Annelies wanted our first full day in Belgium to be interesting, so she planned a special outing for us. A tour of sorts that would provide opportunities for photos of big and famous stuff.
Annelies & Yves’ Charming Zaffelare, Lochristi House
In many ways, Belgium looks like the US.
Cows
First, for the big stuff… the Atomium in Brussels.
Atomium Selfie
Annelies capturing images while the guys chat.
Group Selfie
The Atomium
We moseyed around there a bit, taking in things like this little waffle truck.
Waffle Truck
Belgians don’t eat waffles for breakfast. That’s snack food.
We were hungry for lunch, so we skipped the waffles and chose a little restaurant with some unusual decor.
Restaurant Decor
Once we’d finished eating, our real adventure began.
Copenhagen Harbour
Olavinlinna Castle in Finland
University of Vilnius in Lithuania
Maastricht in the Netherlands
Hilltop Citadel near Dinant, Belgium
Liege, Belgium Riverfront
Fall Parade
Hubbub over an appearance of William and Kate.
Pesee in Alkmaar, Netherlands
Windmill and Cows in Holland
Antwerp, Belgium Town Hall
Me with Her Majesty’s “Soldier”
Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela (Spain)
Palazzo Ducale in Venice
House of Beethoven in Bonn, Germany
Melk, Austria
Szechenyi Baths in Budapest
Annelies is quite the planner. Can you believe we were able to see so many famous sites in the span of one afternoon?
Brupark
It was a tour of Mini-Europe. LOL.
Wait till you see the pics from the real Brussels.
I don’t always do blog posts while we are traveling. Mainly because it’s not a great idea to tell the world we are away. But since we have a house-sitter this time, and our house is not standing alone, uninhabited and unsafe, I figured I’d post updates.
My mother-in-law, who is watching our pups, should be pleased.
After a long and uneventful flight, we arrived safely and on time. Annelies collected us at the airport and carted us off to her house for some relaxation.
I didn’t sleep at all on the plane. Hubby slept fitfully. It’s better to stay awake as long as possible, sort of helps combat the exhaustion of the redeye flight and overcome the 6-hour time difference.
Annelies and Yves’ house, from the garden.
Beautiful Day
As you can see, the sky was quite blue and temps were in the upper 60s/low 70s.
Ace! Our favorite breakfast juice.
A Fully Stocked Refrigerator
Our friends know us well.
Annelies took us to the beer store yesterday, and we added even more beer to their already full refrigerator.
Dinner Last Night
I finally crashed last night around 9:30 after four beers and a filling grilled hamburger dinner. It was literally like I had hit a wall.
And I slept until 8:00 AM this morning. Time difference? What time difference? 🙂
Today we’re off to explore Brussels. I’ll try to post pics later.
The weather was perfect. Especially for a Sunday in late August. It was in the low- to -mid-seventies (Fahrenheit, which is 21-24 C). The skies were blue, too, with lots of clouds and a very low ceiling, but no threat of rain.
We were happy ladies. At first…
The total route was about 140 miles. We started in the foothills then, since Dottie had never been before, decided to do a piece of Skyline Drive.
Here’s a link to the Google map of the route (Dottie joined at point B). We were traveling in a clockwise direction.
Dottie has had her license for less than a year. She hasn’t done any overnights yet and tends to ride on fair-weather days. Which is fine, except she hasn’t learned how quickly the weather can turn and, as a result, that she should make sure she has appropriate layers along.
I don’t get cold easily. In fact, I think mid-60s weather is perfect for riding. To me, there’s nothing worse than sweating under my gear. Ugh.
Dottie, on the other hand, has fibromyalgia and is particularly sensitive to cold.
ToadMama
In the foothills, we were at about an average 600-foot elevation. As we headed west, we started to climb. The Swift Run Gap Entrance Station is at about 2,000 feet. At that point, temps were in the mid- to upper-60s. Dottie was already cold. We stopped just outside of the entrance so I could put my wind liner in, because I knew it would be getting colder. That’s when Dottie discovered that she didn’t have her wind liner along, and no extra clothes. I checked my bags, but didn’t have any extra for her either.
