Paris to Bruges by Bike – Part 2

By Eilene Lyon

We began our second week of the bike tour departing from Péronne. We took our coffee break in what appeared to be a fairly new community (Curlu) where our group experienced a flat tire. Our guide, Bart, was up for the task of doing the repair.

Our principal stop for the day, at lunch time, was the South African World War I cemetery, memorial and museum. I’ve already mentioned my weariness with WWI memorials, but the museum building was a beautiful piece of architecture at least. We finished our tour back on the Fleur and went through a 3 km tunnel under the town of Ytres. There was a wide section in the middle where two small boats coming the other direction could pass us.

Part of the South African war memorial

Museum entry. The panels on either side of the walk are covered with names of casualties.

Etched glass and courtyard in the South African museum.

An exhibit about the sinking of the Mendi in the South African war memorial museum.

Entering the 3 km tunnel.

The first stop on day two was an agriculture outlet that sold smoked and plain garlic ropes, as well as onions and a few other things. Not something we’d be likely to put in our luggage! A couple days later, though, our chef made a soup from the smoked garlic, so we did get to taste it.

Our main stop was the city of Cambrai, which had lovely buildings. The Putterer and I wandered through a city park with an entrance marked by a WWI memorial (of course). There were sculptures scattered throughout and pleasant paths to stroll. Later we went through the Cambrai museum which had a nice selection of art and some archaeological artifacts. There was a bust of Victor Hugo done by Auguste Rodin. I put my phone’s translation app to good use, as the description cards were only in French.

On day 3 we crossed the border into Belgium. Border crossings in the European Union are like crossing state lines in the U.S. (Unlike taking the train to/from London, which required passports and security checks — Thank you, Brexit.) On the outskirts of Tournai, we had a second flat tire. You can see this required quite a committee. Then we stopped at an old lime kiln. The Tournai region was one of the world’s top producers of lime and natural cement, dating back to Roman times.

Belgian border crossing

Flat #2 repair by committee

Art installation at the lime kiln

Old lime kilns near Tournai

It was a wet day, and many people opted to stay aboard the Fleur. Those of us who rode had the opportunity to stroll around Tournai and even had time to relax in a pub with good Belgian beer, my choice being Orval, a nice amber ale. We also visited the pharmacy, because by now, at least half the passengers and crew had come down with a cold going around (one good reason to NOT take a barge tour).

A refreshing glass of Orval.

The Tournai cathedral.

Christine de la Laing, wife of the Tournai governor, defended the city in 1581.

Town square in Tournai

Day 4: the lovely Belgian city of Oudenaarde. We had a guided tour of the town hall’s exhibit of tapestries. The city was well known in medieval times for the production of these wall coverings. On our stroll, The Putterer and I came across some captive fallow deer and their chicken friends. This is one place we decided to walk the downtown at night, which is artistically lit.

Female fallow deer

Tapestry in Oudenaarde town hall museum

Oudenaarde at night

Interesting decor items in an Oudenaarde gallery

Oudenaarde town hall and square at night

Male fallow deer.

The largest city we visited was Gent, a university city, on day 5. Gent has many canals and a rebuilt castle. Unlike the Chateau Pierrefonds, this one had more of a Disney-ish feel to it. We visited the St. Bavo’s Cathedral which has a stunning pulpit and a gorgeous interior. Some of the artworks required an entrance fee, but we opted out of that. We also took a boat tour on the canals.

View from the castle.

Gent, Belgium

Rural riding.

St. Bavo’s cathedral

Musician sculptures on a Gent building.

The castle in Gent.

Gallery of medieval weapons in the castle.

The castle in Gent viewed from the canal boat tour.

Though we arrived at our destination of Bruges on the sixth day, we had one more day of cycling. I’ll cover most of our time in Bruges in a separate post. Overall, most of our riding was through rural areas. On the way to Bruges, we rode through subdivisions of large lots and equally large houses.

At lunchtime we stopped at a public botanical gardens. There were still flowers blooming in parts, but much of it was going into dormancy. The Putterer asked his botanist wife (me) to come look at a specimen. He liked the smell of it, but couldn’t quite place what it was. As soon as I looked at the gangly plant, I knew what it was. I helpfully directed his attention to the nearby botanical sign.

Bruges town square. The metal barriers will be put up over the weekend for the Bruges marathon.

Botanical garden.

What could this be?

Ahhhh.

We spent the night in Bruges aboard the Fleur. For our last day of cycling, we had the option of riding to the North Sea coast, or heading across the border to the Netherlands and the town of Sluis. We chose the latter route, again mostly rural riding. We stopped first in Damme and had lunch in Sluis. As fitting for where we were, there was a windmill to photograph. The biggest challenge of all our rides was a temporary overpass due to road construction. Pushing our bikes up the metal channel was the hard part. Going down the other side, much easier.

Damme town hall.

Windmill in Sluis, Netherlands.

Sluis, Netherlands.

Belgium/Netherlands border.

At the border, notice how the road pavers change.

This crew was hired by the government to trap muskrats causing problems with the waterworks.

The steel stairway over the freeway we had to push our bikes up.

Going down was much easier.

Our final meal aboard the Fleur was a sensuous duck confit. In addition to dessert, we also had a cheeseboard tasting with a round of port (not my favorite wine). We dined with our two cycling guides, Valerie and Bart. Overall, this tour was a wonderful way to see the French and Belgian countryside, and some of the smaller towns and cities.

Feature image: A store in Gent that would pretty much take care of my major needs.