We are in Oudenaarde. We are not really supposed to be in Oudenaarde. Our planned route was supposed to take us to Kortrijk, but remember a few posts ago I talked about not being able to find a hotel room in Kortrijk? Instead of riding 50 km to Kortrijk we decided to ride 30 km to Oudenaarde. Why Oudenaarde?
When we first started researching this trip, one of us stumbled on the Leopold Hotel, in Oudenaarde. It advertises itself as a cycling hotel. We were both intrigued and we filed the info away. Through the planning of our trip, the Leopold would pop up occasionally and we would still be intrigued. When our final route was set, we were not stopping in Oudenaarde.
Until a few days ago when we couldn’t go to Kortrijk, we decided to go to Oudenaarde. What the heck! Let’s do it! Let’s stay at the Leopold! So, today we ride shorter than planned and tomorrow’s ride into Bruges is longer than planned.
The weather networks are forecasting very high wind gusts (50kph) today, so we are on the road by 8:30 to try to avoid the worst wind. It is chilly and we both have tights on and I have my gloves on. The ride out of Ghent is the best exit of a city that we have had. We ride against the flow of the commuter bikes. The ride takes us along the rail line and then along a canal.
We make Oudenaarde by 10:30! Oudenaarde is small, but still has a massive church, grote markt and stadhuis. This area is well known for its cycling routes and riding atmosphere. The Tour of Flanders usually finishes in Oudenaarde so Murray walks down the highway to where the finish line usually is.
Yesterday, in Ghent, we stopped in to a bike shop and chatted with a fellow. He mentioned that some e-bikes can travel at 45 kph and these bikes must have a license. We have been passed by these speed demons on the bike paths and have wondered about the licenses. My opinion is that these bikes should not be allowed on bike paths, their speed is just too fast for safety.
A story from Brussels that I forgot to mention. We ate at a sushi restaurant and as we were paying our bill, the server asked us where we were from. Murray said “Guess”, and he guessed Canada. Murray said “How did you know?” and the server said “You are very quiet! Americans are so loud.”