Liege Belgium to Revin France

Today we followed the Meuse River from Liege Belgium to Revin France.But first we had our morning coffee and made use of the service point before driving into Liege, 17km/30mins away. We managed to find some street parking not far from the Metal foundry Museum. 

It was small and a bit run down and probably not the top choice,  but we wanted to look at something a bit different. We paid €5pp and handed an English guide to read as we wondered around. The museum is set in a real old factory from 1845 where tinned steel was made.

Apparently one of only 10 remaining steam engines in Europe 

Napoleon’s travelling bath tub

After our short one hour visit we crossed over the Meuse river and went to see St.Pauls Cathedral which had some lovely features- the wooden pulpit with 2 stairs, the stain glassed windows, the cloisters.

We bought a traditional Liege Gauffre (waffle) which appears to be different from the traditional Belgium waffle. Wiki explained that the Liege waffle is made with raised dough rather than liquid batter, is round rather than rectangular and is made with sugar that caramelises during the grilling process. 

We are sure there were some more very fine buildings to see in Liege but we are feeling travel weary at the moment and to be honest we found the city too big and lacking charm as it had been heavily bombed during WWII. We are also looking for a place to chill out and so we returned to Bluey and followed the Meuse River. It is one of the major rivers of Europe. Starting in France, it flows 925km through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea. Between Liege and Namur we drove past heavy industrial areas and noticed barges using the water ways, mostly transporting gravel/rock. 

We passed Namur with its citadel perched above the town.

In Wepion we bought some strawberries, an area known for their delicate flavour… they certainly were deliciously sweet and juicy. 

We continued up river to Dinant (visited 2015). The saxophone town.

Maybe if we had been able to find a parking spot we would have stopped but alas it wasn’t to be so we continued and crossed the border in France to Givet and Haybes (2017), also with no luck with the aires (parking for motorhomes). 

Not much further along the river in Riven, we managed to get one of the individual spots separated by oak tree hedges and views of the river. We were happy to call it a day. 

At total of 167km today.

To Blegny Belgium

It was made apparent to us today that the summer season is over, both by the weather and the couple of tourist sites we wanted to visit being closed.

After a peaceful nights sleep in Soest and a quick coffee we were on the road again. Not far from here was the Mohne Reservoir. When the dam was completed in 1912, it was the largest in the world. It became a target by the British forces in May 1943 (The Dambusters) to destroy the electrical installations and thus affect the power supply to the war industry. Unfortunately it also resulted in 1,500 plus lives being lost, many were foreign forced labourers held in camps downriver. It took 7,000 men to repair the wall which done by September 1943! 

From here we made our way 100km to Solingen, also known as the ‘City of Blades’, as it is renown for its manufacturing in swords, knives, scissors and razors. We had planned to visit an Industrial Heritage Museum. But it was not to be as it was closed today. Whilst we were here the town’s sirens started ringing and the mobile phone had an alert signal going. It was quite disconcerting. Fortunately the alert message said it was just a nation wide test… phew! Brought back memories of when we were at school and they would do a mock fire drill. 

So once again we consulted our maps and apps to figure out where to from here.

We decided on a coal mine museum in Blegny in Belgium, 148km away.

But before we left Germany, Mark needed to stock up on his favourite beer, Augustiner Hells. We found a getranke store. They encouraged you to buy at least 2 crates for the  safety of your back… hehe.We successfully completed our mission (31 x 500ml bottle @€45).

Then we took the motorways to our destination, arriving around 3pm, to find that the mine is only open on weekends since the 9th September. Luckily they allow 24hrs stays and provide a free service point. So we settle in and do a bit more research and chores to pass the afternoon. When the rain has passed we were able to stroll around the complex which had a few information panels.

279km today… getting closer to France .