The Castle of Beersel was built by Godefroid de Hellebeke in the 13th century for the purpose of defending Brussels and Brabant from Flanders. It’s one of few remaining examples in Belgium of a military fortress from the Middle Ages.
The Castle Marnix de Saint-Aldegonde dates all the way back to the ninth century This striking, fortified castle was first built on the banks of the Old Scheldt River and served as considerable protection against invading Normans. But the stronghold was lost when the river switched its course in the 13th century.
The town of Laarne lies just east of Ghent and is home to Castle Laarne, one of the most well preserved, feudal water castles in Belgium. In the early 1600s, Laarne and the adjacent village of Kalken were the sites of witch hunts. Several accused witches were imprisoned in the keep of the castle, where they were interrogated and tortured. Four of these were later burned at the stake.
The provincial park De Schorre tends to get overlooked in favour of its flashier rec rival to the north, Rivierenhof. But with De Schorre’s central location, open-air concerts and adventure sports, this little park really packs a punch.
We’ve checked out a great number and discovered that visiting the insides of these monumental structures is only half the advantage. The grounds and surrounding areas of castles are often gorgeous landscapes. For the next five weeks, we’ll explore the beauty around one castle in each of Flanders’ five provinces, by foot or bike. We begin this week in Limburg.
And a diverse range of scenery it is. We’ve taken you through orchards, farms, forests and heath. We’ve traversed flatlands, rolling hills and engaging villages. Our Limburg biking series comes to a close this week in Lommel, a municipality in the far, northwest corner of the province that’s known as the Natuurstad van Vlaanderen (Nature City of Flanders). And with this ride, I think it’s safe to say that we’ve confirmed Limburg’s claim as a fietsparadijs (cycling paradise).
For the second edition of our series on biking in Limburg, we invite you to put down your frietjes, dear reader, and get out to explore Belgium’s one and only national park by means of its most cherished pastime – cycling.
The Hoge Kempen National Park, established in 2006, is a magnificent expanse of 5,000 hectares of forest and heath land between Genk and the Meuse Valley. It is truly a green oasis, as the land around the park is densely populated and industrial.
This year Limburg celebrates its 15th anniversary as a self-proclaimed fietsparadijs (cycling paradise) with a host of inspired activities and new, themed routes.
We know that most of you think of Limburg as being a far-off place, with no big city and no important monuments. What Limburg has is a wondrous diversity of nature and some of the most charming small towns in the country. In fact, Limburg is literally oozing with charm.
Bokrijk is a 550-hectare park that lies just west of Genk. Count Arnold IV originally owned the estate but in 1252 passed it on to the Cistercian nuns of the Herckenrode Abbey. The nuns cultivated and leased the land to tenant farmers for centuries.
An is a petite and unassuming woman. As she tells it, brewing was an easy choice; she was born into it. An only child immersed in brewing culture, she grew up wanting to be a brewer, much to her father’s chagrin.
“At that time, 30 years ago, for a girl to study as a brewer just wasn’t done,” she admits. Her father’s attempts to dissuade her from the field only reinforced her desire. “That was a good guarantee,” she says. “When a parent tells a child they can’t do something, the child will do it.”
Flanders Today is a 
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