17th to 20th November - Belgium back to Ceret

It was another early start to the day, beginning with a walk to the bus depot to catch the Flibco bus direct to Charleroi Airport outside Brussels. It was a little late arriving, and we were starting to getting a little concerned because we only had a bit over an hour to spare at the airport before our Ryanair flight left. We needn't have fretted. The driver made up the time, and we in fact arrived 5 minutes early, and we whizzed through security so fast that we were out the other side and at the gate waiting area just 10 minutes after arriving at the airport. 

As before, we hadn't booked adjacent seats and again ended up sitting 20 rows apart. We expect it is a deliberate ploy to make people more inclined to pay the extra euros and book adjacent seats. It didn't worry us. Again I slept for a chunk of it, though woke for the bumpy landing in Perpignan due to quite fierce crosswinds. 

A view over the etang (estuary) north of Perpignan where large volumes of shellfish are farmed.

It was only a 10 minute wait until the bus rolled up to take us to Perpignan train station, and 5 minutes after arriving there we were on the last leg of our journey, i.e. the bus to Ceret. It had been another tiring day - one flight, three buses and two connecting walks, but we still arrived back in our apartment at 3pm in the afternoon. There was time to pick up a crunchy baguette, some tomatoes, peppers, cheese and lettuce to make an easy meal for dinner. 

It was nice to be back in Ceret again and back in our own rooms and bed. We have thoroughly enjoyed our jaunts we have taken further afield from France this year. We've put time and effort into organising and booking them but it's definitely paid off. We've learned a great deal about neighbouring cultures, history and languages and met many friendly welcoming people. All these interactions make us think more deeply about our lives here in France and back home in NZ. 

The following day, Saturday, kicked off slowly (no surprise there). We made our way to the market in the late morning and picked up fresh produce for the week and found a free table for a coffee at Cafe de France. It was a beautiful day, very mild and everyone was out enjoy a pleasant social morning. 

View from Cafe de France

Main market area outside Le Comptoir

Our Australian friends came around for apero on Saturday night. They had just returned from a week's trip up into Germany and Switzerland so we had plenty of stories to share.

On Sunday we set off on one of our usual walk circuits, keeping fairly close to Ceret because it was the weekend and hence pig hunting day. The weather has been very balmy and it was lovely walking in the warm sun, and was definitely a change from the cool wet weather in Belgium. One day had been 28 while we were in Belgium.

The locals enjoying some traditional Sardane dancing in the street outside Le Comptoir.

In the afternoon I started packing. I know, it's still 12 days until we begin our departure for this year, but we are both looking forward to heading homeward and it was nice to be able to potter and start to sort through some of our stuff. We are continually trying to trim down what we leave here each year, so that when the time comes to sell up it won't be a big job to organise our stuff. We would in any instance sell the property fully furnished. 

It's time to get back into our weights regime and daily yoga. We have 15 days of yoga remaining on our 30 day yoga programme and just 12 until we leave, so a bit of doubling up of sessions is on the radar.

Beautiful soft light in the square below our apartment

This morning (Monday) saw us meet up with others for coffee at Le Comptoir before heading out for lunch. The breaking news of the day was about an apartment fire in one of the streets not very far away from us. The fire, at midnight last night, necessitated the arrival of 70 fire, police and ambulance staff and the evacuation of a number of apartments. Two people died in the incineration. Neither John nor I heard any sirens or any other peep during the night. Notably, everyone around the coffee table this morning was talking about checking their smoke alarms were in good working order!

A few weeks ago we'd organised meeting up for some English friends who live in a very small remote hamlet further up the valley. We always catch up with them each year, but often just the once because they, as well as us, are often away travelling. This time, we'd booked a favourite of theirs, a popular Spanish restaurant in the foothills of the Pyrenees. It was a winding hour's drive to get there. Linda had booked for a 2pm kickoff (i.e. Spanish time) and we were pretty hungry by the time we arrived. 

It was great to catch up and hear all their news. They are yet another couple who are looking to sell up, both their place here in France and also in London. The plan is to perhaps buy something smaller and more accessible here, and just a small apartment back in England closer to their son. Deteriorating health is a major consideration. 

The restaurant was renown for its very generous helpings, particularly large platesful of meat. We'd been there once before, many years ago, and it had fitted the bill perfectly. However, we were a little disappointed this time. My sanglier (wild boar) was very tasty but the vast chunks of meat would have benefited from some thick gravy. John's meat dish (lamb chop, sausage, pork and rabbit) was nice but a rather dry and overcooked. It was a nice experience nonetheless. 

