Two kettles

Here I sit the second of the AirBNBs that I have booked for this time away looking out of the window at the drizzle and remembering that I complained that it was too hot. Beware what you wish for. I've got a few things to write about this week so let's get on with it; it's been a case of making the most despite not wanting to be away.

Still at the old place

Of course I didn't come to this new place straight after doing the blog last time; I stayed in the first place for another week and had time to do a few things.

Just a little bit of rain

Resting in the sun with my book

Old building

Pink skies at night

First of all, just after I published last time, it rained. It seems that in Belgium there are such things as heavy rainfall, not just the tiny misty horrible rain that is falling now that soaked me on the way home. It was hammering down and I was glad to be inside. The Sunday however was a lovely day and I took myself into town with my kindle to at least get some fresh air and stop myself from turning completely into a couch potato that only plays computers. I stayed an hour or so and wished I'd thought to bring a rug but it was worth the stroll. On the way back I went past the ancient market square near where I was living and had to take a picture of one of the lovely buildings that surround it. When I headed to bed that night, relatively early as I had to be up for work the next day, the sunset was lovely so I stretched out the window to snap it - not only in Bulgaria.

Burger, chips and a beer

Some graffiti

Too early, as usual

A lovely late afternoon sky

Stephen Troch and band rocking away

Quite a large crowd came to see them

Arty reflections

I was pretty much taken up with going to work, coming home and relaxing for the first part of the week but on Thursday there was an event I wanted to go to; part of the annual Mechelen Summer festivities. I headed out after work and was a little early when I got to the park so I strolled across town and got myself a burger and fries at the same restaurant as I went to before; it was very nice, though very slightly overdone this time. Aftewards I went back to the park and found it was starting to fill up so I settled in a corner with my book and read until the main music came on. It really was a lovely late afternoon and the crowds packed in to enjoy the sounds of the Stephen Troch Band, high quality blues music including a large proportion of original tunes. I took a couple of videos while watching as it was so good - the second one I wished I'd caught the beginning as the guitarist's slide was awesome! I got a bit tired, and was aware that the next morning I had to do a full clean of the house as it was my last day, so I headed home a bit early, stopping for a snap of the church reflected in the river, and then smiling about ten minutes after I reached the house as the heavens opened and there was a torrential downpour that I just managed to miss.

Moving on

As the previous paragraph notes I had come to the end of my time in my first AirBNB so I tidied and cleaned and packed and got myself out of the house to walk to work carrying three very heavy bags; I was glad it wasn't a long journey.

Saying goodbye to my first accommodation

Doesn't quite fit back in its bag

Yet another burger

Welcome to my new house

Trusty singlespeed bicycle

Looking out onto the garden

Before I left I got a picture looking at the building that I'd spent 12 days quite happily staying in; it wasn't perfect but the things to complain about (the mosquitoes, some of the noise from the street at night) were small things and I sorted the mosquito problem perfectly with the net I bought. That turned out to be a pretty standard nightmare to try and pack down and I only just managed to get it in as good as the picture shows; it was good enough though. I made it to work without causing myself a major injury which is a minor miracle in itself. At lunch we had a team meal and we walked across town and ended up, you guessed it, at the same restaurant as I was at the night before. At least I knew to specify I didn't want my burger "well done" and it was better this time. So it came to the end of the day and I'd failed in my task of contacting and booking a taxi (not even the receptionist in my office had been able to get a taxi company to answer the phone - bizarre) so I walked to the train station taxi rank, struggling with the bike I'd borrowed from my lovely colleague Cis as well as all my bags, and wouldn't you know it but just as I walked up a big van cab arrived and he was able to fit everything in and drive me to my new place. And what a place. It said it was a cottage in the grounds of a castle and it was amazing. A lot more run down than the first location but huge and interesting and comfortable and just what I need. The garden is pretty special too. I did a walk around video which is worth looking at - I'm quite proud of it if I say so myself.

The biggest steak in the world, maybe

A bunny on the lawn

Chickens that run around all day

A peek at the main house

Gorgeous roses by my patio

Beautiful flowers

A wall of colour

Stunning bloom again

Huge linden trees in the park

A large orchard - I am jealous

Tennis courts - I couldn't see a way in though

The grand parade - what a thing!

Looking back towards the house past the pool

I love shady arbors like this

I settled in quite quickly, heading out to find the shops on my bike on Friday evening and then going again Saturday morning. It turned out to not be as far to things as I'd thought while sat in the taxi. I picked up some awesome meat from Carrefour so on Friday I cooked the massive Irish steak with new spuds and mushrooms on the side; awesome and then sat and watched the wildlife on the lawn while sipping a beer; not a bad evening. I had an event to get to on Saturday afternoon so after I got back from my shopping trip I decided to take a walk around the grounds of this place and get some pictures. I spent about twenty minutes or so strolling around and found a load of cool things, the gardens are well maintained and the flowers are beautiful, and there are so many old trees including some huge "tea tree" lindens that really remind me of home. I don't think I get to use the pool (not that I'd want to in the weather we're seeing) which is a shame but still - it's nice that it is there.

Two euro for this

The sponsors of the races

During the first race, a competitor shoots past

The sign by where I was stood

Winners of the first race pass the finish line

Clouds gather, threatening rain. They weren't faking either

Young cyclists negotiate the obstacle course

One of the sponsors handing out helium balloons...

