THE CASTLE OF LA HULPE

The Château de La Hulpe, was built by the Marquis of Béthune in around 1840. At the end of the 19th century, Count Ernest Solvay, a wealthy industrialist, acquired the property, which now belongs to Wallonia. Only the grounds, and not the castle itself, are accessible to the public.

The castle's parc is 227 acres big and contains woods and ponds. Almost all types of vegetation and habitats of the region are represented. Both place of refuge, roosting site, feeding, breeding, nesting and migratory stopover for birds, the Domaine Solvay (as it is also called) is perfect for small and large mammals.

The Domaine Solvay and castle host regular shooting of films, serials, television programs and commercials.

You can rent the dining room or living room of the castle to organize dinners, cocktail receptions, seminars, conferences, weddings and other special events.

Today I take you on a visit through the domaine.

The castle from far

The guardians and employees house at the entrance. Not bad, I would like to work there !

and here we go for a long walk ! It takes about 30 min to get to the castle.

the views are so beautiful

approaching the castle

and here it is

Must be nice to have a round room in the tower

and a party here on the terrace (from one side)

and from the other

Nice statues

a wonderful garden

and a breathtaking view from the castle over the domaine

Another view

When I arrived at the horse stables, I read that they had been transformed into a riding school for autistic and other mentally disturbed children. It is called today "Les rennes de la vie" (the reines of life)

from outside

and inside, where I could watch the children

on my way back, the poor geese realized that I didn't have any food and ran away

The end of my promenade

EXCURSION TO VEERE IN THE NETHERLANDS

When I visited my friend in Holland we went one afternoon to Veere.

Veere is a a cute little town in the southwestern Netherlands, on Walcheren in the province of Zeeland and has only 1661 inhabitants. Today it's a nice place for tourists with many things to see, but when I was there with my friend now in the middle of the winter everything was closed and only a few shops remained open. But during spring and summertime and even at Christmas there are a lot of historical activities going on.

In the past, between 1541 and 1799, Veere was the staple port for the Kingdom of Scotland and the warehouse of Scottish wool.. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Veere was a prosperous trading city.

I just take you for a little walk around the city

The port which once had been very important for the Scottish wool trading, is now a leisure port for sailing boats.

The Campveerse Tower, built as a part of the Town defense around 1500, from the sixteenth century the tower was used as inn and coastal light. It is now one of the oldest surviving taverns in the Netherlands.

These green doors to the basement were built to allow lorries on rails coming directly from the port to the house and to upload the wool directly into the basement. The rails have been taken out from the street recently.

These old houses belonged mainly to the Scotts, the one with the green white stores is a museum today.

From far you can see the tower of the Town Hall of Veere

Town hall of Veere has a beautiful façade, the tower with the bells dates from the late sixteenth century. The carillon in the tower is said to be one of the prettiest in the Netherlands.

The façade

a few shops were open for "Sale"

and also one Café

We visited a wool shop

the little sheeps could be used for cushions, foot warmers or other things.

the old fountain where wool was washed, is now covered and not in use anymore

The Grote Kerk Veere, is from 1348. In 1811, Napoleon's soldiers used it as a military hospital. The church was also used as a home for beggars and later as barracks. The building still bears clear traces of an eventful past. I found it quite ugly !

romantic little streets

and very old little houses, this one dates from 1616. I love this little window !

little street not really made for big people !

and when we returned to the car we took this picture of ourselves in the mirror of the woolshop !