We left at 4pm, returning home making a loop through La Jonquera. Large supermarkets dominate this border town so we popped into our favourite and bought a few large blocks of cheese to take back to NZ. We also popped into our hairdresser to see if we could get our hair cut (we do have appointments for next week anyway) but they were closing early at 5.30pm. 

Dinner tonight has been a cup of tea. We don't need anything else! 

16th November - Brussels

We were up early to walk the 20 minutes to the train station and catch the 7.50am train to Brussels. It was still dark, about 7 degrees, and thankfully not raining. We knew it was going to be a very long day. John had sourced another self-guided walk to follow on his phone and we also wanted to spend a lot of time at the Royal Museums of Fine Art, plus an Art Nouveau architect's own house. 

As soon as we arrived at 8.30am we set off on the walk. The forecast was for rain to start falling around 11am, and we aimed to be finished by then. There was a great deal to see, not the least of which was the main square of Brussels (the Grand Place). It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is the geographic and historic heart of Brussels. It had its beginning in the 12th century and contains a large number of guild houses, the City Hall and Maison du Roi (King's House). In 1695 the French army bombarded Brussels and destroyed most of the buildings but they were rapidly rebuilt in a faithful reflection of what they had been. The authorities did not want to rebuild in a more modern style, hence it remains a very important collection of buildings. They are indeed spectacular.

We were fortunate to arrive at the square just as the morning sun was starting to shine on some of the  guild houses, which gave a beautiful light to view them in. The centre of the square was occupied by a crane and workmen in the process of erecting a very large Christmas tree. It took quite a while to simply stand and absorb the magnificence of the square. I was loath to leave but we had to get on with our walk. Off we went, exploring the historic core of the city, discovering the Treasury and various other impressively large structures, peeped into the interior of some very old pubs, gazed at glorious shop window displays and walked beside remnants of the old city wall. 

Row of Guild Houses in the Grand-Place

City Hall

The Christmas tree is getting set to take centre stage

King's House

Chocolate Shop

Incredibly narrow buildings constructed against the side of the church

Street art

Old City Wall

Buildings in the historic core

We actually completed our walk by 10.30am, much to our surprise, so popped into a cafe for a quick coffee and hot chocolate before buying a combined ticket for three museums. The Royal Museums of Fine Arts consist of six museums, of which we visited three. We kicked off with the Magritte Museum, dedicated to Belgium surrealist artist Rene Magritte. Next it was the Fin-de-Siecle Museum, exhibiting a variety of Art Nouveau paintings, sculptures, and furniture. Immediately adjacent was the Old Masters Museum, which housed works by the likes of Rubens, Bosch and Van Dyck.  

We spent over two hours in the Old Masters Museum alone. John was particularly taken by the roomful of Bruegels, which he has always had a special love for. An associated display included screen projections giving insights into individual components in many of his paintings. It really was an intriguing and we learned a great deal. After pacing through room after room displaying the works of famous artists we were getting a little hungry. 

Surrealist painting

Art Nouveau furniture

Breugel (the elder)

John studying the detail within a Breugel

Recharge time

By 3pm we were definitely flagging. We had booked a 4.30pm tour of the house designed by the well-known Art Nouveau architect Victor Horta. We caught a bus to the house and hoped to bring our tour forward to 3.30pm because it showed online that there were plenty of spots still available. Unfortunately the woman on the door wouldn't entertain the idea so we stepped back into the rain, found the nearest pub and decided it was high time we had a beer and tried some famous Belgium frites. We managed to fill in the spare time quite well until it was time to retrace our steps to Horta's house. 

The visit was well worth it. The 'tour' turned out to be self-guided, using a pamphlet and printed explanations to explain the details of each room. Horta had designed many of the items of furniture, as well as the house itself. He was a master at utilising light shafts to provide light to all five stories of the house including the basement kitchen and servants rooms in the attic. 

Horta's House

When we emerged outside at 5.15pm it was dark and raining lightly. We jumped on a tram back into the centre of Brussels and walked the last 20 minutes back to the train station. The train was surprisingly empty given this was probably rush hour. The train from Ghent to Brussels early this morning was packed. It is absolutely astounding how many bicycles are parked up everywhere. There are literally thousands of them at the train stations. Most appear to stay there all night. We now guess that commuters ride their cycles to the train station, board the train, then collect another cycle at the other end and cycle to work. Their are large zones given over to cycle parking within the centre of town, and it pays to be wary when attempting to cross the road because there is a profusion of cyclists, trams, buses and cars. Brussels is far more city-like and hectic than Ghent. Our favourite place so far has been Bruges, largely because of its small scale.