... which obviously immediately filled the sky

My plans for Saturday afternoon were to cycle into town to watch a bike race occurring through the centre of Mechelen which would also have the added benefit of giving me the chance of seeing how long the ride to town would take. As it turned out it was only about 20 or 25 minutes which was great. I settled myself down with a beer (or three, actually) and my book as of course I was very early and then when the racing started up I went and took my position about 20m short of the finish line. I stayed here for the next five hours barely moving. It was an experience and I'm glad I went but I probably wouldn't bother again. The first race was an amateur one with a relay type thing going on where I think the team had to complete a set number of laps of the course, carrying a water bottle as a baton. The team which won were about the only ones who looked like cyclists, which is hardly surprising. After this there was a lengthy interlude while the youth cyclists from the town did a few laps of the course, made more challenging for them by the coaches putting out cones and hoops that they had to steer around. There was only one catastrophe but the little girl who fell off brushed herself off and kept going. The threatening clouds that ended up dropping some rain didn't help on the cobbles. Once this was completed there were some sponsors giving things out (sweets, hats and these balloons) and not long after that the sky was full of the balloons drifting off to pollute someone else's back yard.

Giacomo Nizzolo and Sep Vanmarcke presented to the crowd

John Degenkolb and the local favourite Thomas De Gendt

Thomas De Gendt signs in. Literally

The lucky local lad with a slightly shy Thomas De Gendt

And they are off, finally

After all this build up it was getting close to the time for the main race where a few top riders were going to compete including some that I'd just watched cycling in Le Tour. They started announcing the lesser riders, bringing them on stage to sign in on the big board, and then wishing them luck but this effect was spoiled slightly by the Big Four being paraded past, which obviously got everyone's attention and distracted completely from the presentation of several of their less well known peers. No matter, these famous ones were soon enough on stage being interviewed and signing in for themselves and then there was a lot of milling around as the youth riders, still in their gear after their previous efforts, lined up and were paired with a pro rider. I thought this was a really nice touch as all the pros were talking to the kids (though Thomas De Gendt was obviously the shyest, though he was billed Number One of them all. Once everyone was ready they started sending each pair around the circuit once, a useful warm up for the professionals and the chance of a lifetime for the kids who, when they came back to the finish line, sprinted all out to "beat" their partner and obviously managed to in almost all cases. A few more minutes of milling around and then all the main competitors gathered in a bunch by the start line and were sent on their way by a gun shot.

The early leaders come round the final corner

About thirty seconds behind them was the peleton

The final moment of the race, John Degenkolb pipping it

The format of the race was multiple laps of the circuit with three intermediate sprints and then a final sprint for the overall winner. It was good because they went fast and so the laps were over quickly so there wasn't as much waiting around as for the earlier races. There were also lots of laps, eight between each intermediate and then before the end, which gave good value. I kept my place and didn't take all that many pictures as it was tough to get any good angles. I did get a couple of videos which I've spliced together into the short one above. I was getting sore legs and stiffening up by the time they entered the final lap and the town cryer banged her bell for all she was worth. It was an exciting final couple of seconds but the locals were left disappointed as John Degenkolb pipped Thomas De Gendt on the line. The gulf in class between Le Tour riders and the rest was clear - the five top riders rode away from the rest of the field over the final 12km and it was never in any doubt that the winner would be one of them. I didn't bother hanging around for the presentation as I was feeling tired and had to cycle home and when I got back there was time for a quick cuppa before bed. All in all a very good day indeed.

Cobwebs around the brakes on the bike

A very simple lighting system

Raining on Sunday afternoon

Not long after the sun came back out

A warm spot with a cold beer

Cheeky poultry trying to get inside

Sunday's roast - chicken

Tuesday's roast - pork

More rabbits on the lawn

Sunday I had a super relaxed day and didn't go out at all other than to get some rolls from the local bakers for lunch. The bike I've been lent has been such a good thing for me; not only was it so much simpler than having to go and buy one for a short time, but it's really solid and reliable, if a bit cobwebby and old. The dynamo system works well and once I got the tyres fully inflated it's easy to ride. Anyway I played some of my game on Sunday and then went to sit outside in the sun with a beer but very quickly some clouds moved in and it rained heavily for a short time before clearing again so out I went once more with my beer. The chickens that live here and very friendly and come over to see me but I shut the doors when they made a move to actually come inside. Dinner was roast chicken with roast spuds and carrots and mushrooms and onions and was lovely. And so the weekend finished and I went to work and found the cycle in not a problem at all and the cycle back only mildly irritating, particularly today as it was raining and the wind was in my face. I'd gotten into town on Saturday before the race and managed to get a waterproof jacket and some cycling shorts which makes this cycling thing much easier. This evening was another roast, this time pork (sadly I slightly overdid it). The wildlife hasn't been put off by the bad weather and I've been sat here typing away watching chickens and rabbits on the lawn. Delightful.

And so there you have it; a rather longer update than I expected but then I had more photographs than I thought I'd taken. It's been an OK week, if you ignore the fact that every part of me wants to be back at home with A in Bulgaria, but if I have to be away I'd rather be in a large house in the country. One final thing to mention and link to is an EXCELLENT website for learning languages (obviously A and I are doing this with Bulgarian but other languages are available) which I've now added to my daily routine. It's not only helping me with words but teaching me to spell them as well - a skill that I am pathetically bad at when you think that I've lived in the country for two years. I cannot recommend it highly enough if you are looking to learn a language.

And finally, to reward you for reading ALL that! What was the reason behind the title of this blog? Well I bought a kettle for the office as their hot water dispenser was not hot enough for real tea and then I arrived at this new place to find no kettle so in the past week I've bought two kettles. So there you are.