Day 36 – Tue 15 Jul 14, Asse
Forecast: 23-22 deg C, cloudy with an afternoon thunderstorm; no riding today. We are staying with Guido and Magda in their lovely house in a rural setting 19km North West of Brussels. Wendy became friends with them while attending International Pharmacy Conferences all over the world. We intended to go on a bike tour of the area today but due to the ordinary weather we did it by car. First we had the nicest breakfast this trip, cooked by master chef Guido. The choice was enormous but as we were not cycling we had to restrain ourselves. Next was a short visit to St Anne Church, 13th century, which featured in at least one of Peter van Bruegel (classic Dutch painter 1520-1569) paintings. Bruegel is quite a legend around these parts due to having lived in and painted the landscape. It was then off to the Gaasbeek Castle, a 13th century classic style (fairy-tale) castle in a lovely forest setting. They had an interpretive art exhibition inside, some parts of which...