A large second-hand store 

During our explorations we have kept an eye out for second-hand shops. We love having a poke around, looking particularly for small glassware to add to our little collection at home in Nelson. Unfortunately many of the shops we've come across have been closed. The photo above shows a huge one which was a collective of 20 dealers. We had no luck but it was fun looking anyway. John and I both remember spying a gorgeous small cloisonné vase in a second-hand shop in Antwerp in 1982. We were on our OE and had no money. There was no way we could afford the $100 price. That was a few days' food and board for us. We've regretted it ever since and said we should have just gone hungry and slept under a bridge. 

The vase we never bought in 1982

It was so dark when we arrived back in Brussels that we took a wrong turn on the way back to our apartment and walked perhaps an extra 1km. By the time we dragged our feet through the door we'd walked over 20km. John's shoes had started to fall to pieces but we thought would last another day until we could glue them up back at home! My walking boots had proved a treat, both for comfort and for warmth. It was bits and pieces for dinner and early to bed.

15 November - Ghent

There seem to be many ways to pronounce Ghent, or Gent or Gant, whatever you choose to call it! French, English, and Flemish-Dutch all have different versions. We haven't settled on one, but we will be gone by the end of the week, so I guess we don't need to concern ourselves. No matter how you spell it or pronounce it, Ghent is a lovely place.

The day dawned blue, with streaky cloud and a clear forecast, so we left home with our warm gear but not our waterproof gear. Possibly not the best choice, but as it turned out we mostly got away with it. We breakfasted at our apartment, then worked our way towards the centre to start a trip around the main sights. The route in took us through a gross street that was clearly one of Ghent's party districts. The streets were covered with discarded rubbish, mainly plastic beer cups, and copious piles of vomit. Not the best look. It turned out to be on the outskirts of the university - so it was clear who the culprits were likely to be.

Having got to the university itself the walk improved dramatically and we enjoyed looking at the buildings and shops along the way to the centre. 

Lovely art deco newspaper offices

As we arrived at St Baafs Square there was clearly something going on. The cathedral entry was blocked by 4 police, and a few minutes later a cavalcade of huge black cars arrived and disgorged several dozen dignitaries in flowing robes and funny hats. Perhaps something to do with the university? Or a Harry-Potter-themed service?

We took the opportunity to climb the Belfort, one of Ghent's 3 famous towers. It was great. As Ghent is largely 6 stories or less, the views were far-reaching, and a great way to orient ourselves. We were able to see the gigantic music-box system that runs the bells, and the previous dragon that crowned the spire before the current 500kg gilded stainless steel version.

Giant music box that runs the bells

The previous dragon from the spire

Cloth merchants guild hall from which the Belfort rises

We managed about half our walking tour before hunger got the better of us, so we stopped off to buy an appelbol (apple ball) and since we are in Belgium, a chocoladebrood. The chocoladebrood was basically a breadloaf version of a chocolate chip biscuit, and far more fun than a filled roll!

A bit more walking and we found ourselves where the canal boat trips start from, with one about to leave. We paid our fee and jumped on. It was a good trip on part of the large canal network, with a helpful guide giving a commentary on what we saw. Partway through it started to spit, then rain, then it got rather wet. The guide/driver was nice enough to pause under bridges while he told us about the sights, then moved on between showers. By the end of the trip, the rain had passed over and the sun came out again.

The boat trip quay

Ghent's three towers from the canal

The last remaining city wall gate

The Gravensteen, the only mediaeval counts' castle in the centre of a European city

The roads are a little tricky for walking as there are few kerbs, and there are trams on many streets, and bikes everywhere, including many cargo bikes with giant baskets ahead of the rider. It would be easy to get knocked over as the bikes are silent, and not mucking about. With the university there are lots of young people about. The cafes were remarkably full any time of day or night. Shops full of lovely goods are everywhere, particularly beautiful clothes shops. There's an air of prosperity.

We finished our walk after the boat trip, then headed slowly back to our room, taking time to enjoy the city. We finally succumbed to the many tempting chocolate shops, taking time out to sit in one with a hot chocolate (made with 99% chocolate), a cup of coffee, and a couple of chocolates from their enormous selection. Quite a treat.