Namur
On nearing Namur, we spotted “Maria of Zaandam” on the AIS and phoned Tim and Jo to see if there was likely to be space for us to moor – that worked out well, and on their advice we picked up the last mooring slot.  “Esme” and “Passe Lagom” were also there and so we were mobbed with support to moor up. They had all been there for a few days and were getting ready to move on but we elected to stay in Namur for a week and paid 63 euros for the pleasure.
A bit of local knowledge – Namur is at the junction of the Sambre and the Meuse and has always been of strategic importance. The rocky outcrop at the junction has seen the development of significant fortifications over the centuries, looming large over the city and surrounding countryside.
As we entered down the Sambre, the walls towered above us —>Â 
 
One of our objectives while we were in Namur was to identify somewhere to leave Shensi for a week or so in July when we would be back in the UK, but it seemed that Namur, although a great location, was not going to be that secure; Tim suggested Waulsort, further along the Meuse and closer to the French border. He and Jo were heading that way soon and promised to let us know what it was like. In the meantime I thought that I might as well return to Bruges and collect the car.
Although we had used public transport a bit, this was the first long distance trip, a journey of some two hours on the train travelling all the way across Belgium and all at a senior rate of 6.50 euros – unbelievable especially bearing in mind that it was a return ticket (even though I was only going one way).
Having recovered the car to Namur, we then decided to drive down to Waulsort and check it out for ourselves. Talk about a sleepy town, no shops at all although we did eventually find a small cafe/restaurant in the back streets.
The mooring there looked very good with plenty of space, in fact “Esme” had just arrived. The mooring is on the far bank and only accessible by a chain ferry, actually a boat on a chain being pulled across by hand – some workout for the boatman!
We elected to leave the car there and catch the bus back, and by chance, whilst waiting for the bus, we met Chris and Diana who had just popped over to the village side of the river, so we stopped and chatted for a few minutes until the bus arrived. The fare was a standard rate of 3.50 euros each and I believed it was taking us direct to Namur, but unfortunately it terminated at Dinant and we then had to catch the train. This time it did not feel so good paying 6.50 euros each for a 30 minute train ride.
Whilst I had been picking up the car, “Elysium” with Len and Diane had arrived. An evening get together was quickly arranged and Len regaled us with stories of his colourful past. Again a bit too much to drink but we did make it back to our own boat at the end of the evening.
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Our view up and down the river was quite cool. Any commercial traffic had very little impact but it was a big open space and sometimes it got quite windy due to the exposure …… by far the biggest problem was the World Cup activities with the Belgium team on a winning streak, everyone could get quite vocal at times.
Overlooking Namur is a huge imposing citadel, a fortification dating in places from the 15th century – it really was an incredible sight with lots of interest.  
 We walked around the fortifications a few times as it was a great place to walk the dogs.  A really steep climb up from our mooring but the views were stunning.  There was a land train excursion around the grounds which we decided to have a go on, but it proved very uncomfortable over the cobbled stones – you felt like all your fillings were about to shake loose – and after that we took a guided tour of the tunnels beneath the citadel.  That was excellent and very well presented with graphics and commentary from our lovely guide. It was only 500 meters of the full 8 kilometres of tunnels under the fortifications but that still took well over an hour.
For our last day at Namur, we caught the train to Brussels and spent an exhausting few hours wandering around and visiting a few sights. No doubt we will do a lot more later.
