Northbound - Belgium

Wednesday 14.08.85

Before leaving Enkhuizen, I change a little currency. We arrive in Amsterdam, at the market square, and park at a paying spot in the centre. The old houses, extremely crooked, line the street along the canal towards the centre; the streets are very dirty and this is the red-light district. We visit the Rijksmuseum, very beautiful. In the afternoon we move on to Den Haag (The Hague), a decent little town with shops; it starts to rain. We visit the Binnenhof, a lovely courtyard with a church and a castle; outside there is a pretty little lake around the castle with a fountain. Near Bergen op Zoom we stay overnight in a hotel, on the first floor, a large complex with a restaurant and a big bar.

Thursday 15.08.85

We have a hearty breakfast at the hotel and set off for Antwerpen. Between Holland and Belgium there is only a white line on the road, not the usual customs post. In Antwerp the town festival is under way, there are stalls and people are in medieval costume. After Antwerp we head for Brugge, where we take a motorboat tour of the canals and then continue on foot. We buy some lace, and in the square we watch lace being made on a bobbin. The basilica is enriched by a statue by Michelangelo and paintings by Mantegna. The pulpit is carved in wood. The Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilig Bloed) is in fact two churches one above the other. We look for a hotel near Antwerp but everything is full; in the end we find one at Sint-Niklaas (twinned with Lucca); near the station there is a very original monumental sculpture of a kangaroo made of sheet metal. We have dinner in our room.

Friday 16.08.85

After breakfast we set off for Brussels; we park near the Atomium, then, having crossed the Laeken Belvedere park, we visit the Chinese Pavilion and the Japanese Tower. We move into the centre by car to see the Royal Palace, the EEC and the Cinquantenaire Palace. From Brussels, taking the beautiful road that leaves the city and passing through dense woods, we arrive in Luxembourg. We find it untidy and it disappoints us a little. We continue the journey into Germany, drive through the vineyards of the Rhine valley, crossing for a few kilometres into France. Having re-crossed the Rhine and taken the motorway south again, a little before Freiburg we stop to have dinner and visit the city. The travel diary continues with Luxembourg