was a trial regarding an injury matter to someone in the Lincoln Hospital but held interest for both of us – so much so that we stayed a fair while longer than we first though we would – plus it was a great deal warmer inside than out.

 

Just cannot get over how over-powering the cathedral is in comparison to the castle

The second Motte and Observatory 

The County Court House

At the lunch recess we headed out and across the way to the Cathedral where we had a bite to eat and then headed upstairs to see the Library/Reading Room – the design and construction of this was handled by Christopher Wren (of St.Paul’s fame) – the inside was just fantastic as were the volumes on display; the staff were extremely helpful and whilst Diane was engaged with a young man who was enthusiastically telling her all about the library and the books, I was discussing travel in Russia with the woman who was also there to answer any questions – I think that it was predominantly about the library, but we drifted to Russia (as you do).

 

And the Australian Coat of Arms in Lincoln Cathedral
and part of the WWII memorial

After that we were off again, and down the hill, and back to the boat where we were thankful that the fire was left lit and it was cosy and snugly warm inside.

We spotted this and the one below earlier in our stay in Lincoln but I hadn't
included them into previous blogs....

....talk about making sure that you can see behind

Diane thinks that there may have been a bit of train lag (not jet lag mind you) from our return travels – I just think that we were tired after walking more than the equivalent of a marathon whilst we were away.

We did sleep rather well on Wednesday night.

Thursday was moving day – we had seen enough of Lincoln and we were ready to continue our cruising travels and our rough itinerary that we had – this, of course, meant that we had a bit of a cruise to Torksey.

It was only 10 miles and whilst we didn’t open the after-burners we still managed it in just over the 3 hours.

The lockie was right where we first moored up, getting some grass cutting done and advised us to move down close to the lock ready for the next day, and we ended up mooring on one of the water points – we were later on joined by three other boats – so it was all the normal thing to do.

On good advice from Jennie we headed to the café and had cake and coffee which was lovely.

Looking from our mooring at Torksey - ready for tomorrow

We were now ready for the next adventure of the river tomorrow.

13 Miles

YTD:  280 miles (451 km), 154 Locks, 13 Tunnels, 3 Lift Bridges, 3 Swing Bridges

Total: 4912 Miles (7905 km), 3305 Locks, 137 Tunnels, 69 Lift Bridges, 175 Swing Bridges

Walking distance so far: 41.9 km (previous) + 5.3 km (Tuesday) =  47.2 km (Total)

Last Orders, please !

Monday 24^th April 2017

This is our last full day here and we have a couple of things that we still want to see; but, as has been the case for most days the plan at the start of the day is one of those very fluid arrangements between the planning and the reality.

Today was not too different.

A walk into the Grand Market (square), but we tried a different route – Diane wanted to see a couple of things on the way. We didn’t leave particularly early by our standards, but there were people still on their way to work as we were on our way.

First stop was the Mannekin Pis – and for once it was a literal translation – in fact no translation was really necessary – as explained to us later on in the morning, Mannekin means “small boy” and Pis means “piss”.

The statue - Mannekin Pis - and it is a fountain

...it seems to crop everywhere - not sure I would fancy the sweet under the
fountain outlet

There are numerous stories associated with the possible history behind it but in general relates to a small boy pissing onto either the enemy French soldiers or their gunpowder to help force a victory for the “Belgian” people.

Belgium is a source of many well known comics,
and it is a huge thing. Around Brussels there are around
20 murals illustrating some of the most popular...

...and some relate to changing social attitudes; this one is
located...

...in the heart of the gay village. Pleased to see the acceptance of
so many social changes in Belgium.

Onto the square and Diane had a thought – maybe we could tag along on one of the free walking tours before we needed to catch the bus to complete part of yesterdays trip.

So we did and the tour guide was a really nice guy who was able to tell a good story or two at the right times and was really quite knowledgeable about many of the things associated with Brussels and the surrounding areas.

Lovely undercover shopping arcade - and there were only
three chocolatiers in here

He managed to point out some of the better places to eat and some to avoid; showed us some areas that we had not seen yet; and many of the buildings and their history – we felt much more informed about it all.

It was very much like a Diane tour but she got to tag along and hear it all for the first time as well.

Unfortunately we had to finish a bit early – at the mid-tour break point but didn’t forget to give him a decent tip in appreciation of his effort and knowledge and presentation. The information came in handy later on.

We found the Hop On / Hop Off bus for a repeat of the second trip from the previous day and once again got off at the European Parliament stop – this time there were people working in the information office but sadly the parliament building was not open until 2 pm – so probably no-one working inside there for the morning.

