Photos from Elle

Thanks to Shaun for providing some great photos.

Entering the Willemdok marina, with some other very large craft

Just a great pic of Ian, taken in the Willemdok marina..

Ian route planning

Entering the huge Kattendijk Lock, second in the convoy

Almost lost in the lock

Trying to be as unobtrusive as possible in a traffic jam

Merelbeke to Ghent

Total 8 km, except we didn't quite get there - keep reading.

A leisurely start today, we didn't pull up our stakes till a good bit after 10.30.  It was fractionally warmer than yesterday, but really not by much, and seeing we had only a one hour trip ahead of us there was no need to rush.

As we eased along the canal we saw more and more boats just tied up to the bank like we were last night.  And some people have even smaller boats than we do - there were 3 people inside this little boat!

 It didn't take us long to get to the outskirts of Ghent.

Ian rode here last night on the bicycle, he went only about 3km from the boat and was in total city territory.

 A fork in the canal.  Which way to go -the Opperschelde to the left or the Visserijvaart to the right?  We chose the Opperschelde because it looked more interesting.

It 's getting prettier

 St Paul's Abbey, which we got well acquainted with later.

Oh dear, canal works ahead!

Elle could not get through 

So we turned around under the bridge.  Having a small boat is usefull, Elle had to reverse out to find a wide enough turning space.   We hammered stakes into the ground in the shadow of Sint Paul's. 

We took a walk to see if there is any chance we could pass the canal works after they stop for the evening, but no, none whatsoever.  Not 50m from the canal works there is a bend in the canal and this is the Ghent we came to see.

Tomorrow we will have to go all the way round the Ringvaart and enter Ghent from the West via the Leie River.  

Meanwhile Ian got back to work attacking various rust spots, but he doesn't work all the time.

I went in search of a supermarket because we needed bread and potatoes.  Off I trotted, thinking there was one just 250m or so from the boat.  After way more than that I asked for directions - which lead me all the way back to even less than 250m from the boat in the other direction!

Antwerp to Merelbeke, near Ghent

We left Antwerp today, heading for Ghent.  It was an early start to catch the rising tide.  Low tide was at 6.30 and, yesterday when we spoke to the knowledgeable man in the office of the Jachthaven he told us 6.30 was too early, it is better to leave a couple of hours after low tide to catch the flood tide as it surges up the river.  High tide in Ghent is some 6 hours later than Antwerp so we have plenty of time.  Plus, the Kattendijk Lock closest to us, and used primarily for pleasure cruisers, only opens at half tide.  He called them for us and they confirmed that 8.30 was a good time.  Also the London Bridge out of Willemdok where the jachthaven is, only opens at specific times,  one of them being 8.30.  We were all more than happy to postpone our departure from 6.30 to 8.30.

It was really cold, bringing back memories of our first couple of weeks on the water.

We left the dock at 8.15 to make sure we were waiting for the bridge.  Before long another 3 boats joined the queue.  I couldn't fit them all into the photo.

Four of us headed straight for the Kattendijk Lock which is enormous.  A huge great big square lock.   It was only a 2 metre drop to river level but it took 45 minutes to drain all that water.  Then the lock gates opened but we had to wait for the bridge across the lock gates to open, about 6 or 8 minutes, and in that time the level in the lock rose by 6 inches because of the in-coming tide.

Finally, at 9.30, we were out onto the river

Our final view of the Antwerp skyline.

We really enjoyed out time in Antwerp, it is a lovely city.

The Scheldt river is very wide, and with wind against fast rising tide (5.5m at Antwerp) it was pretty turbulent. 

There was a lot of river traffic and the weather brought some rain squalls even a little hail.  

As we got further up the river we passed some very peaceful looking villages.

Past the Dende River canal junction the river began to narrow

And we began to see some interesting residences

But with the narrower river the big commercial traffic got quite interesting.  This one came steaming up behind us

 trailing this huge wake behind him

 

Don't ask me what this is all about.  I'd love to know but there was no one to ask.

Then, in a really narrow section at a bridge, one boat was passing us in the opposite direction just as another was passing us going in the same direction as we were - so all three of us had to fit in somehow.  Interesting.

We squeezed as close to the river bank as we could and Welland passed pretty close to us but he gave a polite Thank You wave as he went by.  

Finally, after 80 km we reached Merelbeke Lock.  A huge lock, some 180m long with enormous control towers overlooking the lock.

