Holiday time

Ok, so the post is titled holiday time as I have taken a break from racing. I needed some head rest. I have nevertheless had a busy time the last 3 days, so catch it all below!

Monday
Ok, maybe not such a busy day, ha ha. I woke up in a cleaning mood today - can you believe it. So I vacuumed and mopped the lounge, entrance hall, kitchen, bathroom and my room. I then cleaned the bathroom and the kitchen. Washed my bedsheets (not for the first time), washed some other washing, shaved my legs, shaved my beard, went shopping, read a few chapters of my husband book and then cooked supper. Wow, what a domesticated day!

Luke and I then left for Leuven at 16:00 and had coffee and deep conversations about the meaning of life and cycling for 3 hours in the town square before coming home for supper and some veg-in-front-of-the-TV time. We discussed the role of cycling in our lives, the priority we give to it, what else there is in life and what we are sacrificing. It is really difficult to explain to people, cyclists and non-cyclists, about what you discover when you come over to race here. We tend to get so consumed in our little worlds we are exposed to - our local office, our local cycling community, our local church, etc that we miss so so so much. They always say an overseas trip is an eye opener in ways you don't always expect. And even if this trip was just to do that it was successful. Chris and I have gone through tough times the last few weeks and have been challenged in many ways. Allthough many couples would prefer not to have such an experience of being apart, it reveals many things to one another of yourself, your relationship with each other, your goals, your existance. Sjoe, I'm getting way to philosophical now. Be sure to read my "final thoughts" I'll post when I end the trip in 10 days' time.

It was really good to have a relaxing day of no stress, no time limits, just take it easy. Yes, I am on a 'holiday' here but it is by no means stress free and relaxing. Work is a 5-day commitment, cycling over here is a 6-day 8hr+ commitment which is physically and mentally very draining.

Tuesday
Ok, so today was going to be a big day. I had planned to go to the Ardennes on Wednesday with Helen, but she received a last minute invite to a tour so I was left home alone. The Ardennes is a region in the South of Belgium stretching into France, Luxemburg and some of Germany covered with hills, rivers and lush forests. It is apparently a must-see area and great for riding so I decided to go see it. Easier said than done except if you take a train. As the crow flies the Ardennes 60kms South, so to ride there gives you a 80km ride 1-way. I sat on GMaps and planned my route. A there-and-back route would be a waste of time: If I am going to ride 160kms I may aswell do a round trip and see some of the country. Well, 230kms and 9hrs later I got home but boy, WHAT A DAY!

Map of my ride - Brussels included in the top left for reference.



First stop was Namur. A bigger than expected city on the border of the Ardennes. I originally planned to go more South but the French road signs were getting to me and I was starting to get annoyed with not really knowing where I was going. All I had to navigate on my 230kms was 1/2 an A5 piece of paper with "Tielt-Tienen-Namur-N90-Liege-N3-Sint Truden" written on it. That is not a lot if you are trying to navigate through highways, side streets, random points of interest etc. Saying Namur is big implies that I was forced to veer off the main roads to get into the City and see some lovely spots. Photos below of my having a bit next to the river in Namur and with a castle in the background, little tunnels I had to ride through to get to the top of the hill where the castle is and then views from the top. Remember, where I stay in Flaanders it is all flat, so this is serious stuff for Belgium!







Next stop was Liege. It was a long stretch but with the well-known Liege-Bastogne-Liege race starting and finishing in the town I had to pay tribute to the town. En-route some photos. It was beautiful with the road meandering along the river on the left and the cliffs on either side. It reminded me a bit of the cliffs of Dover / driving from George to Wilderness / the mountains at Harties. If you have been to all these places I hope you can see the resemblance... Also see the vineyards and the shades of greens on the river bank.




On the way I past through a STUNNING town: Huy. Wow, why does no-one speak of this town. See the photo below of the fort, the cable car going up to it, the bridge over the river in the forefront. Wow, what a beautiful town.


Then it was time for Liege. Now this was seriously a big town. Goodness me I truly under estimated this place. Personally, it is a scumwhole to be honest. There is really nothing to see, it is polluted, the roads are poorly marked and it is French - I won't recommend it to anyone. Ok, the French is maybe a personal dilemma of not understanding the language... See the entrance to the town below and some Princess' palace. That is the extent of attractions in Liege...




