Let us walk through the archway at the end of the street I showed in my previous post and see  what we see…

So now am able to share more detail  about the places I mentioned my in Leuven diary with you.

Do you have a special request from the places that I visited in Leuven?

Once again we were offered Champagne for breakfast although on this occasion there were no strawberries so I opted for mixed fresh fruit instead. We had packed our cases before breakfast but before returning to our room to collect them we asked the hotel receptionist if he would book a taxi to take us to the train station at 2 pm. As we walked away from reception back to our hotel room I glanced out of the windows and commented that I thought it was going to rain today:

Mr C – No it isn’t.

Me (as we arrived in the room) – It Is going to rain today.

Mr C – No it isn’t.

Me – The weather has other ideas, look behind you!

Whereupon he looked behind and noticed the sudden sharp downpour much to the amusement of both of us. We took our bags to hotel reception (left luggage) so that we could enjoy the morning in Leuven and as we left the reception desk, the receptionist amusingly quipped ‘Enjoy our Summer’. Luckily it stopped raining and the sun started shining just as we were leaving the hotel.

We eventually (Mr C ignored my three tried and tested route directions) arrived at the Large Beguinage which Mr C missed whilst on his adventures in Waterloo. When he had finished exploring the Beguinage it was time to make our way back the Grote Market for an early lunch. I chose a waffle with fruit and when it arrived I pleased to see it was the waffle of the week, it was covered with mixed fresh fruit. It was delicious! After lunch we still had a little time to spare before we had to return to the hotel to catch our Taxi, so we returned to the botanical gardens for a short walk, enjoying the tranquil setting and the sunshine.

Once back at the hotel our Taxi was a little late arriving but it got us to the station in plenty of time to catch our connecting train to the the Eurostar in Brussels. On this occasion there were no delays, the Eurostar trains were running on time. During our journey we were served with a late lunch of lightly poached salmon followed by a chocolate dessert which I suspect was rather calorific and I regretted eating.

When we arrived at London station and looked at our tickets back to Stafford Mr noticed  that they were first class tickets. He had forgotten he had booked them at a cheap price due to advanced booking. A first class ticket guarantees a seat and  more luggage space, it also meant we were entitled to a meal which after breakfast and two lunches we did not need. We need not have worried because we soon found out that the meal option was a ‘Sunday Snack Service’. A box was placed in front of us and we were asked ‘would you like an apple’. On opening the box we found; a tiny bag of pretzels, a tiny bag of crisps, two half size crackers, a small foil wrapped soft cheese and a bite size chocolate crisp bar. Welcome to England!

As the train was cruising into Stafford station Mr C received a text message saying that our Taxi had arrived. We found it little odd that our Taxi had arrived at the station before we had. When we arrived home we quickly unpacked our cases and freshened up before walking round the corner for a late evening meal with Mr C’s Mum and Dad. The meal was delicious; beef casserole, cabbage and mashed potato followed by creme brulee. There was a cheese course but I declined.

Now back to my diet

Today was the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo and Mr C planned to spend the day on the battlefield. I was disturbed out of my sleep when he woke up earlier than usual and started to get things ready for his day out. After breakfast Mr C caught the train to Waterloo and I set off on a short walking tour to take in a few points of interest in Leuven.

The first stop on my route was a visit to St Anthony’s Church again, hoping to experience it alone in silence. The church itself was empty so I sat a while in the silence but the crypt had other visitors so I departed and made my way to the next place on my itinerary, the River Dijle Park. On my way to the park I came across the Dijle Duck fountain which is supposedly a good luck charm! If you rub your hand over its back three times, grab a hold of its tail with your little finger and then walk around the fountain until you reach the black button on the ground and the press the button and make a wish you will activate its powers.

Before you ask, no I didn’t…

I couldn’t quite figure out where the entrance to the park was, so I stood and pondered over the map for a few minutes. A lady stopped to ask if I needed help (how kind) ) She was able to point me in the right direction to the park entrance and I soon found the small iron bridge that was the point of my visit to the park. I wandered through the park to the Large Beguinage and on arrival I found it to be lovely and tranquil with lots of photo opportunities.

