This blog continues the previous Part 28,
https://gerdiwanninger.blogspot.com/2018/10/fighting-cobbles-my-trip-to-belgium-in_17.html
https://gerdiwanninger.blogspot.com/2018/10/fighting-cobbles-my-trip-to-belgium-in_17.html
Thursday, June 28, 2018
'People who wander are nicer to be with. Movement militates against hoarding possessions and against bigotry, because you are constantly moving across boundaries and having to negotiate with people.'
Robyn Davidson, Australian writer
Most historical towns in Europe are designed
in a very similar fashion; the oldest part is an island, governments protect
the building, on the outside nothing can be remodeled in a different way than
the previous version. Unlike the USA this let European towns stay the way they were
even some several hundred years ago. In Germany
some cities even rebuilt the city centers as
they have been before being bombed thru the II. Word
War. Wavre in Belgium is no exception to this rule. Once leaving the
historical town center I was faced with the modern amenity: the car. I
left the quiet and peaceful town behind me and had to cross a very busy road
right in front of me.
The road I chose was the Chaussée de
Namur. The wide road was leading me uphill, between some houses I slowly
passed the first companies. One interesting was Vanesse
Moto Kawasaki Wavre, a dealer of motorcycles.
The
1970s was the pinnacle of the superbikes;
when the Japanese big four manufacturers tried to topple each other with bigger & faster machines. The Honda CB 750 four started it all, later
followed by the Kawasaki Z1, the original Honda Gold Wing, Suzuki GS 1000
etc. In the window of this dealer was a brand new Kawasaki Z 900 RS Cafe Racer,
a homage to the original Z1 in the 1970s when this motorcycle was a dream in design
and performance.
 |
Window of a Kawaski
Candy Dealer with the Shadow of a Tourist watching...
|
 |
Highway A4 near Wavre
|
After this bridge I came to a fire station. When I stopped for a moment to take a photo from the outside of
the building a window was opened and two guys invited me in to take some
photos inside the building.
I followed their invitation and walked with my sports bag on wheel
in the fire station and took some photos of the fire trucks and equipment. As I walked outside the 'chief'
opened a glass window and talked to me while other firefighters had some fun in the background.
As a clearly identified tourist the fire
chief asked where I come from. He told me that he went to Stuttgart several
times for training and handover of new fire trucks. Some of their trucks are based on Mercedes
Benz vehicles but made by a company called Ziegler, a German manufacturer specialized in firetrucks and equipment. He
told me that they are not very busy fighting fires but worried about the dry
weather and the heat - a great source of field fires. After a photo and
some laughs it was time to continue.  |
Wavre Fire Station -
My Salute to those
Men and Women risking their Life protecting and saving Others!
|
After I left the fire station I came to a
forest. Just when I arrived it at the intersection I've noticed a group of bike
riders with two real police men riding on bicycles in the front of a group. They led a class of students on a
bike tour.
Passing the forest I came to the industrial area in a
distance but still a part of the city of Wavre. The road was lined with
different companies like plumbers and, not surprisingly, lined with some car
dealers. One of them was a Ferrari Dealer, Francorchamps Motors Brussels. I crossed the road and checked
it out. I was surprised to see so many Italian sports car lined under the open
sky without any protection except yellow flags with the 'Prancing Horse' over
large 'FERRARI' letters waving over them. I was also surprised that, while
I was checking out the cars, no one came out, no one tried to hinder me or did
something I would associate with an 'attack of arrogant behavior' which is
very common in the the Far East.
Once I wanted
to open the door of a limited edition of a AMG C-Class in a Mercedes Benz car
dealership in Taipei/Taiwan. It was locked and the sales man hurried over just to tell me that it could
be opened for 'serious' buyers!
It looks like in Belgium even Ferrari dealers are humans, a good news for tourists like me. One salesman
even waved behind his office chair towards me while I took pictures of his beloved cars. I am convinced he
would invite me for an Italian Espresso if I would dare to ask...
 |
‘Open’ Ferrari Dealership with a Tourist in a Window South-West of Wavre
|
(to be continued@
https://gerdiwanninger.blogspot.com/2018/11/fighting-cobbles-my-trip-to-belgium-in.html)
https://gerdiwanninger.blogspot.com/2018/11/fighting-cobbles-my-trip-to-belgium-in.html)
Disclaimer: I traveled Belgium by myself, I am not sponsored by anyone. Interested subscribers and/or followers in traveling an in this small but beautiful country are more than welcome!
If not convenient to subscribe on Blogger.com, I've started my own homepage @ https://gerhardwanninger.wixsite.com/travel
No comments:
Post a Comment