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| Our route for Day 4. |
On the fourth day, we spent a little more time in Trier before hitting the road again. George was, somewhat miraculously, still behaving himself! We drove straight to the Bitburger Brauerei in Bitburg, to check out the place where the magical Bitburger beer is brewed. We didn't have time for a full tour but we had a look around. It was amazing to see so many crates of beer stacked up. You could have built a house from it all.
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| The Bitburger Brauerei, virtually hidden by stacked crates! |
After Bitburg, we headed out of Germany, through Luxembourg, into Belgium. We were aiming for Bastogne - the site of a very vicious battle of World War 2, in which many American troops were killed. Mike was really excited before we even reached the special monument there, when he discovered the turret of a tank by the side of a road.
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| Mike and his tank turret |
Once we got into Bastogne itself, the monument to the troops who gave their lives was obvious. It stood tall and proud on the top of a hill in a star shape.
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| The Bastogne Monument |
After we had climbed the monument and admired the splendid view it afforded, we had a look around the museum, which was interesting. We then drove further into Belgium in search of the famous monument to the Battle of Waterloo.
On the way, we were horrified at the state of the roads. That said, we were even more shocked when we saw a tractor. Clearly manufactured from mismatched spare parts, its wheels were different sizes and it seemed to lollop its way down the road, leaning to one side in a twisted dance. Mike took this picture whilst I was driving!
As we approached Waterloo, I remembered that my dad had seen the monument himself a few years before and said "You will know when you find it. It's the most obvious man made mound imaginable!" It was! As soon as we reached it, we saw a huge conical mound, covered with grass, with a lion on top. It was really cool.
Above, is the Wellington Cafe, which stands at the base of the Waterloo Monument. George is parked just outside as you can see!
Having discovered Waterloo, we headed for our final stop of this very busy day, arriving in Ypres at around 11pm. Ypres is a stunning medieval style town, which was rebuilt more or less exactly as it was before the World War 1. Unfortunately, this means streets upon streets of cobbles. Very quaint to look at but if you're in a car, it's more like the car durability tests you sometimes see on Top Gear.
It was at this moment that George decided enough was enough and he would now play up! As we pulled into the town centre, steam began to rise ominously from the bonnet. We pulled over, only to discover that the entire engine had been sprayed with George's coolant and was hissing and fizzing. Not what you want after a long day. After much deliberation, it was discovered that the thermostat housing had come loose and the coolant had sprayed all over the fan, which had distributed the coolant all over the engine. Not so bad. We pulled out the tools, tightened the bolts and all was well again... for now!
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| George languishes, steaming, at the side of the road in Ypres! |
We now needed a place to stay for the night. Fortunately, we found a wonderful hotel - The Regina, which is located just across from the Cloth Hall in the main square, where we were given a lovely discount for staying in - and I quote - "The horrible little dark room at the back of the hotel!" When we dragged our tired bodies into the room, it was hilarious. The 'Louis Armstrong Suite' - as we now, affectionately, call it - consisted of orange walls, a view into the main hallway of the hotel, a fully mirrored wall and a bathroom with a door which didn't quite fill the doorframe! There were Louis Armstrong lyrics on the walls. The Regina is one of the most quirky and loveable hotels I have ever stayed in.
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| In the Louis Armstrong Suite - Note the orange walls and Louis Armstrong lyrics |
Total Miles: 1274
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