She just decided to tough it out, and off we went. We headed north on the drive, which quickly climbed to about 2,800 feet. The higher we got, the lower the temps. And remember that low cloud ceiling I mentioned? We hit it. 🙂
Into the Clouds
Signage
I’ve said before that Skyline Drive isn’t my favorite road. That’s mainly because of the strictly enforced 35 MPH speed limit. I know why the limit is low — critters! — but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.
Low Clouds and Wildflowers
I do, however, love the views.
Wildflowers
I’m a mountain girl in general. And I like dramatic skies, too. So I was quite content. Poor Dottie was fuh-fuh-fuh-freeezzzzing! Temps were in the upper 50s by then. Actually, it averaged 59 F (15 C) most of the time we were on the drive (my bike has a thermometer).
The Big Meadows visitor center was only about five miles away from the overlook where we’d stopped, so off we went. We decided to grab some lunch — suprisingly good chili for me, soup, a hot dog, and coffee for DG — and putter around a bit before covering the next 20 miles to Thornton Gap.
Shortly after we left, I gained new appreciation for that painfully low speed limit when a big-ass Whitetailed Deer (doe) jumped from out of nowhere right into the middle of the road. About 30 feet or so in front of me. I only had time to tap my brake before she was gone. Luckily, there were no little ones traveling with her.
We stopped at the Mary’s Rock Overlook, too, since DG had never been to Skyline Drive before. Not even by car.
View from the Mary’s Rock Overlook
A thoroughly chilled DG, trying to look happy.
View from the Mary’s Rock Overlook
Soon enough we were at the Thornton Gap exit/entrance and headed back down into the foothills. It wasn’t long before I started feeling the heat. We stopped in Little Washington so I could get rid of my liner. Have I told you yet how much I love my summer-weight mesh jacket?
The temperature in Little Washington was 76 F (24.5 C). Quite a difference, eh? DG was loving it.
The town’s name is really Washington, but, because we’re so close to Washington, DC, everyone calls it “little.” It’s a super-cute village, home to the infamous Inn at Little Washington, a restaurant where I will likely never have an opportunity to dine because it’s world-renowned and pricey. I’ve heard it’s completely worth it, though.
Part of the famous Inn
Looking west down Main Street
Love that color!
Flowers
What’s wrong with this picture?
After soaking up some heat, DG and I said our farewells and went our separate ways. (She lives about 30 minutes outside of town and was READY to get home to her blankets, poor thing.)
It wasn’t until I’d gotten home that I noticed my “driver’s side” pannier (hard saddlebag) was missing.
What!?! Damn, damn, damn!
Those things are not cheap. How could I NOT feel or hear the dang thing fall off while riding? It’s not like someone could have taken it off during the ride, so it must have fallen off, right?
I was NOT happy.
After telling Hubby about it, I was on my way to the car to backtrack and look for my fallen luggage when something in the garage caught my eye.
My pannier. Sitting on the floor of the garage.
It hadn’t fallen off after all. It had been sitting there the whole time. (Hubby had removed it during the week when he replaced my tire.)
I’m not sure what was greater, my relief to see that it wasn’t lost, or my amazement that I had ridden ALL DAY LONG, mounting/dismounting multiple times, taking pictures of the bike, and even looking through all of my bags for warm gear for DG, without once noticing it was missing.
Wow.
I mean, really. How could I not notice that!?! DG hadn’t commented either.
Talk about being unobservant.
If you look at the pics of my bike, you can see the bag is clearly not attached. DOH.
A blonde moment for sure.
But it didn’t dampen a splendid day. LOSING that bag would have, for sure.
Several weeks ago, my friend, Dottie, and I rode our bikes out to Front Royal, Virginia for breakfast. (Here lately, I’ve decided if I don’t squeeze short rides in when I can, my poor bike will never get any exercise.)
We met at the Clevenger’s Corner Shell gas station about 10 minutes west of town. From there, Dottie led the way to the diner.
I generally tend to avoid Front Royal as traffic can get rather congested, but the diner is off of US-522, south and east of downtown.
Front Royal Diner
What, no railroad car look?
Brochure Station
A Light Breakfast… LOL
The food was good. We did NOT eat all of it, in case you were wondering.
As we ate, I told Dottie I’d spotted a cute little store on the way to the restaurant that I wanted to visit on our way home. She was game, so we stopped.
