Is the annual ‘booze-cruise’ another motoring thing of the past?
IAIN ROBERTSON Judging by unhurried queues at Dover, reports Iain Robertson, when he tripped to France and Belgium between Christmas and the New Year, it would appear that the...
A Paradise for Chocoholics?
By Wendy Hughes Like me, do you enjoy chocolate? Then a trip to Belgium is a must. Since the 19th century, the industry has been an important part of...
The Waterloo Wounded.
The day after I saw the absolutely fantastic Battle of Waterloo 200th Anniversary Re-enactment, we visited a small town nearby called Braine-l’Alleud. In 1815, Braine-l’Alleud had a population of...
THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO. Did the Weather affect the Results? 200 YEARS AGO TODAY!
The sun was shining as I gazed across the flat, neat farmland which was the site of The Battle of Waterloo. How different the weather was in 1815! 200...
Fascinating Fondation Folon!
Although I appreciate art (except bricks, beds, blobs and other silly cons) I don’t always like it. I went to the DaVinci Exhibition in London, and I stared,...
WATERLOO. HOW DID IT FEEL WHEN WE WON THE WAR?
Gazing across the calm, colourful, cultivated flat Belgian landscape it’s impossible to picture the manic mayhem that was happening here 200 years ago! I would have been watching hundreds...
Is Asparagus an Aphrodisiac?
IS ASPARAGUS AN APHRODISIAC? Tradition says that asparagus is an aphrodisiac, but it’s never had that effect on me, nor on anyone sitting at the same table as me,...
FLANDERS WW1, FORGIVEN BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN! Part Two
By Lyn The morning after attending The Last Post at the Menin Gate, we had a freshly-cooked breakfast in the Hotel Palace, then we walked along the road with...
FLANDERS WW1, FORGIVEN BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN!
By Lyn Funnell We Brits are a forgiving lot. We seem to suffer from collective amnesia. Any tragedies, wars, etc are out of sight, out of mind and...
Plugstreet, Mons & the WW1 Christmas Truce. Belgium.
Ploegsteert, or Plugstreet as it was called in WW1, is two miles North of Armentieres and the French border, and eight miles South of Ypres. It has a large...
Chocolate, Chips and Cordon Bleu in Belgium – Part 2
A brief history of the Belgian fries The potatoe: brought back from South America to Europe by the Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century, today the potatoes are grown...
Chocolate, Chips and Cordon Bleu in Belgium – Part 1
Good food can be ruined by bad service. But there’s no fear of that in Belgium! After exploring the city of Brussels all day, and fighting off the urge...
Weeing Boy, Waffles & Chocolate! Yes, it’s Brussels, Belgium!
Brussels is a beast of a city. It should be issued with a Health Warning! Every street is filled with the wafting aromas of chocolate, cakes or waffles. (Oh...
Dinant’s Citadel & City Massacre. Belgium, Europe.
World War l began 100 years ago on 28th June, 1914, when Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were assassinated. Within a few weeks the whole world...