Today, all kind of monuments in Flanders are open to the public - also those which normally aren't. The second weekend of September is traditionally the one in which this monument day is organised. Last year though, it was cancelled due to corona. But now that more than 70% of the population has been fully vaccinated, more is possible.
Flanders is full of historical buildings, having had a rich history. We started of as the County of Flanders, with a Count as the ruler. Then, through marriages, we became part of the Duchy of Burgundy. Later on we became part of the Austrian Habsburg empire, then after the French Revolution we became part of France and finally we belonged to the German Reich. But Flanders has always kept it's own identity; that of hardworking people who nevertheless enjoy life with good food and drink. That's why we have the historical towns of Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, Leuven and Brussels. All worth a visit. Even the town where I live dates back to the times before the Romans. Dendermonde was a medieval burgh, surrounded by walls and in possession of a town charter.
During the lockdown periods, when we couldn't travel abroad, a stay at one of our historical cities was the best we could do. Our favorite is Antwerpen - perhaps a bit prejudiced, because our grandmother was born there! And Bruges, as it is near to the coast and it only takes a train ride of 10 minutes to be there. And lately we are discovering Brussels as well, next to Hasselt.
The coming weekends we'll be in Antwerpen and Brussels for another time. We're going to attend a concert in Antwerp. We'll need our Covid Safe Pass for that, but then you can be inside without having to wear a face mask. I'm all into favor for showing such a pass to gain entry to say, a restaurant, a concert, a show, etc. People who refuse to have a vaccination put themselves in a difficult situation, having to show test results when they want to go somewhere. But that's their own choice, right?
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