All quiet on the Western front

If only I could stop the hands of the clock, I mused, even if just for a little while.

The early September sunshine warming my face, I was standing on the steps of Poperinge's town hall, savouring the delicious feeling of having a whole week's holiday stretched out in front of me.

It was Monday, 2 September, and we'd arrived in Poperinge, a sleepy little backwater in Belgium's west country, in the early afternoon. 

Too early for our 3 pm check-in into our cottage at the edge of town, we walked towards the town centre to reacquaint ourselves with the place which has been our base for touring the area since 2012.

Taking pride of place on the Grote Markt (market square) is its town hall. Built in neo-Gothic style as recently as 1911, it looks considerably older than its years. Proud of its buttery bricks, its decorative arches and stone carvings, not to mention its gleaming gold weathervane, it was preening itself in the shop windows opposite.

Its tower, together with those of the town's ancient churches, the 15th Century St. Bertinus Church (top left) and the 13th Century Church of Our Lady (top right), dominates the town's skyline, which can be seen from far and wide.

Making the most of the, according to the weathermen, short-lived sunshine, we enjoyed a cup of coffee while sitting on the terrace of one of the market square's cafés.

The gold sculpture of the girl with her serving tray belongs to another café on the square, La Poupée.

She isn't just there to attract customers, but commemorates Eliane Cossey, an attractive red-haired girl who worked at her father's café during the First World War, and was given the nickname of Ginger. Such was her fame that officers of all nationalities came from miles around to see this stunning continental beauty and her father's establishment soon became known as Ginger's instead of its French name La Poupée.

Although during the Great War, Poperinge was part of unoccupied Belgium, poignant reminders of its devastation are all around. This wall full of poppy-adorned wooden crosses (top left) can be found in the town hall's courtyard, next to the authentic execution pole. This a painful reminder of the fate which awaited many so-called ‘deserters’ during the Great War. Most of these frightened men were suffering from shell shock but, instead of receiving compassion and understanding, a terrifying example was made of them.

Our town walk then took us to a picturesque walled courtyard lined with little white-washed cottages. These were built in the late 18th Century as some kind of almshouses for poor widows. The flaming heart and cross above the entrance refers to the responsible charitable organization.

As always on the first day of our September holiday, we ended up at the local park, and the town's green lung, which was established in 2002, and named after one of Poperinge's most famous sons, Dirk Frimout who, in 1992, was the first Belgian in space.

By then, it was past 3 pm, so we beat a hasty retreat to our car and, after stocking up on provisions at the local supermarket, drove down to the little cottage which would be our home for the next six days.

A little studio apartment above the owner's carport, it has everything you can possibly need, but our favourite feature is the magnificent view over the lake, which is part of the owner's domain, and towards the hills on the Flemish-French border in the distance.

We know from past experience that, as long as the weather's dry, this is the perfect backdrop for daily outfit photos so, starting as we meant to go on, here is what I wore on Tuesday.

This sky blue Diolen dress sprinkled with clusters of orange, yellow and white flowers has a twin sister in mustard, which I actually wore during last year's September holiday (see here). 

I accessorized it with an orange belt and a yellow beaded necklace. As we had some serious uphill walking in mind, my footwear of choice were the pink floral sneakers I charity shopped in Shrewsbury back in June.

As you might have noticed, Monday's blue skies had disappeared, making way for a blanket of dull grey and, even though it was still in the low twenties, this put a bit of a damper on things. Especially when we were treated to some light drizzle upon reaching our destination.

We were headed to Kemmel, a picturesque village in the hilly country south of Poperinge. 

We'd planned to do the walk we would do today on the final day of last year's holiday, when unfortunately we found our plans thwarted by a cycling event which would have been a great hindrance. Not having a death wish, our plans were aborted and we did something else instead that day.

This time, we weren't to be deterred! Nipping inside the tourist office for a map of the area, we were tempted by a sign pointing into the direction of the church opposite, where an exhibition of all things sweet was being held.

So, after a visit to the church itself, where we admired the modern stained glass and were enamoured by a clock without hands which we agreed would be perfect for our time-stopping plans, we made our way to the exhibition, where I demonstrated my ice-cream scooping skills.

Seeing all those sweets, cakes and biscuits had made us hungry, so we went in search of lunch, after which we were ready to start our intented walk.

This would skirt and climb the hill Kemmelberg. Berg is the Dutch word for mountain and, at 156 meters, the Kemmelberg is the highest in flat Flanders! Those of you living in countries with real mountains, please refrain from laughing! 

