Lier, Belgium

The month of September has been an enjoyable one with the arrival of GM and GP from California. The girls are overjoyed that GM and GP are staying with us and are enjoying every minute with them (as are we).

While the girls are in school and Ray is at work, my parents and I have been busy taking in the sights of Belgium. We recently enjoyed a day-trip to the town of Lier. A small, charming and beautiful town located south of Antwerp along the river Nete, part of this town's appeal is its lack of mass tourism.

We first stopped at Zimmer Tower, which houses the Jubilee Clock. Displayed on the front of the tower, it was built by watchmaker and astronomer Louis Zimmer. This amazing clock consists of 12 clocks encircling a central one with 57 dials. These clocks show time on all continents, phases of the moons, times of tides and many other periodic phenomena. We were able to tour the inside of tower where we viewed the mechanisms that operate the clock.

In addition, a pavilion next to the tower houses Zimmer's masterpiece, "The Wonderclock". Without going into the detailed facts about the Wonderclock, let's just say that it is appropriately named and was impressive enough to intrigue Albert Einstein.

After leaving Zimmer Tower, we headed out on foot to the beguinage of Lier. This community, dating back to the 13th century, used to consist of women who would live like nuns, but without taking vows. The entire beguinage has a total of 162 houses, spread over eleven streets. The beautiful Saint Margaret Church is located here.

We stopped for sandwiches at the Grote Markt and enjoyed the view of the surrounding Guild Houses and Rococo Town Hall. Here we sampled the Lierse Vlaaikens (cakes of Lier). Only bakers in Lier have the recipe and they cannot reveal its "secret ingredient". I tested this theory by asking the baker what was inside, in which she replied, "it's a secret." They are the size of a mini muffin and tasted what we think, is pumpkin. I heard that you either like it or don't. Let's just say that I'm glad we tried it.

Our last stop was Saint Gummarus church of Lier, which is said to be one of the most impressive gothic churches in Northern Belgium. The eye-catcher is the splendid late-gothic rood loft in the church, which is almost unique in Belgium.

Our leisurely and relaxing day in Lier ended as we had to head back to Tervuren to pick up the kiddo's. This town is one that I'd definitely recommend visiting.