A trip to the seaside

As this is the last episode of my travelogue, I thought I'd treat you to a trip to the seaside!

Well, it's what we'd planned to do on Thursday, when the weather decided to play foul. Why not go today instead, we thought on Friday morning, when it looked as if the sun had joined us again.

So, after breakfast, we made our way to a seaside resort called De Haan, also known as De Haan aan Zee or its French equivalent Le Coq sur Mer, less than half an hour's drive from our B&B.

Being there on a weekday and out of season secured us a parking space free of charge, just outside the town's parking disc zone, and only a short walk from the town centre.

What distinguishes this charming little town from its peers along the Belgian North Sea coast is the absence of the ugly high rise buildings which seem to prevail elsewhere.

Instead, De Haan, which is renowned for its immaculately preserved and protected Belle Epoque quarter, has retained much of its old-fashioned seaside charm.

Our visit started at the little tram station, which currently houses the local tourist office. 
Dating from 1902, it is a perfect example of the Anglo-Norman style typical of Belle Epoque architecture.

Would you believe that this charming little building narrowly escaped demolition in 1977? Fortunately, it was saved by the town council, who bought it from the tram company for one symbolic Belgian franc.

Cotton wool clouds were chasing each other across a bright blue sky, propelled by a rather fierce sea breeze and, although I'd ditched the warm coat I was wearing the day before, I was glad that my orange leather jacket was sufficiently windproof to keep the shivers at bay.

Not wanting to make another footwear mistake, I opted for my Clarks Cloudsteppers, but make no mistake: I'm wearing a pair of nude tights, as it war far too chilly to go bare-legged.

We dashed into the tourist office for a leaflet detailing a 3 kilometer walk which would take us on a tour of the town's rich architectural heritage, conveniently starting just outside the tram station.

In spite of our knack of getting lost even with the best of instructions, I'm happy to report that we completed this walk without any hick-ups, although roadworks did their best to thwart us by hiding some of the copper studs the walk is signposted with.

We were joking that we needed some of our money back, though, as quite a few of the houses described in the leaflet were covered in scaffolding!

As is the case with most Belgian coastal towns, tourism started to take off shortly after Belgium's independence in 1831 with the beginning of train and tram transport for the masses. By the early 1900s, there was already a double  track steam tram line connecting almost the entire Belgian coastline.

Most of the coastal towns were mere fisherman's villages back then but, as tourism became a major source of income by the end of the 19th Century, clever businessmen saw a way of making money.

Soon, De Haan boasted a casino, two hotels and thirty or so villas for guests from Bruges, Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent.

The casino, sadly, is no longer there. All that remains are its pagoda-like kiosks, silent witnesses to its glorious and decadent past.

De Haan owes much of its development to three enterprising gentlemen who, in 1889, negotiated a deal with the Belgian government, who owned the dunes between the tram-line and the coast, and were granted a long term lease (or concession) for 90 years on the 50 hectare plot of land.

Our walk now directed us through the picturesque "Concession" quarter, which is how the newly developed area commonly came to be known, with its typical Belle Epoque cottages and villas, characterized by surprisingly modern accents.

I wanted to move lock, stock and barrel into the cottage called Roodkapje (Little Red Riding Hood), even though we were intrigued that, in spite of the fact that her red coat is clearly hooded, she's actually wearing a green headscarf!

And even though we would pass many grander houses on our walk, I found this row of idyllic, white washed villas in a street called Rembrandtlaan particularly enchanting.

These were built between 1925 and 1927 by the architect Valentin Vaerwyck, who added to their romantic character by giving them red pitched roofs and colourful shutters, as well as their own individual details, often including decorative tableaux referring to their names.

We finally ended up at the promenade, walking its length before deciding on a place to have lunch. From our window seat, complete with Tiffany-style lamp, we watched the comings and goings of the out-of-season holiday makers, bundled up against the wind.

After a visit to the Ladies - note the nostalgic sign next to its door on the bottom right - I was ready to continue our walk.

Obviously, no visit to the seaside is complete without a spell on the beach, even if it was cut short by an icy cold wind and the sun playing an annoying game of hide-and-seek.

In fact, we stayed just long enough to take some photographs, offering you a slightly better view of the dress I was wearing. For a close-up, see here. Then we trudged back over wet sand (thank you Morrissey!), me ending up with my shoes full of sand after our final climb up to the promenade.

It was while walking into the direction of the town hall, which used to be a luxury hotel, that the first drops of rain started to fall. We sought shelter on the bandstand of the nearby La Potinière Park, which is the town's green lung, and taking a picture of the grand, turreted building dating from 1989 completely slipped my mind.

The eagle-eyed may have spotted the white bag I'm carrying, which contains the emerald green sandals I spotted in a shoe shop and just had to buy!

Eventually it stopped raining, even if it was just long enough to cross the street before the heavens opened again.

We shared the awning of a bicycle shop with some brightly coloured pedal carts. These carts come in all shapes and sizes, both for children and adults, and often with multiple seats, and can be rented out in all coastal towns. Just like donkey rides in the UK, they are an essential part of a seaside holiday in Belgium.

When I posted a photo of the poodle carts on Facebook, my friend Ingrid told me she had a photo of herself as a little girl riding such a poodle cart, and here she is, on the bottom left!

I'm a little bit envious here, as my parents hardly ever took us to the seaside and I don't remember much from the one visit when I was six going on seven, apart from playing in the sand and being told to beware of jellyfish!

Soon, the sun was out once again, and we continued our walk past wedding cake buildings with turrets and balconies and through streets with yet more traditional holiday villas.

The one on the bottom rights is on a street called Shakespearelaan. Its name is "Savoyarde" and its claim to fame is that Albert Einstein lived here for six months in 1933 after escaping the growing Nazi regime in Germany. 

Although it's a private residence and cannot be visited, the owners thoughtfully put a cardboard Albert Einstein in front of the upstairs window!

Our walk completed, we were in need of some sustenance, which we found in Hotel Des Brasseurs, where we had coffee and a waffle. While it was still very recognizable as the building in the photo, it had obviously lost much of its grandeur since it first opened in the late 19th Century.

On our way back to our B&B, we stopped at the local charity shop. While I was browsing the rails, rain started pelting down, so that there was nothing for it but to browse a little bit longer.

Here's what I found.

First up, a gorgeous King Louie halterneck sundress ...

And then, quite unusually for me, not one but two pairs of trousers!

The wide-legged ones are from Zara which, to be honest, is a shop I never frequent. They caught my eye when someone else was hanging them back on the rails. I thought I'd try them on for fun and quite liked what I saw. 

The cigarette trousers are stretchy and have a tiny print. They'll both be perfect for those not too bright days in the UK!

Well, that was over quickly, wasn't it? I'm already looking forward to our next trip, which will be our big UK holiday. And it looks like we've already got plans for our first day!

Linking to Nancy's Fancy Friday!