OH, THE FREEDOM OF THE OPEN ROAD!

Leaving Bruges and Ypres behind us and with the luxury of having all the time in the world and 'with no particular place to go' (as the song  goes!) we've fallen upon some little gems that we would otherwise have missed had we followed the well trodden tourist trail.  Little corners and lesser known places like Durbuy (purportedly the smallest village in the world) and  Esch sur Sure, Diekirch and Vianden in Luxembourg.   

Namur

Based on the description for our chosen site, we were full of anticipation:  a manor house, a lake............ mmmm,  that  sounded idyllic!   On arrival, we drove through large ornate iron  wrought gates, looking promising!   True,  there was a manor house though on closer inspection showed itself to be very sad looking and in need of much TLC - the lake?  Nothing more than a little pond!   We found ourselves to be lone motor homers pitched in nothing more than a field at the far end of a huge area of permanent holiday caravans, most of which were unoccupied, many looking very dilapidated and neglected having been unused for far too long!  We did have 'facilities' of sorts but with the chilly weather still with us at that point, shower cubicles set in a building with no heat and open to the elements was not my idea of fun!  We were there 2 days before moving on - quite sufficient for time to explore Namur itself. 

View across to the Fort of Namur - sadly on a VERY grey day

Views across Namur

.......  and its Medieval church

 
 

From this point on however, things just got better ......  and better ....... and better (though sadly NOT always the weather!)

Moving on from Namur, we stopped for lunch in Huy under the shade of willow trees by the river and spent the afternoon exploring the city before driving on to Durbuy - catching glimpses of the river as it wove its way along the riverbed through the trees and the little tumbling waterfalls - the sun was shining and the day felt good.

The Notre Dame Collegiate

Detail of the altar

 

Durbuy -

I'm not sure it should still be claiming be the smallest village in the world having expanded somewhat with many bistros and boutique shops over the years but nonetheless,  truly a quaint little  'chocolate box' of a village I'm sure you'll agree and only a short stroll from our site.  

And what a gem the site was too - a small area catering for a handful of tourers all pitched right beside the edge of the River Ourthe surrounded by ideal walking country (and running - fantastic runs alongside the river - though not so much 'fun' when the path left the river to rise up, up AND up!!)

The Lone Runner !!

 

Making the most of the sunshine

  

The imposing castle  - our first glimpse of Durbuy from the bridge leading into the village that lay just behind:

The 'rock' of Durbuy - Spot Michael down in the front!!

... and beautiful by night

Splat!!!!!   "Ouch!!!!"

We spent endless hours watching life on the river - countless kayakers quite clearly having such fun in the perfect conditions, water 'ratty' to-ing and fro-ing - mouth jammed with grass collected from the riverbank, heading back into the water and disappearing into his little home in the river bank.  The local heron was a frequent visitor and joy of joys when we spotted the kingfisher sitting on a rock by the water's edge knocking the life out of the fish in his beak (literally) - I never have the zoom lens to hand at the right moment - would have been the perfect shot.    We were so happy and at peace there, our 2 day stay stretched into a week before we moved on again. 

  

Bastogne (en route into Luxembourg)

The WWII Mardasson Memorial in the form of a five pointed American star honouring the memory of the 76,890 American soldiers, killed, wounded or missing in the Battle of the Bulge.  

 Crypt sheltering the 3 altars: Catholic, Jewish and Christian