The start of our walk was in the local park, where the former castle of the Bruneel de la Warande family now houses Kemmel's town hall.

Initially, the climb was quite gentle, but once outside the park and into the provincial domain De Kemmelberg, the path starting climbing more seriously, meandering through the woods until, upon meeting a cobbled lane, a white wedding-cake building with an ornate tower could be glimpsed.

The building is a hotel and restaurant called the Belvédère, and its tower is a tourist attraction which can be climbed for a panoramic view. But as silly us only found this out after our visit, we'll have to return next year. 

Anyway, we still had another climb ahead of us before we were at the very top, which was marked by a stone pillar. They could have been considerate and supplied a bench for weary climbers to rest upon, but no!

Near the summit is an impressive French memorial which commemorates the heavy fighting which took place here in April 1918. 

The 18 metre-high column, popularly known as "The Angel", was erected in 1932 and looks wistfully over the battlefield where so many died.

A poppy wreath had been laid out on the stone pillar, and nearby we found a laminated photo of a soldier fastened to a tree. Written on the back was the soldier's name, Patrick Gammell, of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, who died here on 18 April 1918. 

Oh, these hills are alive with wartime memories!

Having reached the top, all was downhill from here. There were hazy views over the countryside to enjoy, as well as a field of sunflowers nestling in the Monet-like autumnal landscape.

Eventually we reached Kemmel's village square, where our car was parked. 

Driving towards our final destination for the day, a backward glance rewarded us with a view of the wooded Kemmelberg, the Belvédère tower appearing as a beacon among the trees.

A war memorial of a different kind is the Pool of Peace near the village of Wijtschate, 4 kilometers down the road from Kemmel.

This peaceful, secluded pool, 12 meters deep and with a diameter of 129 meters, is the site of the largest of 19 mines blown by the British Army under the German lines in the early hours of the morning of the 7th of June 1917, killing as many as 10000 German soldiers. 

As if on cue, the sky started darkening, with dramatically menacing clouds watching over this deceptively peaceful but war-riddled landscape.

Apart from that, it didn't look too well on the weather front. But more about that and what we did next in my next post.

Rainy days in August

In between packing our bags for our week away from it all - mopping our brows as this is sweaty business when it's nearly 30° Celsius - I'm squeezing in one more post to wrap up what's left of the month of August.

The last couple of weeks have been a bit of an emotional roller coaster for me, so roll on next week, as I desperately need to recharge my batteries.

Roll on September too, as this is by far my favourite month of all. If she deigns to bless us with some Indian Summer days, they are so much more bearable than those in July and August, as it cools down considerably overnight. And I just love the sights, sounds and smells of impending Autumn!

But let's not get ahead of ourselves, as there's still the rest of August to talk about. 

We had a special treat in the week following our adventures in Wonderland, as the 15th of August, which fell on a Thursday this year, is a holiday in Belgium. We'd set our hearts on going for another walk, so wasn't it just our luck that the weather was damp and miserable? We just moped around the house feeling sorry for ourselves, until a brief break in the clouds finally drove us outside, making a dash for it between showers.

All dressed up and nowhere to go! We just went for a limb-stretching walk around the block, stopping at the rusty gates for some outfit photos.

I might have come straight from the eighties in this outfit, although it was by no means intentional. I was intent on wearing the funky print blouse I'd picked up at the charity shop the week before, and was struggling to find a skirt to wear with it when my eye was caught by this sky blue pleated skirt dotted with pink and green Paisley motifs. It was hanging with a handful of others at the side of my wardrobe as a reminder that I should wear them. 

And I hadn't worn this one before, ever. The skirt was picked up at Think Twice for a mere € 1 a couple of months ago and yes, this was its first outing. 

As the outfit was based around the blouse, I used all its colours for the rest of my attire. I added different shades of blue for my belt and necklace, green for my jacket and peachy pink for my ring and flower corsage.

On the right, you can see a close-up of my brooch. Apart from the blouse's blue and green, it is totally off-colour scheme with its purple background and yellow and red flowers.

Yes, yes, but what about that divine basket, I can hear you think. Well, it was a lucky find in a charity shop in Antwerp during one lunch break. I'm a sucker for a wicker basket as well as a seaside theme, and I swear to you, those two crabs were waving at me from afar. It was slightly out of shape and one of the edges needed restitching, but otherwise it was in perfect condition. And cute, obviously.

I had to be back at the office on Friday and - yes, you've guessed it - it was a sunny day! Argh!

Oh, never mind, there's always the weekend, we thought. But we must have been in the weather gods' bad books as yet again sullen skies and rain reigned on both days.