After this we were out of the tidal stream.  We had averaged about 14km/hour with the tide carrying us all the way.  It was already after 4.00 pm.  We had intended to continue all the way into the centre of Ghent but when we saw this idyllic free spot just after the lock in Merelbeke we decided to stop for the night. 

Admire the wild flowers

 And feed the duck with her tiny brood.

Still in Antwerp

Sunny today, but not really warm; there is a cold breeze from the north.

We went for a bike ride this morning to the Central Station

and, yes, it was impressive, even more so inside than outside.

This afternoon I had earmarked for going to the museum right here on the dock, the Museum aan de Stroom, which is all about Antwerp.  And this is what I found:

Drat!  We have been here since Friday, and I pick the one and only day in the week that it is closed.  We are leaving here early tomorrow so I've missed my chance.

The next dock along, on the other side of the museum, is called Napoleon Dock and is designated to have various historic craft in it.  There are already a couple of barges which you can go and look around (but not on Monday) and this Light Ship.

I couldn't resist taking a pic of this shop sign on my perambulations:

This building is directly opposite the marina, I walk through here every day to the supermarket, and every day I love it even more.

On tone side is a very up-market expensive restaurant.  No, we didn't go there -  probably would have blown a whole month's budget!

After I got back I spent half an hour or so polishing the stainless steel guard rails, which have been sadly neglected for many years.   They are basically in good condition but had been spattered with paint, which Ian has painstakingly removed, and today I did the final buff up.

Then we went to Lynn and Shaun for dinner - Nasi Goreng with a a fried egg on top.  One of my favourites!

Antwerp

A bit drizzly and rainy today.  However, the sun was shining when I got up and I put a load of t-shirts, etc, in to soak - to be hand washed later -  and took a load of bedding up to the laundry.  When I got there both machines were already in use. I eventually got my sheets in about 30 minutes later.  Meanwhile the rain had set in and I soon came to the conclusion that there was no way I was going to get my load of hand washing dry by hanging it out on the rails.  So I went to the office and paid another €3 for an extra dryer load.  When I went to check my washing in the machine it was done but the dryer was now already in use and the second machine which had also stopped was in the queue to use it before me.  It was after 3.00 in the afternoon before I got my first load of washing into the dryer, and that took an hour.  The second load that had been hand washed, no spin, took nearly 3 hours to dry!  From starting at 11 in the morning it was 7.30 in the evening before all my laundry was finally dry.  Kept me fit though, the laundry is about 150m from the boat and I walked backwards and forwards between the two dozens of times.

Meanwhile there was a marathon going on and part of the route came right past the marina.  All day there was a helicopter overhead, not always directly overhead but in the environs, loud speaker commentary and lots of noise from the start/finish area on the other side of the river.  Ian went for a ride to suss it all out and said there were thousands of spectators down on the waterfront, cheerleaders with all the accoutrements, press on motorbikes, etc, etc.  Here at the marina it was quite close to the finish and we watched the stragglers struggling home.  Some looked in pain, others looked as if they were about to collapse, a few looked hale and hearty.  Kept us entertained all day.

This evening a live band started up not far from the marina as we were barbying a flatty chicken (known to the rest of the world as a spatchcock chicken).   Lynn and Shaun walked over to take a look, and as they arrived the music stopped.  So they came home.  As they got home the music started again!  As soon as we finished eating Ian and I took a walk over, and as we arrived the music stopped and they were pulling all the plugs from the amps, etc. So we came home.  As soon as we got back to the boat the music started again!  So Ian and Shaun went off in a great hurry, determined to get to listen to some music before it stopped again.   They discovered it was a private birthday party and there were a number of different bands playing, hence all the stopping and starting.  They had a great time.

Here are just 2 pics I took today.

Evening in the marina on a drizzly day, no one sitting out at the pavement cafés

Flatty chicken for dinner

Antwerp

Woke up to grey skies and rain piddling down.  Did some interior boat cleaning while Ian went to a yacht chandlers to buy a UFO vent to replace the one above the galley.  When taking everything off the decks to paint he found that the old one, although still functioning well, was a bit long in the tooth with the plastic beginning to disintegrate and decided it was time to get a new one.

Afterwards, I did the "culture" thing and went for a walk through the old city.  I just love old buildings and architecture.  Took me two hours but unfortunately I forgot to take the camera!  This afternoon, Ian and I went for a walk together with camera so I do have some pics.  I took him back to some of the best bits I saw this morning, plus we did a different route along the canal and saw some extra sites.

Here comes the history lesson!

