Monday in Brussels

Hello again everyone

Right time to catch up with my last day in Brussels. 

We had to vacate our hotel by 12noon but we booked out before that leaving our luggage with them for the rest of the day - well up to 3:30 pm.  Our Eurostar didn't leave Brussels until 1 minute before 6:00 pm so we had quite a bit of day left to fill.

Previously when discussing places to look at we had selected Autoworld, a museum whose name I think says it all, or an Army museum.  They were in the same location but we decided to look at the Army museum which Bob seemed more interested in - after all everywhere has a Motor Museum.  So along to the Metro - by which times we are now old hands in obtaining tickets & also directions of travel.  We both felt though, that their Metro map wasn't as good as our Underground map.

When we got there the Army museum was closed - it appeared most museums closed on a Monday.  So we wandered across the square just in case, & Autoworld was open.  So! Autoworld it was then. For the first time ever I had to pay if I wanted to take photos when visiting somewhere.  I had to pay - because you know that I just cannot go somewhere & not take photos.

It was well worth the visit & I saw several cars I had driven in the past & one that I had (when a lot younger) always wanted to own.  Here are some of the photos ........... oh yes, I took around 115, which included 2 of the hotel room before we left & about 6 of the arch, fountain & statues around the area of the museums.

There were some amazing vehicles there & of course a lot more of them were foreign makes than there would be in a similar museum here.  Now! In my younger years I used to go to Country Fayres & similar events & always homed in on the vintage & veteran cars section.  I have a photo album somewhere of the various events I went to with pages & pages of photos of cars.  Over the years of being able to drive I have driven quite a few cars - some of them owned by me - old & new.

Two really great looking & colourful cars.

I am not sure this vehicle is clear enoug for you to see it properly,  it's basically a four-wheel motorised bike with a seat at the front.  I thought Bob & I should get one for going to Asda & back.  Te, he - can you imagine the looks we would get?

Aah! one of my favourite cars - a Volkswagen Beetle - the original shape - the best shape.  I owned one that was a sort of burnt orange shading towards red that went by the name of Jemima.  A tradition between Beetle drivers was to flash headlights & wave to each other when passing them on the road. Shortly after changing my car from the Beetle to a Saab I was driving to work & saw a blue beetle approaching towards me that I saw every morning.  I flashed lights & waved - no response.  Same thing next day.  It was only best part through the day that second day that I remembered I wasn't driving my Beetle.  The person must have thought I was mad - unless by sheer chance she then had an inspirational thought at work & realised what might have happened.  There - a nice little car story for you.

I think they must have had an apprentice put this one together, don't you think?  It's two back halves of a Morris Minor 1000.  Caused quite a laugh.  I use to have one of those too.  Brilliant little car.

Remember these?  Did you have one?  Or was it just our brothers.

Yes - I know its not a car - but have you had a car named after you?  This young lady has, she is Karl Benz's daughter Mercedes. 

So once finished looking at cars we had a wander around the area where the museums were situated, stopped & had a drink, then made our way back to the hotel for our luggage & headed towards the station for Eurostar.  We had some time still left to kill so as we would not arrive home until gone 10:00 pm we had a light meal.  An uneventful journey home completed a great weekend.

So! there you are now it's time to get back to crafting.  Tomorrow will be the day.  But in a way this has been a crafting journey as I have so many photos that will give me images for cards.  As you know I like producing some cards through My Craft Studio - & those car photos are just crying out to be made in to cards for men.  The instruments too will make some lovely cards.  I am really looking forward to manipulating the images in order to get background papers etc.

Back to normal tomorrow.  I hope you all had a great weekend too.