A BREAK FROM THE RAIN AND COLD

At least the weather here in Belgium has not been as bad as in Somerset. We have pouring rain, and violent wind storms, roofs removed not far from here but nothing  like the floods back home.

There has been some activity in the studio but things don't go so well. Lack of confidence to paint big? perhaps I shall blog on that later.

But my little sketch books keep purring!
Last week there was a lovely day trip (shopping with "the girls"!) to Holland, (Terneuzen in Zeeland) -  a blog is gestating  on that and there are already two drawings on Urban Sketchers Flikr. look  HERE

This week we had a trip to Veurne, a town in the S/W hoek of the country, near the coast almost into France.   We had been given a hotel voucher a while back and used it for somewhere we had not been before and where we could travel by train.

What a lovely little city! It's an old once fortified port, now a few kilometres inland, which traded with England in the 12th C.  Maybe a bit "gentrified", certainly not a cheap place to live but beautiful. Cobbled streets, good restaurants, amazing church of Sint Walburga, brick gothic and so lofty, with someone learning Bach  on the organ and, from another tower beside the Grote Markt   the carillon of St Niklaas rang through the streets.

We stayed in a really intriguing hotel,  de Loft  , adapted from a former industrial building.  A nice simple industrial aesthetic, galvanised doors and windows, painted brick work but so stylish and so very cosy and friendly - I want to go again!

It was cold and grey outside but the hotel was warm and snug and Lutje, having  mastered the WiFi code, was happy with her iPad for a while whilst I drew.

Standing at the window i could see yellow brick houses and a bar

and sitting and looking up at the window the skyline of stepped gables was amazing (the lower part of the window was obscured )

Our cold wind blasted sight seeing walk around the town produced a coffee, with Advocaat thrown in, and the best waffel ever!!

And later still  a HUGE hunk of delicious varkensvlees en frietjes and two glasses of St Bernardus bier made for an interesting night!