At least it stopped raining for long enough on Saturday for a stroll in the park en route to our favourite charity shop. There was even some watery sunshine to accompany us.

At first, not wanting to ruin my shoes by walking on the wet grass and muddy paths, we made some outfit photos at the newly installed fit-o-meter at the edge of the park.

Orange is such a pick-me-up on a dull day, isn't it? I love this polyester dress, with its orange abstract print on a pale peachy background, and solid orange buttons, collar and pocket tabs. Fake pockets, alas!

My brooch of choice is a delicate vintage one I bought from the Brooch Lady, and it doesn't often see the light of day. I'm forever worrying that one of the blue petals - which are some kind of elongated blue pearly beads - will break off, which would leave me heartbroken. But isn't it just perfect on the orange collar?

A white and orange striped vinyl belt with square buckle, bangles in blue and orange, as well as my famous blue handbag and faithful denim jacket completed my outfit.

If we didn't have much luck weather-wise, I'm pleased to say that the charity shop came up trumps and delivered some delectable goodies.

I found Jos a brand new H&M shirt, in black with a print of tiny white spectacles. Isn't it sweet?

This psychedelic sleeveless shift dress caught my eye and I was delighted that it was my size too.

It's by Caroline Biss, an upmarket Belgian fashion label, and would have retailed at around € 200. I'd never be willing to spend that much on one dress, but at € 5: yes please!

There was a jewellery sale too, and I admit I went a bit overboard.

Not much luck on Sunday either. It had been raining all morning, but we had to run an errand in a neighbouring village so that in spite of the dismal weather, we had to leave Dove Cottage's cozy confines.

Our errand completed, we found that the rain had momentarily stopped, so we headed down the road towards Hof ter Linden, a park established on the domain surrounding a Neoclassical manor house.

The crumbling house and its stable courtyard lie at the end of an enchanting linden avenue.

Restorations are still ongoing but one of the coach houses flanking the courtyard has now been turned into a brasserie, where we stopped for our customary cappuccinos.

It started drizzling again soon after we continued our walk, but I'd come prepared as I was wearing the groovy raincoat I'd scored in a charity shop in Church Stretton while on holiday in Shropshire in June. We were also carrying our big spotty umbrella which Jos tells me was purchased during a long ago UK holiday.

Nevertheless, we were glad of the house's portico, so that we could shelter from the rain and take some outfit photos.

Underneath the raincoat, I was wearing a long-sleeved charity shopped King Louie frock in burgundy with a pink, blue and green blowsy flower print. 

I added a hessian belt and one of the necklaces from Saturday's haul.

No sandals and bare legs that day: I was wearing nylons and my wonderful emergency booties, bought back in Spring when faced with a wardrobe malfunction while at work. They have certainly earned their keep by now and I even bought a second pair to avoid heartbreak when they eventually wear out.

Up close, the house's sorry state is all too apparent. I've read that restoration plans for the house are finally being finalized, but at the time of our visit, it had a definite air of desolation, which wasn't helped by the rain, which had by now increased in intensity.

There was nothing for it but to return the way we'd come, leaving the haughty sphinxes to guard the domain.

In the two weeks that followed, Summer returned once more and we even had another heatwave to contend with. 

But for now, we have come to the end of this post, so I'll have to show you the rest of my August outfits some other time.

Can't wait to start another series of adventures tomorrow. See you in a week's time!

Linking to Nancy's Fancy Friday - better late than never, as they say!

Down the rabbit hole

Although the date above this post mentions Wednesday, 28 August, its subject is actually what we did more than two weeks ago, on Sunday, 11 August.

Now that I have finished my travelogue, I can finally catch up on what else has been happening in my life and - obviously - what I have been wearing. I have to be quick though, as by the end of this week it'll be September and we'll be off on a another little trip, gathering a fresh batch of stories to tell.

So, without further ado, let's dive in and see what we have been up to that Sunday!

"Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!"

And while I wasn't about to follow the White Rabbit down the rabbit hole into Wonderland, I checked my watch before tiptoeing along this avenue of clock-sporting trees.

The clocks are part of an exhibition in Antwerp's Middelheim museum by artist Ria Pacquée, called “They are looking at us, we are looking at them”.

This particular installation is called "The sun is moving, the clock ticking, the earth sinking". The message is that nobody can escape time, not even in the woods!

Now that is a subject that has been occupying my mind. I'm forever trying to shake off that cloak of nostalgia which like a birth mark has become part of me. 

Alice: "How long is forever?"

