On Visiting Netherlands and Belgium, and On Waiting
How long have I been waiting to see windmills in Holland? Even when we drove into Holland we had to wait. We drove for an hour or so from Maastricht towards Keukenhof before we saw our first one…hah, the lack of windmills was seriously threatening my cliche world-view of Holland! But then they seemed to be everywhere. This one is the tourist feature at Keukenhof Gardens–and bonus: with a canal!
I Could Never Stand Waiting … for Anything
I think I must have been four and half years old when I got busted that Christmas Eve. I was on my hands and knees, trying to sneak past Mom and Dad’s open bedroom door to get downstairs to see what Santa had got me for Christmas. The creaking floorboards of the old farmhouse gave me away. “Back to bed!” Mom screamed from inside the dark doorway. I scurried back to my bed as fast as any terrorized mouse would, knowing, as all four year olds must know, disobedience to a parent would be certain death! Still I did try it again that night. Waiting was killing me.
I couldn’t stand waiting back then, and I can’t stand waiting now. In a lot of ways I guess I’m still a four year old. If this spring I could have snuck down the hallway and down the stairs to get away from an unseasonably long winter in Ottawa, to take a sneak look at spring in Netherlands and Belgium, I would have gladly done it!
How long have we been waiting to visit the Netherlands to see the windmills, the canals, the flowers? Hah, a lifetime. How long have we been waiting to experience Belgium, to taste the chocolate, the fries, the waffles? Drink the beer? Probably since university—which, if you listen to my kids, is at least a hundred years. So while we planned this trip only a few months ago, primarily to watch Mike race in the Ardennes Classics, we have been waiting so much longer for this trip and for the life experiences that this trip and this spring would bring us. It would pull us back through history, it would involve Mike’s biggest athletic success to-date, and it would happen all while we are waiting, longing for, something far bigger yet! I can’t stand waiting….
Keukenhof: almost too much sensory overload after months of waiting, while shovelling snow in Ottawa!While still not yet in full blossom, this is an impressive river of blue to watch as it shimmers lightly in the breeze.Brilliant light and colours and startling whiffs of fragrance are everywhere.Waiting for the right selfie moment…and btw what do we think about selfies?Spring flowers spilling out of everything! In 2010, the record was set for squeezing the most people into a beetle: 20…wondering if this could be a daffodil record.Waiting to cross the street in Maastricht, Netherlands, and wondering why, back in North America, the best selling vehicle is the Ford 150 Truck. How many of these guys can you squeeze into one F150!Maastricht: this is how an above-ground parking lot should look! How many Ford 150’s can fit in this space?Waiting doesn’t seem to be a problem in a timeless sort of place like Maastricht. You can have a beer pretty much anytime.Savouring a moment, while crossing a bridge in Bruges, Belgium.Exploring BrugesWe didn’t have to wait long to complete our To-do list for Bruges:✓Eat Belgium chocolate, ✓Eat Belgium frites with mayo, ✓Eat Belgium waffles…✓Drink lots of Belgium beer. Done!Liège: No stepper machine necessary in this city. Only 374 steps to reach the top.And we did–Deanna making the peak.Small pleasures of walking through the medieval town Durbuy. It claims to be the “smallest town on earth” with a population of 500.
Early morning view from behind our Bed and Breakfast near Durbuy.
Durbuy: the kind of bike you might catch me riding, but the baby seat doesn’t look too comfortable nor does it look CSA approved.
Last evening in Belgium, eating frites and drinking Trappist beer in an outdoor cafe downtown Leuven.
Seeing our world through a little of Belgium history
Belgium is sometimes called the “Battleground of Europe” and evidence of it can be seen everywhere, with fortifications or monuments that go back to well before the Romans.
Waterloo: I now have a visual for when someone uses the expression, “He met his Waterloo.” This is “La Butte du Lion” near Waterloo, commemorating where Napoleon’s forces were defeated in 1815. Only about 200 years ago.