We decided that it probably didn’t matter and hopped on again to the bus and then off again near the Royal Palace to pay a visit to the Belvue Museum.

These pictures do not show the whole story for the Belvue.
It was enlightening about the history of Belgium after 1830

Make this a stop on your visit to Brussels - it is worth a trip
back again

This museum was excellent for us – we managed to get a more complete picture of the history of Belgium from 1828 (just prior to the revolution) until the present day; it also gave a very good run down of important events in Belgium during that time; a view of the change/progress of economic and cultural changes that have occurred.

We really felt that everything today was the culmination of all of the little bits and pieces all coming together and as a result we have a far greater understanding of the country than we did last Friday when we first arrived.

Locals will show you the best pubs; this one was in the tourist area but very
reasonable - and one of the guys behind the bar - was Irish

After all of this we were a bit in need of some sustenance and the earlier acquired knowledge from the tour guide was now of some use – the frites were a lot better; the hot chocolate (for Diane) and the beer (for me) in the pub was quite good (but when aren’t they in this city); the chocolate that Diane bought was very nice and then the waffles were a bit too indulgent – but they were quite tasty (yummy!).

Waffles, Brussels - a bit decadent, but they were nice

The Frites guy - Diane liked his sales spiel so much that she had to get a picture

We thought is best to evade any further indulgences and head back to the hotel for a bit of a rest and put the aching legs up – we definitely needed it.

That pretty much has ended our lovely trip to Brussels but we may just have one more final part to go tomorrow morning – I won’t know until then.

Walking distance so far: 34.1 km (previous) + 7.8 km (Monday) = 41.9 km (Total)

Fares please – On the Buses !

Sunday 23^rd April 2017

After a day of much walking yesterday we had decided on a more leisurely and easier approach to our exertions for today – we had decided that - but sometimes plans do not quite work out as well as we might wish.

Our plan was to do the Hop On/Hop Off bus tours today – there were two routes to be followed and it would give us a bit of a chance to take it a bit easier and sit down whilst we toured – that’s a good plan isn’t?

On top of that we could use our train ticket from yesterday to get into the centre of town.

We had previously done these tours in Liverpool, Paris and New York and it is the easiest way to see so much in a city and then simply pick out the places that you want to see in more detail and then the bus drives you to the locations that you pick-out – easy, peasy.

I think I can pinpoint the exact moment that the plan went off the rails – we had finished our breakfast a bit early to actually go into the city so I suggested ……. “If you like we could take a stroll up the road and have a look at the canal and then make our way around to the station” …. There you have it; a simple suggestion, which we started out doing.

A gentle stroll up the road, past the roadworks for the tramway extension, to the canal; had a good look at the lock and then carried on along the path alongside the canal.

So, we made it to the canal and had a look at that, then....

Then we came across people with full carry bags walking one way and others with empty trolleys going the other.

Now Diane is pretty quick at sizing things up and she immediately knew that there must be a market just on the other side and of course, instantly knew how to get there.

“Can we just have a little look, please?” – how do you resist – “Yes my lovely”

...the markets

I am sure that there are larger markets, but not sure that there were too many bigger, and we didn’t walk up every aisle – although it did seem like it.

Have to say that all of the produce was better than anything we had seen in
our time on the boat...

...they're doing alright here in Brussels

We came away with a few things and by that stage we then headed for the station and the bus – already we had done more than half our usual daily allowance of steps and we hadn’t started on what was planned for the day.

Train into Bruxelles Centraal, found the guy selling the tickets (and we had some discount vouchers from the Tourist Information office) and the bus was standing there ready for the first trip of the day.

Front seat upstairs – her indoors was pleased – and we were off.

It is a great way to go and we saw places that we might not otherwise have found or bothered with – certainly would not have bothered with the congested traffic around the Atomium area – every person in Brussels must have been in their car and heading the same way.

With little trouble and a bit of patience the bus driver found his way through it all and we were back at our starting point in a little under 90 minutes.

The Atomium - part of the 1958 World's Fair and like the Eiffel Tower, it
was not designed to stay around for long after.

Found this little tram along the way

By that stage it was time for lunch – Diane had her mind set for a Belgian tourist and local staple – no, it had nothing to do with chocolate.

We found a little place called Le Fiacre and a table outside and ordered our meals; whilst we enjoyed a beer and glass of wine and the warm sunshine, we had a great chance to just do a lot of people watching – people going every which way as they too were enjoying the full dose of springtime weather.

