Travel around the world: Western Europe Trip

Haute Fagnes - Belgium Marshland

Today is the day that we drive through 4 countries - Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg and even intend to visit something in most of them. First we drive south and over the border into Germany for a short stop in Aachen. This is a city we intended to visit for quite some time well known for its Unesco World Heritage cathedral. To our surprise it is actually also an ancient thermal bath city from the Roman times and very popular which means we have to circle a few times even entering by mistake into a prohibited zone before finding a parking space. We enter first a library where we buy a map for our upcoming trip to Japan and then discover an interesting statue of Bahkauv a mythical Aachen monster that resided in the sewers which now spits out hot thermal water. As we move towards the cathedral we find a few preserved Roman ruins and enjoy the well maintained houses and beautiful flowers in the windows.


Bahkauv the mythical monster in the sewers	Roman ruins


Outdoor cafes in downtown	Flowers in every window

Soon we arrive at the Aachener Dom (cathedral) which is impressive however it is under construction and quite expensive to enter so we decide to not visit its interior and instead enjoy it from the outside. It has beautiful stone statues and embellishments as it is common with the major Catholic churches.


Aachen Dom - Unesco Heritage	Aachen Dom from the side


Cathedral embellishments	Close up of ornaments

The entrance of the cathedral is not as impressive as it is sandwiched between a few other buildings. As we pass a few shops we decide with the saved money to splurge on some Aachener bakery specialties, Aachener Weichprinten, that we enjoy thoroughly in the following days. Also we eat a few spicy white sausages, a local specialty, which however do not feel that special.


Dom entrance	Part of the cathedral was under construction


Scale model of cathedral	Good regional food

As we walk around there are different views of the cathedral some impressive and some less so. For us however the highlight of the tour are two pigeons grooming each other near one of the entrances - they are quite cute and photogenic. The houses in the central area are well maintained and full of stores, bars and restaurants.


Side entrance with pigeons	Close up of pigeons


Another view of the cathedral	Interesting bridge


Classical houses in Aachen	Streetside restaurants

Before we leave we have to check the "real" ancient attraction of the area - the thermal spring Elisenbrunnen. It is housed in what looks to be a former spa and it has a plaque with all the important people who came to the spring to get healed or stay healthy. And of course it also comes with the distinct sulphur smell of a good thermal spring :).


Elisenbrunnen - mineral spring	The fountains are fed by the natural spring


List of important people who came to the spring	Spring

Our next stop is in Belgium in the Haute Fagnes a vast protected marshland on both sides of the Belgian/German border. After a bit of looking we find a nice hiking trail at the border between a forest and the marsh. It even has a few stretches of boardwalk which are interesting as it allows us to view the marsh from above. Near the forest edge we find a few old border markers a reminder of the troubled history of this area at the border of multiple countries.


Trail through Haute Fagnes	Boardwalks were necessary in a few places


Old border marker	Another border marker near parking

The vegetation is typical of the marshlands with lots of ferns and moss however there are islands of trees scattered across the marshlands and of course the forest on the edge of which we were walking. Overall it is hauntingly beautiful and we were glad to have stopped to take in this prehistoric marsh.


Haute Fagnes vegetation	Yes there is water out here


There are also trees	Luxurious undergrowth


Marshy area	Haute Fagnes extends for miles and miles

After leaving Belgium we enter Luxembourg and the streets become narrow and curvy making for slow going. We finally decide to stop in a small village to stretch our legs and view a small roadside chapel. After that there are no more stops till Beaufort where our accomodation is in an separated house from the main hotel building. However it is quite large with two levels with a room in each level and a full kitchen and bath upstairs.


Church in a small Luxembourg village	The small cemetery near the church


Is this really our accomodation?	Inside the apartment we have a full fledged kitchen

We decide to go out to eat some typical Luxembourg food however to our surprise most restaurants are closed but we find one open after a bit of searching. It even serves a local specialty - horse meat - which is well done and not that distinguishable from cow meat as far as we can tell except being a bit more sweet.


One of the few open restaurants late at night in Beaufort	Salad


Horse meat - intentionally	Beef with mushrooms

To walk off the late meal we drive to the Beaufort castle, one of the more scenic in Luxembourg and stop to take some pictures in the creeping darkness and then walk around the pond to both stretch our legs and to find a better view of the castle. However we have to be careful to not step in one of the many orange slugs that are crossing the paths. After this it is back to the accomodation and sleep as we are tired after our long drive.