The Sunday before last I headed to London to catch the Eurostar to Belgium. It was my first time traveling on the Eurostar and my first time visiting Belgium, so I was rather excited.
I took this trip as I was one of the 35 young people, out of others from The UK, Germany and Denmark, who had been selected to take part in the Make Film, Make History project with The Imperial War Museum and in collaboration with the Goethe-Institut (Germany), Mosede Fort (Denmark) and Chocolate Films (London).
The three day trip was spent in Ypres. Between attending workshops, we were took on tours of the place, as well as having time to roam around freely, whilst we took it upon ourselves to spend the evenings productively, sampling the Belgian beer.
I’d never before seen such a clean and quiet town. I had remarked early on in the trip how it felt like a show town and then later I found out that the whole of Ypres had been destroyed during The First World War, then rebuilt again afterwards to look the same. It was quite a beautiful place to explore but I must say it did have a sort of eerie calm about the place. Maybe I’m just more attuned to a busy bustling city. Either way, I really enjoyed my time there and actually felt like one extra day on the trip would have been nice. I was certainly in great company and I’m happy to say that the whole group got on really well and we had such a laugh together.
In Flanders Frields Museum
Menin Gate Mamorial entrance
The names of over fifty thousand missing soldiers who were killed in Ypres during World War I, marked on the walls of the Menin Gate Memorial
Menin Gate Memorial
St Martin’s Cathedral
A view of the Cathedral from Astrid Park
Buildings along Surmont De Volsbergestraat
The Last Post Ceremony at Menin Gate Mamorial, which takes place every night at 8Pm
Il Gusto D’Italia Waffles and Ice Cream shop
Some of the guys from the group waiting for their Belgian waffles and ice cream before heading home
My delicious Belgian waffle with Nutella spread and Snickers ice cream
Overlooking Astrid Park
I always love exploring parts of Europe that I’ve never been to before. It’s certainly got me eager to plan my next trip. Which European city or town would you love to visit?