Het Steen

Het Steen is a medieval fortress in the old city centre of Antwerp which was built after the Viking incursions in the early Middle Ages, to control the access to the Scheldt River.

Around 650 AD the first fortifications of the Steen Castle were built in clay - nothing remains  from that period.  The first stone fortress was built in the 9th century and  is Antwerp's oldest building.  There are still some remains of walls from the 9th century.

Between 1200 and 1225 more fortifications are added, and again in the 16th century.

You can easily see the colour difference between the original Middle Age grey chalk stone and the 16th century lighter sand stone. It was used as a prison between 1303 and 1827.  

The largest part of the fortress, including dozens of historic houses and the oldest church of the city, was demolished in the 19th century when the quays were straightened to stop the silting up of the Scheldt.

St Pauluskerk

The exterior is mainly Gothic with a Baroque tower while the interior is characterised by rich Baroque decoration.  The church was taken into use in 1548 and completed in 1571.  During the following decades, the interior of the church was fitted out with Baroque furniture and decoration. The Antwerp sculptor Pieter Verbrugghen I and his workshop made the oak confessionals between 1658 and 1660. 

He also made the oak organ case in 1654. The 1658 organ is regarded as one of the most important organs of Belgium.

After significant damage due to religious wars, the rebuilding of the monastery was undertaken between 1605 and 1616 and reconstruction was completed in 1662.  In 18th century during a dispute between the Netherlands and Belgium the church was damaged and all the 17th century stained glass windows were destroyed.

The baroque portal on the angled corner of Veemarkt and Zwartzustersstraat dates from 1734.

Among the many works of art in the church are works by major artists such as the Antwerp painters Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck, Jacob Jordaens, Cornelis de Vos, etc.  Too many to name and, to be honest I didn't recognise them!

The Calvary was constructed against the south side of the nave between 1697 and 1747.

It was created on the location of an ancient Dominican cemetery.

The statues are arranged into four groups: the angel path, which ascends to the Holy Sepulchre, the garden of the prophets on the left, the garden of the evangelists on the right and the Calvary itself, which consists of an elevated artificial rock, divided into three terraces, on which statues are placed with Christ on the cross at the top.

Vleeshuis

The slope on which the Vleeshuis (Meet House) is built used to be known as the Bloedberg or Blood Mountain.

The Butchers Guild built the first Vleeshuis near the cattle market, where the animals were slaughtered and cut, in the 13th century but the current Late-Gothic building was constructed between 1501 and 1504 and is the third Vleeshuis on the site. It is made of red brick and white sandstone. The bricks were fired onsite.  Alternating layers of stone and brick created a pattern known as "bacon layers".  Though the great hall of its interior bears a resemblance to a church, the stairwell towers and crow-stepped gables make it clear this was intended as a secular institution.  The interior is divided into two halves, each with a span of 7.5 metres —the maximum length of a structural oak beam. I loved the doors, they must be in the region of 12 foot high and at least 12 inches thick.

This area must have been heavily bombed in the war and the old is juxtaposed with the new.

I loved the old buildings.  Some look as if they are about to fall down with broken lintels and wavy rows of bricks.  I bet they have been like that for aeons.

On the square next to Het Steen there was a Tai-chi exhibition.  Well, I think it was tai-chi. We watched for a while but to me he just looked like he was surfing on dry land.

Red Light District:  Well, I wasn't expecting that!  On my first wanderings this morning, I happened to walk down a street with lots of scantily clad young (and not so young!) ladies standing in the shop windows.  I was the only woman on the street and there were lots of shady looking men.  I had to avert my eyes!  but I came back the same way.  Then walked through there and back again with Ian this afternoon, and again with Shaun and Lynn tonight.  I think they might be getting worried about me!  However, company gave me confidence and I was a lot braver at taking notice of what went on in the windows. Most of the girls were trying to look provocative, others chewing gum, smoking, texting, chatting on cell phones and looking decidedly unsexy. One girl sat there with her legs wide open and as we passed she patted her crotch. In another window there was a girl all kitted out in leather, pvc and bondage stuff with photos stuck in the window of decidedly Fifty Shades of Grey goings on.  And finally, there was a "shemale" (as advertised) in a pink bikini but with a pair of white underpants under the bikini bottoms to tuck the sausage and two potatoes into!  Didn't dare take photos.

So lots of walking today and I am feeling it!

Dinner tonight is a pasta/broccoli/mushroom/bacon thing - made up as I went along, also featured garlic and wine and cream to make it saucy.  Hmmmmm!