HillgirtHeightsAdventures: July 2014

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Erasmus House Day Trip

Another day trip we were directed to by our Brussels tour guide in absentia was to Erasmus House (again, via tram 81).

A great humanist and reformer, Erasmus of Rotterdam only lived here for less than a year in 1521. He originally came to the house because he was sick but after one week, he was rejuvenated and remained for 4 months.

The house was built at the turn of the 16^th century, became a museum in 1932, and was classified as a historic building in 1937. It contains a collection of beautiful furniture, paneling and fireplaces as well as works of art, books, engravings and archives.

Tourists have been visiting his house since the 17th century. These items today give us a unique insight into various moments of European history – the Renaissance, the reign of Charles V, the rise of humanism, the development of printing and the emerging religious conflicts.

One of the fine furniture pieces on exhibit

Amazing detail of a door panel in the chest above.

Detail of an oak staircase leading up to the library along with one of many identical chairs throughout the house.

The museum preserved many rare and ancient editions of Erasmus’s writings as well as a collection of 15^th and 16^th century paintings. The books can be examined by scholars by appointment. For the admission price of about $2.00, we were also given a lovely English translation of the history of the house.

On the day we were there, there was a class of middle schoolers enjoying the exhibits – each one was given an “Erasmus hat” to wear during their visit!

In addition to the house exhibits, the museum includes an important garden space in the back which was specifically designed with conversation spaces for friends to meet and converse with each other.

This archway of wisteria led into the main garden which was small and intimate.

Doors to a storage shed - very impressive.

Not sure what this space was for - it appeared to be

an enclosure of leaded glass pieces constructed into panels, some translucent, some transparent, quite high and with an open doorway, in the middle of the garden.

Grapes hanging from a fence

There were several shallow reflecting pools perhaps 5 inches deep with words suspended in the middle of each one. The garden is wonderful to wander through or sit in in nice summer thanks to the unceasing commitment of local experts and a handful of volunteers. The garden also contains culinary and medicinal herb gardens.

To the Forest - Day Trip

Park in Tervuren

This is huge park situated on the edge of Brussels. The Parc du Tervuren - of course the name reminded me of the Belgian Tervuren dog breed but I did not see any of these in Belgium, only in Israel at the airport where they are trained for military use by the IDF and help to locate bombs.

Vast lawns with a canal in the middle

The green space is easily reachable by tram 81 (again!) to Montgomery (downtown), with a switch to another tram.

The 2nd tram actually takes the passengers several kilometres through the forest to arrive at the park stop directly across the street. We went in looking for the African Museum Marco suggested we check out but did not find it immediately due to the size of the park.

The park has forest, lawns and a canal, not to mention some unusual medium sized geese and is a great place to bike or run which many do - we just spent a couple of hours hiking around the various paths and lawns.

Also dog walkers and minders of grandchildren can be seen enjoying the quiet spaces. Apparently, you can also find meteors if you walk into the forest – something I only found out when reading about the park after we went there.

It's worth walking around the alleys in the park. The stag statue was located at the entrance. In earlier times, the park used to be the King's "holiday house", so imagine the size of the gardens...

Oddly, located in the former king’s palace (file photo, not mine - the day we tried to go, it was covered by scaffolding) is the Royal Museum for Central Africa. It is housed in the enormous ‘palace’ (above) in the middle of the park. It was unfortunately closed for renovation when we visited.

but we spent some time strolling around looking at the sculptures on the lawns. The museum mainly focuses on the Congo and tells (part of) the history of this former Belgian colony.

All in all, we enjoyed our afternoon in this beautiful park.

Monday, July 28, 2014

Folestival!

Marco searched high and low for a typical Belgian festival to attend during our

stay and found this one - Folestival in Longueville, Brabant, Belgium! We all drove there mid Saturday night along with Gab and his friend Philipo.

Featured was the 70s band, still rocking, the

Amazing Slade! We had a lot of fun as well as tasty refreshments!

Setting it all up on a beautiful afternoon - rain was threatened but it was sunny and WARM.
We were well prepared for bad weather and all over-dressed.

The T-Shirt Logo

There are two original band members from the seventies - the lead guitar and
singer and the drummer.

Appreciative audience of mostly 40s/50s folks

who danced up a storm - the cow theme

undoubtedly came from the fact that the

event was held in a very rural town surrounded

by fields of crops and cows.

Brussels at last - with the Zaterins!

Brussels at last!

This was our second visit to Brussels, our first in the summer. We visited here in 2007/8 over the December/January holidays - along with Marley - and we all drove the the French coast for a 3 day getaway after New Year's Day. We were thrilled that our hosts came to California to visit us and tour the state last July, 2013. Where will we meet next????

Just a poster I liked from a music store we visited - our

host is a huge appreciator - and collector - of vinyl.

Hydrangeas on the front walk at the house on Square Larousse

The exciting moment of our arrival from Bruges preserved in film!

Danny and Marco!

Our rooms at the top of the red staircase were on the front
of the house - which surprisingly is on a street where
two prisons are located! Sirens every morning when
the prisoners are moved!

Love these old staircases in Belgian townhouses!

One of several of Marco's "go to" coffee shops

Daily commute on the Piaggi scooter - Marco worked every day we were here

until the weekend and is finally on vacation too.

Entry of Moroccan restaurant's bathroom - very fancy!

Music Night!

Or perhaps music night is every night?

We ran in a nearby park every morning of our visit -
this was the most common dog we saw in every country
during our whole trip - the wire haired dachshund!

Besides dog walkers, another animal is rampant in Belgian city green
spaces. Apparently in 1975 an amusement park manager let

50 Monk Parakeets loose. The population didn't increase

right away but around 2007 there were finally

enough of them to have a population explosion and now

they are everywhere. The locals peeps say they might have to

capture some because they are a threat to the local bird population.

They are extremely loud but elusive to photograph and don't

stay still long - and roost in very tall white pine trees in the park.

Somehow these tropical birds have adapted to the cold

and are thriving - and are noisy neighbours as well.

Tram 81 - how we got around when we didn't walk. FACT: We brought a whole
seven days of California sunshine to the City of Brussels where it rains A LOT.
Marco suggested a day trip for us so we had an activity almost every day we were here.

World Wars I and II monument in downtown Brussels - in the
darkened area, there lay a statue of a dead soldier.

Bruges Brauerie Tour

We did not have too much time to spend in Bruges but while in a chocolate shop (hah), we overheard someone asking where the brewery was. Danny of course paid close attention and we discovered that it was "hidden" behind a large door when closed and is only open during the day until 6 pm. We signed up early for the last tour in English at 5 pm that day.

The De Halve Maan Brauerie (or Half Moon Brewery) is located in the heart of Bruges and has been in the same family for six generations. The latest owner looks like a very young man. This family produces only 4 brews of authentic local beer – varying in taste and strength – 6, 7.5, 9 and 11%. Since 1856, six generations have steered the brewery with one single goal in mind: offer superior beer both in quality and in taste while respecting the traditional brewery art ...

Brewery ‘De Halve Maan’ (The Half Moon) can go back on a very long history. Already in 1564 the town register mentions the existence of the brewery ‘Die Maene’ (The Moon) on the Walplein. In 1856, the "modern" brewery was founded. Every since, the quality has been increasing. Now, the brewery gives multiple tours per a day, each hour and in three languages. The rooftop view of the city halfway through the tour is worth the fee alone. Behind a huge door is a bier garten, a large Brasserie and both old and new parts of the brewery winding up and down several floors - the tour winds up and down 273 steps through the old building, some of which are going down backwards on steps as steep as a ladder. And of course the tour ends with a beer – the blond variety!