Last week, @caro-art and I undertook a little road trip to the Belgian coast, just to find out whether the North Sea was still there ;-) Belgium is the the quickest way for us poor landlocked souls to get to the sea, and quite doable in only a few short hours by car. As usual I brought home some video footage, which I submit below for your entertainment.
Letzte Woche haben @caro-art und ich einen kleinen Ausflug an die belgische Küste unternommen, nur um herauszufinden, ob die Nordsee noch da ist ;-) Belgien ist der schnellste Weg ans Meer für uns arme Landratten, und in nur wenigen kurzen Stunden mit dem Auto durchaus machbar. Natürlich habe ich wieder einige Videoaufnahmen heimgebracht, die ich euch zur gepflegten Unterhaltung hier präsentiere.
[ watch this video on folkerwulff.com ]
The Atomium is a landmark in the north of Brussels. Located just off the Brussels ring road, it's a convenient stop on our way to the coast. @caro-art had never seen it, so here we go...
The Atomium was built as the main pavilion of the 1958 World Expo of Brussels. The Atomium's nine 18-meter-diameter (59') stainless steel spheres represent iron atoms in a ferrite crystal, magnified 165 billion times. Today it houses a museum, which was closed due to COVID.
Das Atomium ist ein Wahrzeichen im Norden von Brüssel. Es liegt ganz nahe am Brüsseler Ring und ist daher ein idealer Zwischenstopp auf unserem Weg zur Küste. @caro-art hatte das Teil noch nie gesehen, also auf geht's...
Das Atomium wurde als Hauptpavillon der Weltausstellung 1958 in Brüssel gebaut. Die neun Edelstahlkugeln des Atomiums mit einem Durchmesser von 18 Metern stellen Eisenatome in einem Ferritkristall dar, 165 Milliarden Mal vergrößert. Heute beherbergt es ein Museum, das leider wegen Corona geschlossen war.
Ostend is a harbor town and seaside resort in the West Flanders province of Belgium. With its ferry port it used to be a principal jumping-off point into the U.K. but nowadays people prefer the much faster channel tunnel out of Calais / France which is only about 100 klicks from Ostend.
Ostend is known for its fine-sand beaches and sea-side esplanade. Especially during July and August the Ostend beaches are visited by many day-trippers. Near the beach in Raversijde a well-preserved section of the fortified Atlantic Wall is now an open-air museum, but guess what: closed due to COVID. The beaches we found pretty much dead as well for this time of year. Same reason.
Ostende ist eine Hafenstadt und Seebad in der Provinz Westflandern in Belgien. Mit seinem Fährhafen war es früher ein wichtiger Ausgangspunkt für die Überfahrt nach Großbritannien, aber heutzutage bevorzugen die Leute den viel schnelleren Kanaltunnel von Calais in Frankreich, der nur etwa 100 km von Ostende entfernt ist.
Ostende ist bekannt für seine feinsandigen Strände und seine Strandpromenade. Besonders im Juli und August werden die Strände von Ostende von vielen Tagesausflüglern besucht. In der Nähe des Strandes in Raversijde ist ein gut erhaltener Abschnitt des befestigten Atlantikwalls heute ein Freilichtmuseum, aber ratet mal: Wegen Corona geschlossen. Auch die Strände fanden wir für diese Jahreszeit so gut wie tot. Aus dem gleichen Grund.
At least we got to walk around in miscellaneous spots along the short coast, enjoying the comparative loneliness and the wonderfully fresh North Sea air.
Eventually we parked our purpose-built "Corona stealth camper" in an excellent spot in Koksijde, between Nieuwpoort and Oostduinkerke to turn in for the night.
The rather large place with room for dozens of RVs is situated in a quiet residential area just behind the dunes and very safe yet secluded. Overnight parking is free, but of course there are zero amenities. The small family restaurant "De Zeeberm" is located within easy walking distance. The coordinates for Google Maps are 51.124634 N and 2.711518 E for the camping fans among you.
Immerhin konnten wir wenigstens an verschiedenen Stellen entlang der kurzen Küste spazieren gehen und die vergleichsweise Einsamkeit und die herrlich frische Nordseeluft genießen.
Schließlich parkten wir unseren eigens gebauten "Corona Stealth Camper" an einem hervorragenden Platz in Koksijde, zwischen Nieuwpoort und Oostduinkerke, um uns für die Nacht einzurichten.