White Rabbit: "Sometimes, just one second."

No matter how hard I keep trying to escape time, it is obvious that I never will. But I can at least look reasonably stylish while I'm doing so.

Here's a closer look at the vintage skirt suit I'm wearing and which has been a wardrobe stalwart ever since I picked it up in a charity shop in 2015. I pinned my peacock brooch from Llangollen to it and wore two bracelets to compliment the suit's colour scheme.

My outfit was completed by a red belt and my red Clarks Cloudsteppers. On my arm, my blue crocheted handbag, whch is actually made of some kind of plastic. I had also brought my flower sprinkled denim jacket, but it turned out to be too warm for it.

Accidentally, I already divulged our destination for the day, Middelheim, which is an amazing open-air museum of sculpture and art set within a 30-acre park on the outskirts of Antwerp.

Our visit was a last minute decision made in the early afternoon, when it was safe to surmise that the weather gods would be holding off any threat of rain for the day.

Due to the lateness of the hour, there were no nearby parking spaces available, so we had to park our car a bit further away, around the corner. Walking back towards the park, we took the first entrance we came across, which actually took us to the western reaches of the park, where the museum has gathered some of its painted metal sculptures from the 1960s and 1970s.

The art installation behind me is a later one, dating from 2009. It is called "Beam Drop Antwerp" and is by US performance artist Chris Burden. You can see it in full in the above collage. Apparently, it was created by pouring liquid concrete into a pit, after which 100 steel beams were dropped into the ground from a height of 45 metres using cranes and the force of gravity. 

Jos looks quite at home between the two sections of "Double Progression Vert et Blanc". Dating from 1969, its creator is Venezuelan artist Jésus Rafael Soto.

Consisting of eight separate elements in black, green, orange and yellow, this group of sculptures by Jorge Dubon (Mexico), and dating from 1971, is called Bosque Metalica (or Wood of Metal).

The orange and green elements matched my outfit almost exactly, so that for one moment I became part of this work of art.

This part of the museum also houses its open-air storage, where some of the sculptures needing restorations or awaiting a new destinatiosn are on display. 

Here I drew up a chair for a brief chat with Mozart, Rosetti and Beethoven, who all seemed to have some minor injuries.

Was it a bird or a bullet which disfigured this important looking figure, whom I'm afraid I forgot to ask for his name?

This construction is a mobile container workspace for Compagnie Marius, which has been developing theatre productions since 1991, specializing in outdoor performances.

Entering the main part of the park, some of the sculptures seem to blend organically into the landscape. 

Here, it felt as if I had really fallen down the rabbit hole, meeting all kinds of mad creatures and the odd enigma.

All was peaceful and quiet, apart from the eternal Pokémon hunters colonizing the park, blind for the beauty of art while singling out their virtual prey.

But then we happened to look back, our hearts skipping a beat upon spying a group of menacing figures advancing upon us through the trees.

We took flight into the direction of a mirage on the horizon, the dazzling white wonder of the Braem Pavillion. 

I have waxed lyrical about this stunning building, in which temporary exhibitions are being held, many times before, so I'm just letting my camera do the talking this time.

Opened in 1971, it was designed by Renaat Braem, one of Belgium’s best-known 20th century architects.

Fleeing into the same direction was this rather bewildered looking Running Girl. She seemed a little out of breath, but then again she has been running on the spot since 1977. Turned into bronze, her creator was Czech sculptor Kurt Gebauer.

I forgot to ask her name as well, but I bet she was called Alice. 

Unlike the girl, we managed to escape by crossing The Bridge Without a Name, a work by Chinese artist Ai Weiwei.

In Alice's words, it was getting curiouser and curiouser, so before continuing our journey, we took a breather on the terrace of the museum café.

Will this biscuit make me grow or shrink, that is the question. Neither, it seemed, as we crossed the road into the second part of the park unscathed and passed in front of Het Huis (The House), a second exhibition pavillion, which was opened in 2012. 

The formal Hortiflora garden, which used to be part of the neighbouring Nachtegalen Park (Nightingale Park) was also incorporated into the Middelheim museum in 2012.

Finally finding an escape route out of the park, we ended up opposite the entrance of yet another park, Den Brandt, with its romantic castle. Although originally built in 1790, it was renovated in the late classical style in the 1870s.

Although we've been here many times before, this must have been the first time we were able to photograph the castle, and the enchanting fountain in front of it, without groups of people milling about or a car parked in front of it.

And with that, our adventure in Wonderland had come to an end.

