Last week saw the end of our endless rain here in Zeeland. Finally, the sun appeared and we were able to dispense with our Wellies, remove a few layers and walk in warm sunshine. All this just happened to coincide with my birthday, so to celebrate, Koos and I did something we haven't done for quite a while and crossed the border for a walk on the wild interesting side. In fact, I err greatly when I suggest Belgium is wild, as their towns and villages are very neat and well pruned, as demonstrated by Koos's photo of the road we chose to begin our walk.
Yesterday, however, was a major first for me. My daughters treated me to a day at a bathing and sauna centre in Schiedam, near Rotterdam. I've never been to a sauna before, so was quite unprepared for the intensity of the 80C heat in the first room we entered. Later on, we tried a 70C room, which I found more to my liking, and as for the jacuzzis and heated swimming pool, they were delicious. It was a truly wonderful day: we swam, wallowed and steamed; we sat in the sunshine drinking coffee and snacking; and we talked virtually non-stop. Now, I'm hoping we can do it again sometime; I've definitely got the taste for it!
However, we were soon in the country, and this is what I love Belgium for so much: not wild at all, but delightfully informal and much less ordered than our Dutch countryside, as the following three photos show. This was also Zoe's first excursion (or incursion) into the neighbouring territory, and she enjoyed all the new sniffs, not to mention a friendly encounter with a Flemish boxer dog. I couldn't help wondering if their accents got in the way of their canine communication, but judging by the tail wagging, the entente was very cordiale.
Having established friendly relations and had a lovely walk, it was then time for a cup of good Belgian coffee, which we consumed in the back yard of a café on the corner of the above street. The big German Shepherd that lived at the hostelry (or maybe she was Belgian) was not quite so welcoming as the boxer, but in the end accepted Zoe's presence with good enough grace. Even better, the coffee was delicious.
More locally, we also have some charming, informal corners, and our own small nature reserve near the crumbly cottage made an ideal walk on Saturday, especially now the trees have exploded into full and glorious leaf. I like the chairs outside the small house below and the air of relaxed disregard the owners must have towards their lack of privacy.
Today, unfortunately, it's been overcast for most of the day, but the sun is back this evening and there is promise of dry, sunny days to come. We have plenty to do outside, so keep everything crossed it remains fine. On Thursday, I'll be back in Rotterdam again, so maybe I can get some brighter photos of the beautiful harbours this time.
Have a good week allemaal. I hope you enjoy it wherever you happen to be,
What a lovely blogposts! And yes all those accents :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kathleen. I am so fond of Belgium but the accents are confusing. The café owner was very difficult for me to follow, and he wasn't even from the West! :) xx
DeleteWhat a wonderful way to spend you birthday weekend. And you were definitely smiled on by the weather gods! Beautiful photos and a charming post, as ever, Ms P. Here's wishing you another adventure filled trip around the sun.
ReplyDeleteAw, thank you, Ms M. I can thank a certain daughter of this parish for helping to make it extra special. :)
DeleteHi Val, firstly I chuckled at the mention of the Belgian countryside being more disorderly than that of NL. Coming from the literal wilds of BC, it looks astonishingly orderly to me!
ReplyDeleteI also got a smile from the 'canine accents'; I have often thought about the differences in (human) languages that dogs have learned. I know, from having lived in a bilingual province, that the commands we use have to be in either French or English (and that goes for the horses, too!).
I am also envious of your walks where you can simply stop along the way at a lovely café, then carry on with your wanderings. Our cafés are so far apart, it would take hours to reach one by foot. However, in actuality, the nearest café to our house is only a half-hour walk and I know; I work there... ;). That being said, the next closest one is about and hour-and-a-half walk.
I was just thinking today of how our own trees here have literally exploded overnight. It's like someone pulled a cord or flipped a switch!
And I'm happy you had a lovely Birthday/Mother's Day. I've never spent a day at the spa myself, but I can certainly imagine. Bob and I are going to do an overnight in Banff tomorrow to celebrate both our birthdays (his was yesterday and, although mine was in February, both Bob and I agreed a visit to Banff in the off-season would be far better, so we decided to combine). We will be relaxing in the underground hot tub tomorrow evening.
Again, I enjoy reading about your rambles and send both you and Koos mountains of love! xx
Ah, Dale, what a lovely long comment. You're treating me here too. I know what you mean about the long distances between cafés as that was much the same in SA, so yes, we feel very privileged to have everything so close by. Crossing a national border is also still quite a thrill for me. I never take it for granted. As for the spa day, I know lots of people will be surprised I've never been in or to a sauna before, but it was a lot of fun and I enjoyed the day very much. Have a lovely time in Banff, dear Dale. Enjoy the hot tub!! Oceans of love from me and Koos xxx
DeleteWhat lovely photos. Zoe must be bilingual by now. Happy Birthday!
ReplyDeleteAh, thank you so much, Mitos. And my apologies for the late reply. This week haas run away with me! Zoe is bi-lingual, but in English and Dutch. Flemish is slightly different, so maybe they wuff with a different accent :D
DeleteGlad you got some special YOU time, Val. You so deserve it! And marvelous photos. I see the sun...wow! You got to go where there was sun! Even Zoe loved that! (Steph)
ReplyDeleteThank you, dear Steph. It was really lovely and we've had sunshine for several days now although it's still quite cold.
DeleteHappy, happy birthday dearest Val and I am so glad you had such a special time with your daughters. Your walk with Koos and little Zoe sounds utterly peaceful and relaxing. Thank you so much for sharing your lovely photos with us all. Zoe is such a little beauty and I am sure she made a good impression on those ‘foreign’ dogs. 😁
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Lorraine, and my apologies for replying late to you too. It was really a lovely walk, and Zoe enjoyed meeting her foreign friends. Interestingly, she still perks her ears up when we pass people speaking an Eastern European language. I think she remembers something still from Slovakia where she came from.
DeleteLovely photos Val, some of the lanes look similar to areas in Lincolnshire and Zoe had a great time sniffing about. She looks a very happy dog. Talking of happy, happy birthday, sounds like you enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to some harbour pictures
ReplyDeleteOur weather here is slowly improving, mostly sunny days but, being on the North Sea east coast were still getting a chilly wind. The trees and country lanes are bursting with leaves now and the verges are overgrown with my favourite wild plant. Cow Parsely!! So white and frothy, I've been trying to photograph it on the odd days we are able to get out but it's quite difficult. Popcorn enjoys the countryside
Oh David, yes. Cow parsley is so pretty, isn't it? We have a lot of it here at the moment as well, but I find it very difficult to capture. I'm also pleased the poppies are out at last. The sun is shining here, but like your part of the world, it's still pretty cold. My apologies for the late reply. I don't know where this week has gone.
DeleteBelated happy birthday ... sounds like a lovely mother with daughters day ... fun - lovely - cheers Hilary
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