We had an incredible ride yesterday along the Meuse River with the sun shining. The going was easy and we could make good time. What a difference good weather can make.
We like that they have kept the retro illuminated Hotel sign. We had read that rooms on the front with a view of the river are very noisy due to traffic, so we asked for a room on the back which was very quiet. Perhaps the addition of double paned windows has fixed that problem.
This copper metal artpiece of a young girl releasing a dove is very eye catching. It stands just outside the entrance to Collegiale Notre-Dame et Saint-Domitien a Huy, also known as Collegiate Church of Our Lady in Huy.
Since the 5th century, the site of the present church has been a spiritual place with several sanctuaries, followed by the building of a Romanesque Collegiate Church in the 11th century. The crypt remains preserved today and houses the treasury. The building of the church we see today was begun in 1311 and was completed in 1377. History has not been kind to this church…during the Revolution, the marble, painted furniture, paintings, statues and goldsmith were badly damaged. In 1803 the spire of the great tower was struck by lightning, fell on the nave and was not rebuilt. Since 1851 major restoration began, which continues today. We often visit these grand historic churches in Europe and marvel at their storied long history and marvel that they survive.
In 1933, this church was listed as being of exceptional heritage of the Walloon region and is now designated with the double name of Notre-Dame and Saint-Domitien in recognition.
Like so many of these historic churches in Europe, Collegiale Notre-Dame et Saint-Domitien is huge. It is 71.70 metres long, 25.35 metres wide and 25 metres high. We enjoyed seeing the modern installation of metal sculptures.
In 1967 several windows, including this Rose style round window, the Rondia were installed, inspired by master glass artist Raymond Julien of Liege. Most of the windows were made in the 1870’s in the Atelier Gsell-Laurent of Paris. The Rondia window is the largest of its kind.
We sometimes wonder why we enjoy visiting these historic churches as neither of us is religious. In reflecting on what we have included, it comes down to the incredible story they tell about the history and the spiritual life of people over the centuries.
Charmaine RuppoltThe European churches are so beautiful and big - - so much prettier than the ones in the U.S.! They are works of art! Reply to this comment 5 months ago
Cenotaph of Hadelin de Royer from the early 17th century depicting the burial of Christ by Nicodemus and Joseph. It remains incomplete but is regarded to be an important piece.
The Treasury at the church (from 1066) is renowned for its treasures…medieval sculptures, goldsmith work, fabric from the 9th century and this enamel Medallion of the Tree of Life, circa 1160. It is recognized as the one of the most beautiful enamels from the Meuse Region.
The Bethlehem Path leading to the portal. Our day started with a period of rain that took us by surprise. Yesterday was the first sunny day in quite awhile. We had hoped that the nice weather would continue.
The Bethlehem Portal is an attractive surprise you find after walking the Bethlehem path alongside the church. The Portal of Bethlehem (14th century) is considered one of the most beautiful in Wallonia with scenes related to the Jesus’ childhood…Nativity, adoration of the Magi etc.
Yes, it is a cool and rainy morning but that won’t stop us from having a wander around the historic narrow cobbled streets of the core. Somehow, this narrow street allows traffic both directions. Lucky for us, traffic is light at this time.
Barry shared with him what we are doing and gave him a link to our journal. This avid cyclist was excited to show Barry a card he had been given by another touring cyclist he had met who was pulling a trailer with his recumbent bike.
I casually said to. Barry that before we leave Belgium, we must try a waffle. Before I knew it he returned with 2 waffles…one with chocolate for me and one with cinnamon for him. Oh yes, delicious and fresh off the grill.
At times it is just easier to walk…what with potholes, cobbles and cars racing up beside us. We have really enjoyed wandering the narrow, winding streets of Huy, but it has been a bit wild at times sharing the road with cars on this day which is busy with the market.
We had intended to have a brief wander through Huy’s town centre and the Chirch, but we were happy we took more time as there is much to see. Next time we’ll tour the fort as well.
The latest nuclear power plant in Belgium has been built on the outskirts of Huy, close to the Meuse River and a neighbourhood. For us riding through, it presented the first significant detour we would encounter today as much of the route will be inland due to the industrial build up along the river.
Things have started to deteriorate. Construction, detours and hills that are not good for us or Seavo. We are dividing to conquer..ME walks the hills for now.
The route through Seraing became more and more challenging with heavy industry, derelict buildings and garbage. Trying to push a loaded tandem through detours with barriers, heavy traffic and uneven surfaces made for a frustrating ride.
To add to our challenges, Seavo’s chain and gears started to skip due to the chainrings wearing out. At the beginning of our trip we had tried to get new chainrings and new chain installed. Unfortunately, we were unable to get the job done as the shop was unable to source a new chainring for the Bafang. Our only option was to carry on and see how long it could hold. We were able to ride over 1000 km before the chainrings had trouble.
Between Seraing and Liege it mostly was riding through industry,urban sprawl, and really nasty detours with incongruous twists and turns, backtracking and poor signage. It took over an hour to go just a few km. As we got into Liege things improved with parks and green spaces.
As we got closer to Liege there were more interesting things to see than the industry and construction that we had ridden through
The route takes us onto an island in the middle of the Meuse River….beautiful, idyllic and quite pleasant….except that all of the paths were very bumpy cobbles! We will be riding a series of small islands through Liege. At this point, we are happy not to be in the city.
La Boverie Museum is an arts museum on Outre Meuse Island, part of Liege. It was constructed for the 1905 World Expo held here. It would have been something we would have enjoyed touring with art on exhibit by Money, Picasso, Van Gogh, Magritte etc. It looked closed which was good for us as we need to make some time.
Our hotel for the night. Our top priority is to finally will be to find a business that sells Bafang e-bike chainrings, order a new chainring and then find a bike shop that is willing to install all the new parts so that we can continue our tour.