Just another week in August

We've almost reached the end of August by now and September is once again breathing down our necks. For the purpose of this blog, however, I'm taking you back to the first full week of August, which actually seems much longer ago to me than just a matter of weeks. 

Summer seemed to have returned but thankfully the mercury kept frolicking around the mid-twenties rather than returning to dazzling heights.

I'm still ploughing my way through my Summer wardrobe, assessing each item with a critical eye in a bid to keep only those garments that give me the greatest pleasure to wear.

For some reason, I hadn't worn this deliciously patterned Terlenka dress in at least two years. In what I can only describe as a moment of madness, I even relegated it to the flea market pile, from which it was promptly retrieved when I was sorting through my stock back in July.

Not the best way to go about decluttering one's wardrobe, I admit, but surely this one was too good to let go of. Plus, I loved wearing it, which is ultimately what matters.

My denim jacket has been doing overtime this Summer, but I've been trying to add some variety by matching the flower corsages I pin on it to my outfits!

I'd planned to exchange the dress's buttons which, although not lacking in cuteness, somewhat disappear against the dress's white backdrop. I'd even selected some likely red candidates from my stash of buttons, but somehow it never happened.

Taking my cue from the green bits in the print, I added a green necklace, butterfly brooch, ring and bracelet.

There's nothing wrong with the above photo, by the way, nor do you have to adjust your screens: the pale pink triangle is part of our garden table!

A second wear this Summer for this delightfully swooshy yellow based dress.  Found in a bargain bin for the silly price of € 1 a couple of years ago, it was missing half of its buttons. I don't remember what the original buttons looked like, but I love the pearly ones I replaced them with, which were salvaged from a blouse which had seen better days.

The material has a pleat-like texture to it and is sprinkled with dots in shades of orange and brown.

For contrast, my accessories were all in chocolate hues, including the vintage celluloid brooch with the drum beating Scottie dog.

In spite of this being only early August, the mornings already had that slightly hazy late Summer quality to them and, waiting for my tram connection, I couldn't help but notice that one particular tree was already donning some of its Autumn colour.

Another dress that has been patiently waiting its turn is this black and white chevron print one. 

My phone's camera clearly couldn't cope with its print, which shows up as being purely geometrical, so I added a close up to show you the flowers which are hiding in there!

My accessories, sandals and charity shopped King Louie jacket lift it up with some colour.

As the working week was drawing to a close, the weather returned to its usual Belgian Summer mix of sunny spells and showers on that week's Friday.

The olive green 1950s style dress I was wearing is a firm favourite, getting several outings each Summer. Its silky fabric makes this fit and flare dress an absolute joy to wear. Plus, it's got pockets!

I always gravitate towards pink to accessorize this dream of a frock, and this time was no exception.

The Lucite brooch is from an antique shop in Cardigan.

When I posted it on Instagram at the time, I got some lovely comments on its unusal collar, which prompted me to make this close-up. The collar actually consists of two separate flaps which have to be pulled through a loop.

The basket also got much love on Instagram. It was a flea market find back in May 2016 and when it's not in use as a handbag, it holds my small collection of fans.

The weather dropped all pretense of being summery on Saturday which, after some initial sunshine, devoloped into a miserably grey day. The dull sky threatening rain was joined by gusts of stormy wind.

On our way for a browse at the charity shops, we stopped at a pair of fashionably rusty gates halfway down our street. These belong to an organic garden established behind the local history museum, but sadly the garden itself is only open to the general public once a year.

It's the perfect backdrop for some quick outfit photos.

In classic white, red and blue, but with a dash of café au lait, this empire waist dress was one of the very first vintage dresses I ever bought. Although its fabric and label give away its 1970s origin, it is looking deceptively older than its age.

Competing with my dress for the starring role is this cream leather handbag with a Lucite handle. As it is quite delicate, it is one of those handbags that only comes out to play once in a blue moon.

The brooch with its red berries was a flea market find from earlier this year, while my watch's original 1970s strap was part of a lot found in a charity shop several years ago. My necklace, bangles  and ring are all second hand finds too.

But I did mention a browse in the charity shops, so without further ado, here are my finds: a pair of wedge heeled shoes, two belts, a vintage notebook and folder, a pair of souvenir clogs from Zeeland in Holland for one of our mad collections, and a funky print top from a Belgian fashion label.

And what are the chances of finding a dress in exactly the same print on the same day, but in a different shop?

It's what Sheila would call a "jammy dress", and I'm actually wearing it as I'm writing this post.

Hope to see you later this week, when I'll be sharing another round-up of outfits.