I spent a long time in the Beguinage before making my way back to town for lunch. After lunch I retraced my steps to visit both Saint Michael’s Church (the Jesuit church we walked past the previous day) and also St John the Baptist Church which is situated within the Large Beguinage. After enjoying the interior of both these churches I spent more time in the Large Beguinage before making my way back to St Anthony’s Church. I knew that on this occasion that I would have the crypt to myself. It was so peaceful

After my visit to the church, I made my way back into town and visited the Hush Puppy shop, in which I had been window shopping each evening as we walked back to the hotel after dinner. I came away with a pair of sandals and headed back to the hotel to drop them off in the hotel room. By this time my feet were rather sore from walking all day on the cobbled streets so I elected not to go back out.

I researched restaurant options for dinner, then freshened up and went down to the hotel bar with my book in order to wait for Mr C’s return from Waterloo. When he arrived he joined me for a drink before we made our way into town for dinner. The restaurant we chose had good food but towards the end of the evening the service was lacking in due care and attention.

We were both a bit slow to emerge from sleep due to the previous day being so long. When we arrived at the breakfast room we found it was stocked with all the basic needs for a no-frills breakfast. After enjoying breakfast, we decided to step into the hotel’s garden quadrangle and found that we could not return because the door had locked itself as it shut!! The quadrangle was completely enclosed and all other exits were also shut. After a few minutes we were able to flag down an amused member of staff who fortunately was able to open the door.

After our escape we made our way to the tourist information centre where we picked up several information leaflets and gleaned additional information from the lady behind the desk. We had a drink of tea in the market square whilst deciding our plan of action for the day. After Mr C had booked a Town Hall tour for later in the day, we briefly visited the church of St Peter before making our way to the M Museum. The museum was a very interesting art gallery and we found the electronic guided tour system was a lot more advanced and discreet than we are used to in the United Kingdom. The current exhibition was a display of silver objects, some of which were from St Peter’s church. After a break for lunch we completed the M Museum tour which was a display of art and silver housed within St Peter’s church. We finished looking around the church with only a few minutes to spare before it was time for our guided tour of the Town Hall.

The Town Hall tour was excellent and our guide explained many interesting facts and features, one of particular interest is that the statues on the higher levels increased in height to give the building a sense of height. After the main tour, a few of us stayed behind for an additional tour of the attic, reached by a spiral staircase, where we were able to view the original stonework which had been copied and replaced with more durable material on the outer edifices of the building.

After our busy day we returned to the hotel to freshen up before returning to the city for our evening meal. I had rabbit with prunes for my main course. Whilst dining we chatted with a Finnish chemistry professor and his Chinese student who were preparing for an eight minute talk in the Catholic University next day. I once again observed the white robed monk I saw  the previous evening passing by. When it was time for dessert, I asked how many scoops of ice cream would be served because the menu was unclear. I was informed that all the dishes had three scoops unless I wished for less so I ordered one scoop. When the waiter served the dessert he said, “Here you are miss” and as I looked down I noticed that the serving bowl seemed to have two black (Disney-like) mouse ears protruding from the side. On closer inspection I found Minnie Mouse hiding underneath my ice cream… The amused waiter was enjoying himself and referred to me as Miss for the rest of the evening.

After our evening meal we once again retired to the hotel, where I once again had a nice glass of Rose wine before retiring to our room for a good night’s sleep.

The taxi arrived on time to take us to Stafford station for the first part of our train journey. I felt a bit sorry for the taxi driver because Mr C hadn’t factored in enough time to cater comfortably for slow moving traffic but we made it in time. When we arrived in London the London cab driver was dismayed and put his head in his hands when we said we were only going round the corner to St Pancras station. Apparently he had waited 40 minutes and had been hoping for a more lucrative fare.

As we neared St Pancras station, the traffic was chaotic and when we arrived at the station we realised why. All of the Eurostar trains were delayed so the terminus was full of people milling around. We wern’t quite sure what was going on until we heard an announcement saying that there had been an incident on the French TGV line. There were plenty of staff available to answer questions and we were informed that we would be called to our train when it was ready for boarding. This was done by waving a card about with the train time and destination as there are no digital electronic screens to keep passengers updated there.