Cute Little Store
I’m a sucker for cute country stores.
It was hard to tell whether or not it was open, so we went ahead and parked. Judging by the hours listed on the door, I still don’t know.
The hours of operation were a bit vague.
I’ve thought about this place a lot since then. I still don’t know if it’s a hobby store (as in we sell stuff and are open when we feel like being open) or just REALLY cool yard art.
I mean, how fun would it be to have a little model store like this solely as decoration?
I think I’ll submit it to the RoadsideAmerica.com folks so they can check it out. I think it deserves a listing, don’t you?
Storefront
Oreo Pig!
They even have a Oreo Pig for photo ops. Although, really, the whole thing is sort of a photo op.
Blue Ridge Grocery
Dottie couldn’t resist posing with the pig. I’m teaching her to appreciate roadside weirdness.
Dottie with the Oreo Pig
Isn’t it just the cutest little place?
Blue Ridge Grocery
We didn’t have long to linger. Plus, it was getting hot. So off we went.
Dottie and some pretty blue wildflowers on Ben Venue Road.
I couldn’t resist stopping for that flower shot.
So what do you think? Is it an operational store or yard art? Either way, I’m glad we happened upon the place.
What do you when it’s lunch-time on a sunny, low-humidity, 80-degree day and you need something to cook for dinner? You go to the grocery story (aka “supermarket”). The long way, of course.
I’ve been busy at work again this week, which doesn’t leave much chance for escape. So today I decided to make the most of my lunch break.
Harris Teeter is 1.6 miles from my house. Point D on the map is roughly where my ride started and ended. Point C is the grocery store.
Longish route to the store.
Roughly forty miles later, I’m back at the office.
We’ve had fabulous weather over the last few days.
A mutual friend, who Hubby and I met during our first motorcycle vacation in Europe, rode from his home in Quebec, Quebec, to the RoadRUNNER Touring Weekend event that’s happening in Snowshoe this weekend. He detoured a little on Wednesday so he could stop for a visit.
Alain, Me, and Mike
It was a lovely visit. Alain is one of those guys we could sit and chat with for hours. He’s just an all-around nice guy who just happens to enjoy motorcycles, takes great pictures, is a very entertaining storyteller, and travels on his bike A LOT.
Here are a few more pics of Alain from our Austria-Germany-Italy-Switzerland tour…
At the Timmelsjoch (Passo Rombo) High Alpine Road, clear for the moment.
Fuzzy, I thought of you when I saw these pics, which were taken by our tour guide.
Alain is the guy wearing the red coat astride the second bike.
Timmelsjoch a few moments later. Fog can be a problem there.
The next pic is actually one of Alain’s own images, as in taken with his camera. But I’m pretty sure I was the photographer doing the clicking.
Alain Labadie, high above Innsbruck, Austria.
I really would have loved to have been able to escort him out of town on Thursday morning, but I had to work and deadlines were looming… Dang it. I’ve been kicking myself ever since, which is one of the reasons I was so happy to get out for a bit today, even if it was only for a short trip to the grocery store. LOL.
I did manage to stop at this one spot about 4 miles outside of town to snap some pics.
A too-close shot of this pretty little barn.
Cows in the distance.
The barn and the gorgeous house look relatively new. It’s a fabulous spot. I’ll have to pop in for a visit one day to meet the lucky folks who live there. And maybe meet their cows, too.
Here’re a few more pics taken from about a quarter mile from their driveway.
I was pressed for time, so the lid stayed on.
Horse (and cow) country mere minutes from our home.
Blackwell Road heading south toward Warrenton.
It really is a lovely place to ride.
If only all shopping trips were that picturesque, eh?
Yesterday was a gorgeous Spring day in the Virginia Piedmont. Since I knew Hubby was bound for the WV Place — chores called — I figured it would be a good day to take Dottie for a ride.
Dottie
You “met” Dottie before. She was the Elf who joined me on the Christmas ’13 Santa Ride. And, in this March post, I told you she’d gotten a motorcycle for Christmas and had her motorcycle learner’s permit.
