On the fast track to Belgium and Holland.
We have one lone day to cover a lot of territory, so we chose the TGV for this journey. Of course this meant arising very early even after getting in from Normandy the night before at a late hour. There is just little time to sleep even though we do manage to eat and drink our share. We truly feel like “les Grands Voyageurs” at this point in the trip as this photo at the Gare du Nord suggests.
The bright red train woke us up.
Our first stop was Lieges, Belgium where the sun was in short supply. Then it was on to Holland in a very fast car with a dealer who could have been a race car driver in a previous life. We shut our eyes and thought of all the wonderful antiques we had seen. Surely more would come after such a ride.
Sure enough we made a rare fine… A set of 18 late 19th century painted chairs. I had not seen a set such as this with tall backs and generous seats in a decade at least. They only need cleaning and upholstery to be stunning in someone’s dining room. I guess we could break up the set but it would be a shame.
Apparently many Belgian hunting lodges had been disassembled for such a gathering of deer heads, antlers and the like to have been accumulated. We picked out the best one for our customers taking into account age (18th century), size and price. I sadly did leave behind a wonderfully decorative 19th century painting of a hunt scene which came from a castle in Belgium. It measures 9′ x 9′ which is a little large for us at The Gables, but I could still probably get it if you know anyone who wants to fill a large room in their mountain home.
We also bought fabulous accessories on this jaunt to Holland… A collection of 18th century large pewter chargers with the mark of the city of Brussels and these fun antique carved wooden gingerbread molds which would enliven a kitchen wall instantly. We were very satisfied with this part of the trip even though it made for a long day. It was time to board the train back to Paris.