This was also when I reached an ultimate low-point in my ride. I had to dig very deep not to go sit in the corner and feel depressed. Let me paint the picture:
* My road I had been following into Liege just stopped and turned into a new name. The road signs started pointing in all directions. I continued to follow the signs saying "Centrum" through polluted industrial areas with no space for bicycles and big trucks giving me NO space. The "Centrum" signs also got really confusing at times pointing in 3 different directions at one intersection. Random riding brought me back into town and to the city centre. Took the photos above and took a breather.
* I was now properly lost. All I knew was that I was in the middle of a big city.
* I was getting hungry and it was 6hrs into my ride.
* Like a beaming beacon I spotted the universally known green "i" indicating information. The punks couldn't or wouldn't speak English and had no idea where I wanted to go. Probably because I had the Flemish name of a town in Flaanders and I was now in French speaking Wallogne where they have different names for towns in Flaanders. He pointed to a suburb and told me to look get directions there. Also said no-no to cycling there, I must take bus. Big roads. Whatever dude.
* Then it started getting very cold as I tried to weave through buses and unfriendly city driving people.
* Then it started to rain - not the drizzle type, but a serious bucketing of rain. I thought since the rain came so quickly and so powerfully that it would stop as quickly as it started but it continued. Clearly time for the rain jacket. So now I was starting get wet, I'm cold and I'm hungry.
* So I hopped onto the pavement but my backwheel slipped on the wet cobble stones and I wiped out good and proper. Bike lying on 1 side with the classic site of the backwheel spinning and me lying in the pavement ditch where the water is streaming over me down the road. My hip torn open and burning.
Sjoe, it was tough times I can tell you! I got up, picked my bike up and leaned against the wall where there was 1/2m of shelter I wanted to stop in. There was no-one I could blame so a deep breath and go through the motions..jacket on, spin the wheels and pull the brakes a few times, pull my pants together and straight, ride and pray it is in the right direction and don't think about anything, just ride your bike - you chop.

The rain continued for another 20mins before dying down. I rode a bit more to stay warm and then found a food stop and had a well deserved break. I also discovered I was going in the right direction so things cheered up.

Now I haven't written about the following sights yet. Another deep conversation, so just skip it for some light reading.
The photo below is of a, uhm, men's club / brothel or whorehouse for lack of a better word. These houses are on the main rd and girls sit in the windows with lingerie on like shops would demo their clothes, furniture or cars. When she saw me take a photo she bolted off her chair. How has the world become so morally declined that humans decide to sell themselves - not for what they can mentally or physically do, but purely for the selfish desires of other humans. You see these places scattered along the road - I easily saw over 50 of them - all with girls in the windows. Wow, it is sad. No think about this - there this woman sits in the window showing herself off, because a man, who is so desperate for sex that he would pay to have it with a complete stranger, wants to see before going to her and then have the choice of saying "no thanks, even in my state of desperation I don't want to do it with you". Wow, how low must a woman's self esteem go to not just being told she isn't sexy but being told she isn't sexy for someone who is completely desperate - now that is an insult. My word, these people need God.


I got home at 19:30, cooked supper and walked around like a zombie for next few hours before going to sleep. What a lovely day. The other people in the house think I'm crazy, but they don't understand that I don't get time to ride my bike, so when I get the chance I use it to it's full extent, lol.

Wednesday (yes, birthday time)
We decided to go for bottomless pizzas on offer by Pizza Hut from 12:00 - 14:00. So we hit the road at 09:30 for a 2hr ride to get the metabolism going. Went down to Hoegaarden and onto an old train track that has been converted into a 60km long bike path. We were only on it for about 2kms before having to head back - but really pretty and quite. A nice change from fighting for road space with 18 wheeler trucks and tractors with long trailers. In the photo below is Luke from Australia and Rachel from New-Zealand.


We got to Pizzahut at 13:00, ate plenty of pizza, walked around town, went for coffee, walked around town, went for milkshakes, walked around town and got home at 19:00. In the photo Ricardo from the UK.


Tomorrow I am heading to Tijl's parents 40kms away for supper. Looking forward to some home cooked Belgian food! I ate enough during pizza time today so my next meal will be tomorrow night. Friday I race again.

Thank you for all the birthday emails/SMS's