Since that time, she’s gotten her motorcycle license. A fact she’s quite proud of. Dottie told me she grew up on dirt bikes, but hadn’t ridden in years. She’d always wanted to get a motorcycle that she could ride on the street, but her hubby, Jim, isn’t really into riding. So she never did.
Then she met me. I’m a bad influence, I think. After I took her for a ride through the Virginia countryside and she did the Santa ride with me, she had a bad case of the “I really want a motorcycle” blues.
Jim, being the awesome man he is, decided, after seeing how happy riding made his wife, that Dottie should have a bike.
Yesterday was the first chance we’d had to ride together since Dottie got her license.
Ride Map ( about 145 miles)
I planned a route, rode down to her house (about 20 minutes outside of town), and off we went.
In my opinion, it was a beautiful day. Temperatures hovered around 60 degrees (F), the sky was blue, the sun was shining… perfect. Dottie, who has fibromyalgia, was cold. Of course, I didn’t know she was cold until we were in the middle of nowhere.
We stopped for a bit to soak up some sun. At that point, we were on the Old Blue Ridge Turnpike (VA 231), about 15 miles south of Sperryville. It was a gorgeous spot.
Photo Bomb
I, of course, had to take some pics. Dottie is learning what it’s like to travel with a moto-blogger. And she’s adapting well, as evidenced by that photo bomb.
More captures…
She even joined the photo-capturing fun.
We talked about stopping in Sperryville so she could buy a sweatshirt, which we did. But Sperryville is short on clothing stores. So Dottie suggested riding across the mountain into Luray. She recommended a spot for lunch, too.
Looking west from downtown Luray.
Dottie in Luray
I’d never actually gone into the town of Luray before, so it was my first time in Luray.
Uncle Buck’s made an awesome lunch stop. So awesome, I’ll have to take Hubby there. Soon.
Inside Uncle Buck’s
Sliders and Fries … YUM
While we were waiting for our meal, we started chatting about apparel (I need a lightweight jacket for Summer). I found one on-line that I like, and that got good reviews, but, as I told Dottie, I wanted to try one on before ordering. Since we hadn’t planned on going to Luray, a town I’d only ever driven past previously, I decided to google motorcycle dealerships to see if there were any nearby. That’s how we found Outlanders.
As we were getting ready to mount the bikes, a local lady, also a rider, stopped by to chat. Dottie asked her about Outlanders. She told, without hesitation, that we should go there. She said it’s owned by a woman, so they have a nice variety of gear for women. We were already planning on going, but that sealed the decision.
In all fairness, Outlanders can’t be called a motorcycle dealership. They do sell motorcycles, parts, accessories, apparel, etc., but it’s so much more. Here’s how they describe themselves on their Web site:
Established in 2004, the Outlanders brand was created as a way to celebrate and share the owner’s Scottish heritage and love of motorcycles with kindred spirits. Outlanders store has now become a favorite shopping destination for locals and Luray, VA guests by specializing in unique gifts, jewelry, apparel, powersport equipment and motorcycles. Outlanders also offers a grocery store and lunch deli where you can dine indoors or outside.
Dottie found the perfect hoodie there, too, which saved us from going to Wal-Mart (yay!).
Sky above the convenience-store part of the HUGE complex.
Sky as seen from Outlanders’ parking lot.
Dottie’s tag.
From there, we headed back east. We hadn’t gone far before we had to stop for some more pics.
Cool Signage
Famous Luray Dinosaur
First time I got to stop and visit the Luray dinosaur.
I just HAD to get a pic there.
After that, it was time to finish our ride.
I let Dottie lead the way over Thornton Gap. I even shot video, which I’ll post later after editing.
For now, here’s a slideshow, the majority of which is from the last part of our ride. (The slideshow may eventually have an audio track, but YouTube is being REALLY slow on the processing.)
It was a good day. 🙂
UPDATE: Here’s the video of Dottie leading our ride across Thornton Gap.
I have a favor to ask of all of my friends that ride. Can you please leave a comment critiquing Dottie’s ride?
She’s only had her license for about a month and, in my opinion, is doing very well. But I do have one recommendation. I don’t want to tell you what I see (that would be too leading), but I will tell you it’s in the second half of the video. It’s a challenging road with variable radius curves (the radius changes mid-curve).
Jim, we’re not going nearly as fast as the video would lead you to believe.