Despite the delay, the experience wasn’t stressful and when we were called to our train it was only about half an hour behind schedule. As we were queuing to go through border security and bag checks, we found out that the delay was due to one of the French high speed trains colliding with an animal. Oh dear…

Following the delay, the journey ran smoothly and we were served with a light lunch of salmon accompanied by a bottle of Grenache Rose whilst enjoying sunny scenes through the windows of the train. We changed at Brussels for the last leg of the journey which took about thirty minutes. Rather than carry our luggage through the city to the hotel we caught our third taxi of the day.

On arrival at the hotel we had a momentary scare; the receptionist struggled to find our reservation. She asked for the booking code which I was able to produce and it was only then that we all realised she had misheard our name. We had just enough time to unpack and settle into our room before it was time to go out for dinner. We asked the hotel receptionist for a restaurant recommendation (we were looking for traditional Belgian cuisine) which she provided. We found the restaurant she recommended and were able to sit outside, soaking up the atmosphere. We ended up talking to a lady on the table next to us who wondered what we might find to fill a week in Leuven. As we were talking, surprisingly, a monk dressed in white robes emerged from the restaurant next door.

After our meal we returned to the hotel where I had a nice glass of Rose wine before retiring to our room for a good night’s sleep.

Venus, Jupiter and Regulus shining bright in the sky.

Brilliant Venus in west from dusk until mid-to-late evening. Venus – the brightest planet and third-brightest sky object overall (after the sun and moon) – reaches its greatest elongation in the western sky on June 6. That means it is at its farthest from the sun on our sky’s dome, for this evening apparition, during June 2015. Venus stays out for over three hours after sunset this month, as seen from around the world. What’s more, Venus gets closer to Jupiter all month, to stage a close conjunction on our sky’s dome by the month’s end.

Throughout June 2015, brilliant Venus beams like a lighthouse as darkness falls! At mid-northern latitudes, Venus stays out quite late, possibly after your bedtime. Be sure to catch the wonderful presence of the moon in Venus’ vicinity for several days, starting on June 18or June 19.

Venus – the brightest star-like object in all the heavens – dominates the western sky as darkness falls. However, you can’t miss another brilliant beauty – the planet Jupiter – above Venus in the evening sky.

Bright Jupiter from dusk until late evening. Jupiter and Venus will come closer and closer together on the sky’s dome throughout June, 2015. In late June and early July, Venus and Jupiter will stage their closest conjunction until August 27, 2016!

Once you see Jupiter at dusk or nightfall, you won’t mistake it for anything else – except, possibly, brighter Venus, which shines lower down than Jupiter in the west at evening twilight.

Jupiter shines more brilliantly than any star. It’s the second-brightest planet after Venus.

In early June 2015, Venus sets in the west at mid-to-late evening, leaving the king planet Jupiter to rule over the evening sky for an hour or two after Venus sets. In early June, at mid-northern latitudes, Jupiter sets in the west about 3.5 hours after sunset. By the end of June 2015, when the two planets are in conjunction, or nearly so, they’ll be setting at about the same time, about 2.5 hours after the sun.

Watch the moon as it swings in the vicinity of Venus and Jupiter for several days, starting onJune 18 or June 19.

NB: To see Regulus you will need to click on the second picture to see a larger version of the photograph on Flickr.

Yesterday evening we returned home from our recent travels to the city of Leuven in Belgium. We had a room with a view and a cosy fire. The week was nice and (mostly) relaxing and now I am working my way through over 800 photographs. This has been hampered with my computer playing up by initially freezing up and deciding not to copy the photos across from the memory card. This meant that I had to go through a convoluted route to get them onto my computer.

After my computer froze it stopped recognising any memory card inserted into the drive. Trying to fix the problem resulted in my computer not recognising my iPhone as a data drive. The latter has been fixed but I have given up on the data card drive problem for now. In addition to these problems, my monitor had been playing up for a few weeks and finally decided to pack up a few days before we went away and I have been looking at the best option for a new one.

Now I can get back to working my way through my photographs…

And to finish I would like to wish the men in my life a (belated) Happy Father’s Day