The meals arrived and Diane enjoyed the Moules and Frites, whilst I had the Salmon and Frites. Both were very good indeed and nothing survived except for the mussel shells.

A couple of coffees and another beer later, bill paid and we were ready for bus number 2.

A short walk up the hill and luck was with us again – there was a bus waiting for us and just after taking our seats we were off again.

We were a bit disappointed with the commentary tape on this – it kept on jumping and then stopped playing entirely; the driver didn’t know and consequently passengers who wanted to get off at certain stops were unaware that they were approaching these stops and therefore not ready for the stop.

We made a decision to move downstairs and be ready for whatever the next stop was – which happened to be the European Parliament buildings – it appeared that even on a Sunday, just as much work was being done as any other day of the week – of course the building was closed.

Popped into a café for a drink – hot chocolates only, whilst we waited for a bus, but really not in any hurry as we were using their wifi to check out football scores and other stuff – it was a lovely café – London Experience – that was as close as it came to London at all.

Eventually caught the next bus back to the starting point, and by then we were getting a bit tired so as far as we were concerned it was a train back to the hotel and time to relax.

Yesterday’s plan of minimal walking somehow didn’t quite eventuate – there is always tomorrow!

Walking distance so far: 27.0 km (previous) + 7.1 km (Sunday) = 34.1 km (Total)

Lincoln, London and Brussels

Thursday 20^th April to Friday 21^st April 2017

By the time that anyone reads this we will have gone and been and then come back again.

About a month ago there was a sale on seats for Eurostar so we went on-line and booked some return seats to head off to Brussels for a few days; we had not been there before, so why not?

We then had access to some better deals on accommodation and that was sorted and we then thought we should spend the night before in London as the train was leaving at 8am – so that was duly booked – all done in very short time.

So on Thursday we trained it down to Kings Cross and checked into our hotel; wandered around the area; got some Euros at the station to be prepared and then decided upon some dinner – we chose a place on Pentonville Road called Pizza Union – couple of pizzas and beer to go with it and some olives, all very lovely and less than £18.

 

This was the view at Peterborough station as we waited for our
London connection - fortunately we escaped the downpour

Following morning we had set the alarm, up and readied, down for breakfast and then off to St.Pancras – easily through Border Control and then onto the train – a bit over 2 hours later and we were exiting the station in Brussels – all too easy.

It was a bit coolish when we were out on the street – now to find the hotel – we were almost useless at reading the map, but the little blue spot on the screen helped us to move the right way. There must have been something wrong with our reading of where we should have been going to, because we rounded a corner to head further north when lo and behold there was our hotel – lucky or what?

We couldn’t get into our room but we checked in and left the luggage and then we headed off to explore the city.

Diane has previously downloaded maps of various areas in Europe and the US using the NavMii App and she now had added the Benelux countries, so we had access to Belgium and in particular Brussels – and part of that was a guided walking tour of the capital, so what did we get up to – exactly that.

 

The buildings in the Grand Square were magnificent with gold embellishments

This is not a church but actually the Town Hall

A panorama shot of the square.

When in Belgium...it's always time for frites and mayonnaise

It related entirely to the 1830 revolution in Brussels which eventually led to the establishment of the separate and independent country we now know as Belgium.

 

The Square of the Martyrs - beneath this monument are buried the more than 100
people killed in the 1830 revolution - along with slabs of marble and their names.
I would imagine that this area holds special significance to most Belgians

The Belgian Parliament building

As we wandered around we saw a large presence of both Police and the Army – remember that this was just the day after the gunman attack in Paris where a policeman was killed and two others seriously injured – and there had been a Belgium connection.

For us it was not in any way of any concern to us – people say that with all of these attacks it is unsafe to travel and “you shouldn’t go here and you shouldn’t there” – let me just say in response to that thinking –

If we decide that we should not do the things that we would normally have done for fear of what could happen then the bloody terrorists have won and we are defeated – to win, you have to start by not living in fear.

It is more likely that you will get hit by a bus.

We managed to find an Irish pub in Brussels but did not have a drink there

Diane really liked the pair of angels, seemingly holding
up the bay window above them

Just some shots of random buildings that we particularly liked

Walking distance so far: 5.8 km (Thursday) + 9.9 km (Friday) = 15.7 km (Total)

As I am posting this page on 27th April 2017 it is necessary to also announce that our wonderful son, Mitchell, is celebrating his 28th birthday today in Los Angeles and after talking to him today we are looking forward to seeing both Mitch and Sara later on in the year.
A wonderful day has been planned for him and we wish him the very best and hopefully we can be there next year to celebrate it with him, in person.