Comments Off on Inside The German Trenches It seems odd to think that trenches like these went on for miles marking the front line! These aren’t original trenches of course, they’ve been rebuilt.
With the weather conditions we had today, it was easy to understand why the troops got trench foot: they didn’t have the luxury of getting back on the coach to go and find a nice hot drink after half an hour. They didn’t even know if they’d be alive at the end of the day.
Comments Off on Above the German Trenches 
Comments Off on Ypres (Ieper) Battlefield Lovely weather for a guided tour of the Ypres Battlefield. These are the weather conditions the soldiers in WW1 would have experienced – to very authentic!
During the war, there would have been trenches across this landscape.
Comments Off on The Place Royal Now I’m not sure – because the sign was in a language which I don’t speak Flemish, but I think this is a church. The word ‘Kirk’ is similar to the German word ‘Kirche’. I may be completely wrong though. What I can say, is that this square is called the ‘Place Royal’ – located behind the Palais Royal.
Comments Off on Palais Royal – The Gates It appears that the Palais Royal is very similar to Buckingham Palace! Here’s a photo with a better view of the gates.
There were 2 guards there too, marching up and down.
The only difference is the lack of tourists. Even on a day like today, Buckingham Palace would still have plenty of foreign tourists taking photos of it.
There wouldn’t be cars parked outside Buckingham Palace – that might be considered a security risk – but here it seems normal!
Comments Off on Palais Royal This afternoon we’ve got some free time in Brussels.
After walking a short distance from the coach in the Royal Quarter of the city, I think I’ve found Buckingham Palace…
Comments Off on Belgian TV: Surprisingly British! Those who know me well will know that I have a strong interest in radio, and occasionally TV. The first thing I usually do when I arrive in a foreign country is switch on the TV/Radio.
This trip to Belgium is no exception, despite the fact that I speak neither Flemish (the Belgian dialect of Dutch), nor French.
You can imagine the surprise I got when I switched on the TV to find Eggheads with Jeremy Vine on one side, and the BBC News at 6 on the other! Very useful for keeping up to date with the latest news. There are also in excess of 30 other TV channels available here, most in either French, Flemish/Dutch or German.
Comments Off on The View from My Hotel Room Good evening from Floor 11 of the Thon Hotel, Brussels City Center.
I’m not used to staying in a room that is so high up! It took me a while to work out how to use the lift (I have to use my key card to make it work).
Photos
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11th Floor, Belgium, Brussels, Night, Thon Hotel, View
Comments Off on Arriving at Calais We are very nearly at Calais. I think I will be able to remember my way back down to the coach! If it wasn’t November, I’d say that beach looks good enough to swim at… 😉
Once we are on the coach, we will start the final leg of our journey to Brussels.
I’m don’t think Calais is far from the Belgian border – and Belgium is a relatively small country. We can’t be more than two and a bit hours from Brussels once we’ve cleared the port and hit the road.
Comments Off on Internet at Sea 
I am currently on board the Spirit of Britain, somewhere between Dover and Calais.
Isn’t technology wonderful!? The more observant of you will notice that my laptop is also plugged in to power at sea!
The Internet on board is extremely slow though – it is like dial up! Not that this bothers me, it is free and I’m only here for a short time.
I will be switching my sim card when we are half way across the channel to my Greek sim card – cheaper roaming rates than my UK sim!
Time to go and find some lunch now!
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