Der recht große Platz mit Raum für Dutzende von Wohnmobilen liegt in einem ruhigen Wohngebiet gleich hinter den Dünen und ist sehr sicher und dennoch abgelegen. Das Parken über Nacht ist kostenlos, aber es gibt natürlich keinerlei Annehmlichkeiten. Ein kleines Familienrestaurant namens "De Zeeberm" ist leicht zu Fuß zu erreichen. Die Koordinaten für Google Maps sind 51.124634 N und 2.711518 E für die Campingfans unter euch.
The next morning turned out to be rather cold but perfect for another very enjoyable walk at the beach near Nieuwpoort. We also got to experience how far psychological conditioning can f.ck up people's minds: some people walked around with their COVID-diapers on their faces, despite a stiff breeze with the cleanest air one can imagine :-(
Der nächste Morgen erwies sich als ziemlich kalt, aber perfekt für einen weiteren sehr angenehmen Spaziergang am Strand bei Nieuwpoort. Wir konnten auch erleben, wie weit psychologische Konditionierung die Gemüter der Menschen versauen kann: Einige Leute liefen mit ihren COVID-Maulwindeln im Gesicht herum, trotz einer steifen Brise mit der saubersten Luft, die man sich nur vorstellen kann :-(
Bruges is the capital of the Belgian province of West Flanders and the seventh-largest city of the country by population. Bruges once had a strategic location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade and the southern trade routes and was a place where entrepreneurs could thrive. As a result, the town grew rich and showed off her wealth with lavish architecture.
Bruges has most of its medieval architecture intact, making it one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe. The historic downtown of Bruges has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. Clearly identifiable from the air are the Church of Our Lady, the Saint-Salvator Cathedral and the famous Belfry of Bruges in the center of the panorama (l to r).
Brügge ist die Hauptstadt der belgischen Provinz Westflandern und die siebtgrößte Stadt des Landes nach Einwohnerzahl. Brügge hatte einst eine strategische Lage an der Kreuzung des nördlichen Handels der Hanse und der südlichen Handelsrouten. Es war ein Ort, an dem Unternehmer gedeihen konnten. Infolgedessen wurde die Stadt reich und zeigte ihren Reichtum mit aufwendiger Architektur.
Der größte Teil von Brügges mittelalterlicher Architektur ist intakt, was es zu einer der am besten erhaltenen mittelalterlichen Städte in Europa macht. Der historische Stadtkern von Brügge gehört seit dem Jahr 2000 zum UNESCO-Weltkulturerbe. Aus der Luft deutlich erkennbar sind die Liebfrauenkirche, die Kathedrale St. Salvator und der berühmte Belfried von Brügge in der Mitte des Panoramas (v.l.n.r.).
The Rozenhoedkaai (Rosary Embankment) is perhaps the most picturesque spot in Bruges. The name Rozenhoedkaai also goes back to the city's medieval history. In the past, rosaries were sold at this very place for a long period of time. @caro-art and I are in agreement, this would be a perfect place to practice plein air painting.
Der Rosenkranzkai ist vielleicht der malerischste Flecken Brügges. Der Name Rosenkranzkai oder Rozenhoedkaai geht bis auf die mittelalterliche Geschichte der Stadt zurück. So wurden früher an eben diesem Platz über einen langen Zeitraum hinweg Rosenkränze verkauft. @caro-art und ich sind uns einig, dies wäre der perfekte Ort, um die Pleinairmalerei zu üben.
The Markt ("Market Square") of Bruges is located in the heart of the city and covers an area of about 2½ acres (1 hectare). It features a plethora of well preserved historic buildings.
Bruges' most famous landmark is the Belfry of Bruges, a 13th-century belfry housing a municipal carillon comprising 47 bells. The city still employs a full-time carillonneur, who gives free concerts on a regular basis. Watch the video to hear the carillon play!
Diagonally across from the Belfry stands the Provinciaal Hof (Province Court). Unfortunately there was construction going on and most of its frontage was cloaked with a huge construction tarp.
All told, we will definitely come back for a longer and more in-depth visit once the world gets a handle on COVID and all those senseless rules are lifted.
Der Markt von Brügge liegt im Herzen der Stadt und umfasst eine Fläche von etwa 1 Hektar. Er bietet eine Fülle von gut erhaltenen historischen Gebäuden.
