WATERLOO CHRISTMAS MARKET 2016

December 20, 2016

Since a few years there are Christmas markets a little everywhere in Belgium and not only in Brussels. Waterloo joined in too. At the very beginning it was just a small little market in a huge tent in front of the city hall. But this year it was different. It had become a nice market with about 30 chalets.



At one of the two entrances






Here you can eat snails



and of course drink hot or normal wine



The house of the Waterloo youth



beautiful decoration



This corner was for drinking mostly Champagne



An old carousel for the kids



Even the Television



Enough to eat and to drink and warm you up at this flame



Jelly, jam and other goodies



Iceskating



Self knitted  pullovers, cardigans and hats for kids



Even Buddha was there to bring us serenity



or another mean to get cheerful



Many different chalets



and people having fun



I haven't seen the real father Christmas but this one waved me good-bye

LAC DE L'EAU D'HEURE

It is now over 60 years that I live in Belgium and had never been at these lakes. My two friends who were born here neither ! As it was so hot this summer and most of the Belgians hurried to the sea which caused terrible traffic jams on the highways, we decided to discover the lakes ! And we discovered a paradise !

The Eau d'Heure lakes (French: lacs de l'Eau d'Heure) is a complex of five artificial lakes, forming the largest lake area in Belgium.

The dams were built during the 1970s. The lakes are about  30 km south of the city of Charleroi, and the border with France.

The primary river feeding the lakes is the Eau d'Heure. There are five dams and one hydro-electric power station. The largest lake, the Lac de la Plate Taille, is itself the largest single lake in the country, at 3.74 square kilometres (1.44 sq mi), while together the lakes have a surface area of 6.17 square kilometres (2.38 sq mi).

It is a popular tourist attraction, with water sports, including fishing, kayaking, diving and windsurfing.

The five lakes are:

Lac de l'Eau d'Heure, the central lake of the complex
Lac de Falemprise, a medium sized lake to the south-east
Lac de Féronval, a small lake at the north end of Lac de l'Eau d'Heure
Lac de la Plate Taille, the largest lake at 3.74 square kilometres (1.44 sq mi), at the south-west of the group
Lac du Ry Jaune (sometimes spelled Ri Jaune), a small lake on the east side



Instead of sand we had green grass and pebbles. The beach for the public was unguarded and ideal for families, but there were also groups of young people and elderly couples. Everybody behaved very well and the beach was clean despite the fact or because there was no guardian !



The boats have another part of the lakes they were there for a short while and then left. As  you can see from the grey spot in the grass, people had made a barbecue here.





My friends dog Charlie was very happy ! He was more in the water then outside !



making friends



The lake was warm and the surroundings very beautiful !





Later in the afternoon more and more people arrived, but still it was not so crowded as on the sea beaches !



The power station tower



I couldn't find out for what these round little artificial islands were, but then somebody told me that they were for divers.




We had lunch in the restaurant at the lake, with a beautiful view. Underneath the terrace was a snack bar where you could buy chips, hamburgers, icecream etc.

Of course what you see here is only a small part of the lakes.



This is an overview of the whole area

Diving, sailing, kayaking or water skiing? The Lakes of the Eau d'Heure can practice all water sports.

There is also a golf school with driving range and a 9-hole course.

A cycling center with a Bike Park and routes and trails for mountain biking, racing bike, BMX, Dirt, Fourth Cross and mountainbike.

But that's not all, the area of ​​Eau d'Heure lakes, it is also a protected natural park, the opportunity to make walks and ride.

Restaurants, snack bars, brasseries and cafes with terraces are not missing.

I think next year we will go there more often if the weather allows it. There are so many possibilities to spend a nice day, especially as we live only 70 km away.

ITTRE - Belgium

Ittre is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. It was the geographical center of Belgium until World War I.

Traditions mention the existence of the village of Ittre about the year 640, although the name is first documented in 877. But the site was already occupied in the Roman period and even in the Neolithic era.

I like Ittre very much and as there is also a very nice theatre I have a season ticket there. In Ittre it seems that the time stood still. The houses remained unchanged, and the little streets have still their cobble stones which makes it so difficult to walk with high heels. The people there are especially friendly and open and always have a little joke ready.

The main place is of course in front of the church, with restaurants, doctors and not far the theatre.



The foundation of the church of Ittre occurred around 640, and is principally known as the centre of the veneration of Our Lady of Ittre, which began in 1336, when a terrible plague was raging in the Low Countries. The statue of the Virgin, from the monastery at Bois-Seigneur-Isaac, was carried in procession from village to village and on her arrival in Ittre, the plague stopped. The inhabitants refused to return it to Bois-Seigneur-Isaac, and the Virgin remained in Ittre, despite subsequent litigation, in which the ecclesiastical courts always supported the church of Ittre. An annual procession was established in 1384 and has been held every year without interruption since then on August 15th. Our Lady of Ittre was especially invoked against hernias or ruptures.

I missed the carrying around of the Lady of Ittre, but went to another festival called "La fête de St. Remy" ! I couldn't find out who St. Remy was, but Ittre celebrated him  very much !






There was a flea market in front of the church and in all streets around.



Children had decorated trees with chicken and cows, it really looked funny



There was a lot to buy


The houses mostly are built with the same stone



That's a nice café for a drink



Ittre is quite hilly, and you walk up and down, later I felt it in my legs !



These had once been a trough for horses and now are used as flower pots !



The old pump is still working





The old forge which is now a museum




The well in the village middle was also nicely decorated

When we thought we had seen it all, we had a drink in the café and watched the people on the place looking for bargains.  Then we returned home. 

LAST STOP : MOFFAT - SCOTLAND

On our way back to Eastbourne, we stopped in Moffat which is situated in South West Scotland just off Junction 15 on the M74. It is a cute town full of beautiful flowers, it had been a former winner of Scotland and Britain “in bloom”, and is proud of its floral displays in Station Park, the High Street and throughout the town.

Moffat has a good selection of shops offering a wide variety of products.We had just enough time to wander around and some of our group did some shopping.

In the nineteenth century, Moffat was a Spa town and this tradition has been recently re-opened with Moffat Well.

The focal point of the town centre is the world famous Moffat Ram which sits on top of the Colvin Fountain. It looks quite impressive !

And these are the pictures I took while walking around









Beautiful flowers everywhere



Pub



Main street








A church near the bus parking from back and front



and another one on the main street, with a little place and benches









Shops and houses





Sheep races



Sheep everywhere ...



and the ram statue, symbol of the town.

It was a pleasant stop, before we continued our way.