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Part 1:
There is a ride I like at my old stomping grounds in western Germany that lets you ride through parts of 4 different countries in a couple of hours. It’s really kind of a stunt as you’re not really going anywhere but just looping around Luxembourg collecting border crossings. Still, it’s kind of fun to be able to say you’ve ridden through four countries in two hours. I decided that I’d try to top the old ride by adding Holland to the country count and shoot for five countries. So, on Thursday I rode the 320 miles from my home in Vilseck near the Czech border to Spangdahlem AB near the French and Belgian border. I planned to make the ride on Friday.
I started the ride at my old home base in the Eifel region. This old friend seemed to be an apt starting point next to the big concrete avionics bunker I used to work at.
Annnnd we’re off at 1027 hrs on an overcast Friday morning.
And by 1102 we’re here crossing into Lux near Trier.
Riding across Luxembourg to Lux City past the airport and near the American military cemetery where Patton and about 5000 other GIs are buried I turned south towards Thionville and France crossing into France about 1130.
Once into France I turned northwest heading towards Longwy on the border with Belgium. Oddly enough, as soon as I entered France the sun came out. That seemed like some sort of omen but just what it meant was more than I could figure out. I was sticking to smaller two lane roads when I could and the Ardennes was looking very good indeed with the trees alive with colour.
This is a small town near Longwy.
Once I entered Longwy I thought I’d get some lunch. I was looking for some quick road food like a German imbiss or Japanese yakitori stand. There used to be road side friteries everywhere but I didn’t see any around there. I ended up at a (shudder) McDonalds and hoped that like the German ones it would have a good coffee shop built in. I never found out. When I got to the McD’s it was so crowded with French folks that you couldn’t even see the counter. I muttered out loud “so much for that idea” and a Frenchman sitting at a table laughed and said, “So, Americans don’t actually eat at these places?” I told him that, “No, not if we have to wait very long.” So I hit the road again for Belgium.
Here’s the fourth country, Belgium, in a little over two hours, crossing over at about 1245.
Once in Belgium I headed north towards Liege and lost the sunshine. It must have been a good day to be French I guess. On the way I passed a lot of places that struck loud chords in my memory, both personal memories and historical ones. I passed the town of Bastogne where the US paratroopers made their stand and Gen. McAuliffe replied to the Germans “Nuts!” when called upon to surrender. I passed St. Vith and Malmedy where the SS massacred their GI prisoners. I also passed through Spa-Francorchamps where the famous racetrack is and where back in the '70's my wife Rose and I used to ride to have pomme frites at the friterie there. The Belgians still make the best french fries on the planet, served in large paper cones and flavored with mayo, not ketchup.
I rolled into Liege about 1415 and headed towards the big new TGV train station where rumour had it a new Starbucks had opened. Liege is a pretty big industrial city and getting through town was easier than I remembered but still time consuming. Made it to the station and hid the Bandit behind a snack bar across the street. Had a quick bite to eat and then headed to the station for the big cup of coffee. I also picked up the mugs for Liege and Belgium to add to my collection.
I had fun chatting with the young fellas behind the counter who seemed happy to hear I was from Tennessee. After the coffee I wandered around the station taking photos for a little bit but pretty soon I needed to get back on the road. Next stop…Maastricht in Holland.
part 2 next:
There is a ride I like at my old stomping grounds in western Germany that lets you ride through parts of 4 different countries in a couple of hours. It’s really kind of a stunt as you’re not really going anywhere but just looping around Luxembourg collecting border crossings. Still, it’s kind of fun to be able to say you’ve ridden through four countries in two hours. I decided that I’d try to top the old ride by adding Holland to the country count and shoot for five countries. So, on Thursday I rode the 320 miles from my home in Vilseck near the Czech border to Spangdahlem AB near the French and Belgian border. I planned to make the ride on Friday.
I started the ride at my old home base in the Eifel region. This old friend seemed to be an apt starting point next to the big concrete avionics bunker I used to work at.
Annnnd we’re off at 1027 hrs on an overcast Friday morning.
And by 1102 we’re here crossing into Lux near Trier.
Riding across Luxembourg to Lux City past the airport and near the American military cemetery where Patton and about 5000 other GIs are buried I turned south towards Thionville and France crossing into France about 1130.
Once into France I turned northwest heading towards Longwy on the border with Belgium. Oddly enough, as soon as I entered France the sun came out. That seemed like some sort of omen but just what it meant was more than I could figure out. I was sticking to smaller two lane roads when I could and the Ardennes was looking very good indeed with the trees alive with colour.
This is a small town near Longwy.
Once I entered Longwy I thought I’d get some lunch. I was looking for some quick road food like a German imbiss or Japanese yakitori stand. There used to be road side friteries everywhere but I didn’t see any around there. I ended up at a (shudder) McDonalds and hoped that like the German ones it would have a good coffee shop built in. I never found out. When I got to the McD’s it was so crowded with French folks that you couldn’t even see the counter. I muttered out loud “so much for that idea” and a Frenchman sitting at a table laughed and said, “So, Americans don’t actually eat at these places?” I told him that, “No, not if we have to wait very long.” So I hit the road again for Belgium.
Here’s the fourth country, Belgium, in a little over two hours, crossing over at about 1245.
Once in Belgium I headed north towards Liege and lost the sunshine. It must have been a good day to be French I guess. On the way I passed a lot of places that struck loud chords in my memory, both personal memories and historical ones. I passed the town of Bastogne where the US paratroopers made their stand and Gen. McAuliffe replied to the Germans “Nuts!” when called upon to surrender. I passed St. Vith and Malmedy where the SS massacred their GI prisoners. I also passed through Spa-Francorchamps where the famous racetrack is and where back in the '70's my wife Rose and I used to ride to have pomme frites at the friterie there. The Belgians still make the best french fries on the planet, served in large paper cones and flavored with mayo, not ketchup.
I rolled into Liege about 1415 and headed towards the big new TGV train station where rumour had it a new Starbucks had opened. Liege is a pretty big industrial city and getting through town was easier than I remembered but still time consuming. Made it to the station and hid the Bandit behind a snack bar across the street. Had a quick bite to eat and then headed to the station for the big cup of coffee. I also picked up the mugs for Liege and Belgium to add to my collection.
I had fun chatting with the young fellas behind the counter who seemed happy to hear I was from Tennessee. After the coffee I wandered around the station taking photos for a little bit but pretty soon I needed to get back on the road. Next stop…Maastricht in Holland.
part 2 next:
) It's time to go see what the USA looks like and spend time with the grandlings. I bought a rolling Bandit chassis so I'll be shipping the Japanese spec old Bandit in these pics home in parts to be assembled on the Tennessee titled frame.
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