BELGIUM – 21st to 23rd June
Not on Garmin GPS:
Eersel to Brussels (110km)
My last day of cycling took me over the border and on to Brussels via Leuven, where I had planned to grab a shower to make myself a bit more respectable before meeting up with my cousin Peter and his wife Nikki. In the end I gave up on the shower idea and appeared at their pristine city centre apartment in all my cycling and wild camping glory. I must have made an impression because they were only too happy for me to jump straight in the shower, after which we had a tasty home-cooked dinner while catching up on news; sharing my cycling and Nikki’s pregnancy stories.
I spent my last day enjoying the sunshine, exploring Brussels and trying to curb my ridiculous cycling appetite while coming to terms with the end of the adventure. Another night of being spoilt by Peter’s cooking, and comparing the European / Belgium lifestyle with the UK’s, and I was officially exhausted. My legs were knackered, my backside had developed a thick protective hide and my knees creaked each time I sat down.
Home beckoned but it was with mixed emotions that I boarded the Eurostar train back to St Pancras the next day, looking forward to the connecting train journey that would take me back home to Sheffield after a few hours welcome catch-up with my dad in the London sunshine.