Das berühmteste Wahrzeichen der Stadt ist der Belfried von Brügge, ein Glockenturm aus dem 13. Jahrhundert, der ein städtisches Glockenspiel mit 47 Glocken beherbergt. Die Stadt beschäftigt immer noch einen hauptamtlichen Glockenspieler, der regelmäßig kostenlose Konzerte gibt. Seht euch das Video an, um das Glockenspiel zu hören!
Schräg gegenüber dem Belfried steht der Provinciaal Hof (Provinzhof). Leider wurde dort gerade gebaut und der größte Teil der Fassade war mit einer gigantischen Plane verhüllt.
Alles in allem werden wir auf jeden Fall für einen längeren und ausführlicheren Besuch wiederkommen, sobald die Welt Corona in den Griff bekommt und all diese sinnlosen Regeln aufgehoben werden.
Thanks for watching, thanks for looking, and please don't forget to upvote and reblog if you liked my post. Until next time!
Danke fürs Anschauen, und vergesst bitte nicht das Upvoten und Rebloggen, wenn euch mein Beitrag gefallen hat. Bis zum nächsten Mal!
Awesome post!!
Thanks. Took a few hours to put together 😀
Fantastischer Post!
LG Michael
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Danke Michael und LG zurück 😀
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a beautiful city that shares both modern and historical architecture 😍 thank you for sharing such amazing photos!
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Thank you for those kind words :-)
Wow. That looks like an awesome trip. Great photos and video. That beach was dead. I'm surprised how few people were on it. The beach looks great though. Most beaches near us (in the Normandy region of France) are stone beaches which are not at all pleasant to walk on or lay on. I've been to Brussels but I didn't go to the Antonium so that was cool to see in the video as well. It looks cool!
Yeah, it was fun in a whirlwind sort of way 😀 It's a bummer when everything is running at half steam or closed altogether, but it was time for a taste of travel again.
That camper van was one of the best investments I made in a long time. Want to stop for a coffee? No problem. Need a bed anywhere at any time of night? You got it. The conversion cost me only about 3.5 k EUR excluding diesel heat which goes in before winter for another 1 k. The van itself was 11.5 k but doubles as family car, so it doesn't really count. Shoulda done this years ago.
Yeah that does sound awesome. The convenience of it would be amazing. I wish I could get my wife on board with something like that but the lack of shower and toilet is a no for her. She didn't do any camping growing up
It took a pandemic for Caro to come around. We WASTED tens of thousands of Euros on hotels since we're together. I could have built the van to end all vans for the money we burned. Most importantly, the days are longer, so one saves time as well. And the independence and the freedom to go at a moment's notice is priceless.
I have emergency versions of both. More conventional ones are on every truckstop or campground; there are apps for that. If you get a bigger van you can easily make a full bathroom, but one can go a long time with washing alone and babywipes inbetween.
Perhaps you can rent a camper and get her to try it for 3, 4 days?
Here is a video of what's possible DIY-style, albeit for more money than what I paid:
Wow that's super cool. A very high tech version for sure. That would be an awesome way to travel. I wouldn't need it to be that high end but it's really cool nonetheless
No, you can do with a lot less. For example, I have "only" a 120 Ah AGM battery (no lithium) B2B charged by the van (60 Ah effectively useable) which gives me all the power I ever need - for refrigerator, light, fans, drone and camera charging, etc.. A few hundred Euros. No solar.
If I find myself in need of stationary charge down the line I'll buy a foldable solar panel for another 150 EUR or so, that can be turned towards the sun while the vehicle is in the shade, or it's used as a window shade. I also have a standard mains charger on board to hook up the battery in a campground. Cost 50 EUR.
Much of the stuff "everybody" is doing is cool but idiotic. 500 W of solar on the roof at the worst possible angle (especially in winter) so you only get a 20% yield. Waste of money.
You just have to think hard what you really need.
That all makes sense. Have you considered doing a post on your van conversion? That would be cool and I'm sure people would find it interesting. I would anyway.
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Hiya, @LivingUKTaiwan here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Top 3 in Your post has been manually curated by the @pinmapple team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!Spettacolare, ho deciso andrò a vivere in Belgio.
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Credimi, stai meglio in Italia. Chiamano Bruges "Piccola Venezia" perché ammirano l'originale.
post eccellente reblog it!
Thank you Armando. Abbraccio grato :-)
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