I am still writing from Belgium where I am visiting with Irma, Karel and my granddaughter Kiana, and enjoying it immensely. The people I have met so far are so nice, and I really enjoy to visit with Karel's parents.
For the first few weeks I had been able to squash Irma's wish for us to cycle all over Belgium on bicycles, but they all kept on about how nice it would be, and they had specially borrowed a bicycle for me, and bla, bla, bla they went, until one day I said yes, as I was beginning to feel like a real coward.
So with Irma leading, I put both my courage and my balance on the line, as the cobbled streets in Hamme are so narrow, with car's parked all over, leaving just enough space for a biggish mouse to get through. Well, a smallish car then! So the two of us set off to the Durme river to pick some more brambles and elderberries.
I was going on real well, at least both bicycle and self stayed upright, and I was just starting to enjoy the ride, with the cool wind blowing through my hair and onto my face, when I noticed a car coming at full speed from the front, and heard one coming from the back! Enough to put the fear of hell into me, and my back immediately went as stiff as a ramrod, and that is when the bicycle started wobbling! So I jumped off! Irma was okay waiting for me, but the poor motorist from the back who had to put on his breaks quite heavily, did look a bitty shaken!
The thing is, here in Belgium cyclists have right of way, and apparently a motorist is in big trouble if he so much as touch the cyclist, who to my thinking, are sometimes way to arrogant, crossing and joining a road with little concern for the cars. But, Irma explained, all I had to do was to keep on going, as the cars had to give me the right of way, always!
But we made it to the banks of the Durme, and found another load of berries, and it was absolutely wonderful to cycle around there, as there was a small tarred path running all the way to Waasmunster, with sheep watching interestedly from brhind their eletrified fences. Too soon we had to go back, but this time I felt more relaxed cycling on the narrow roads, and made it safely back to to the kids's house.
Irma started immediately on making the bramble jam, while I sat stripping the elderberries, as they are small, growing in clumps. Oh, it was such a nice feeling to watch the jams and syrups take on their sticky, jam consistencies, and I thought about my own country where there was no place to pick wild berries, and as a matter of fact, no wild berries, to pick. I have brambles on my homestead, but it is not safe for women, or a small party to just walk in the wilds looking for berries.
That day we noticed that the walnuts growing all along the path and up to Waasmunster, were almost ready to pick, but the many broken branches meant that people were already picking, although apparently one had to wait until the fruit drop off! We decided to come back after the week-end and see if we could harvest some.