The Battlefield of Waterloo Museum made the issues of the time real for us. We came away with a feeling of what life must have been like at the time, and a better understanding what lead to this “global” crisis and what happened that would bring relative peace to Europe for almost a hundred years.Looking at the field Napoleon’s army crossed under fire to engage in the battle of the Ferme de Mont Saint JeanWorld WAR I: I read that the Tyne Cot Cemetery, located near Paaschendaele, is sometimes called the “City of the Dead,” with almost 12,000 dead resting here, of whom only 3605 could be identified. In the museum you read some of the letters and accounts of the soldiers, their parents, their wives or their girlfriends and feel a painful connection. Many of the parents of the fallen would have been my age. Again and again you can’t help but be puzzled that humanity does this to itself too often.Looking through “Canada Gate” at all the open space, across which the Canadians would finally have to attack to take the Paaschendaele objective.
From near Canada Gate, looking at the open fields the Canadians had to cross to reach this ridge, it is tough comprehending that this quiet pastoral setting could be a place of such misery and horror shown in the photos of the time (from the Canadian Encyclopedia.ca)
The “Memorial Museum Paaschendaele 1917” also immersed us into the era and political forces that lead up to the war and its terrible loss of some 16 million lives.
One of the major battles of World War II was the Battle of the Bulge, involving a mind-boggling number of men–more than a million (some 600,000 Germans, 500,000 Americans and 55,000 British fighters). This immense statue outside the museum celebrates the end of WWII that saw some 65 million people killed.
Re-looking at our current political world through the lenses of our Belgium experience, a person has to be concerned. This trip renewed a commitment to encourage everyone I come in touch with to speak up against populism, nativism, lies, bigotry, and indifference and to support good journalism! After all, does Belgium or the rest of the world need any more of these monuments or museums to human stupidity?
Bike Racing in Belgium….REAL BIKE FANS!
To watch bike racing live is all about waiting. You have to go early to a good viewing spot and wait, and wait, and wait until you hear the TV helicopter approaching…and then wait more…
Finding Waldo…the tough job of being a cycling fan, and especially a cycling parent, is probably picking a face out of some 180+ other cyclists surrounded by thousands of fans…and yes, he’s the skinny guy in sunglasses and colourful helmet and kit!…and sometimes a rider can pick out a fan in a crowd!This climb, Mur de Huy, is a lot steeper than it looks in this photo. And as a newbie cycling fan, I’m only beginning to appreciate the rich history of climbs like this in La Flèche Wallonne and humbly recognize how lucky Deanna and I are to scream our support for Mike here.Days after this photo, Karol-Ann Canuel let us know that she heard, among the thousands of other cheering and noisy fans, Deanna and I scream “Allez, allez, Karol, bon anniversaire!!!” near the top of Mur de Huy but she didn’t realize it was us. I guess you’d have to wonder what idiots would be wishing her a happy birthday at the apex of this sufferfest! Just a note to Karol after watching this, I personally won’t be doing any Mur de Huy’s on any of my birthdays.
Finally, about waiting
As much as I hate waiting, there is something so special when you realize what you are waiting for, is turning out to be better, sweeter and more fulfilling than your best expectations. That’s what happened that long ago Christmas morning. And too it happened big time for us in Belgium when Mike made his first UCI World Tour podium. We have waited and watched him and his wife work so hard, for so long, and sacrifice so much, for them to get him there….it was tears-of-joy sweet to experience…but I’m feeling it is not so sweet as what we are waiting for next from them and from Danelle and Drew in the coming months…I gotta say it again, I can’t stand waiting!
I write about the small and significant moments that shape our lives — family stories, friendships, personal observations, lessons learned, and the quiet experiences that often matter most. This site is a place to reflect on life with curiosity, gratitude, and honesty: the challenges that strengthen us, the people who influence us, and the everyday moments that deserve to be remembered. From cycling journeys and travel to conversations with grandchildren and reflections on resilience, I hope these writings encourage thoughtful living and deeper connection. My mission is to build a family legacy of strength, generosity, and steady & trustworthy leadership — embracing physical challenges, growing continuously, and encouraging my family and community to rise to theirs. I believe a meaningful life is built not only through accomplishments, but through consistency, kindness, endurance, and the example we leave for others.
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Early morning view from behind our Bed and Breakfast near Durbuy.
Last evening in Belgium, eating frites and drinking Trappist beer in an outdoor cafe downtown Leuven.
