I've been listening to the brother Cadfael stories on BBC 7 and to the stories of Father Baldi. All related to the monastic life. And then suddenly last weekend I found myself at an abbey, run by Norbertines. Walking through the grounds I almost recognized it all, and the place reminded me very much of Cadfael. I can imagine what it would be like to be here on a quiet day, and I can imagine what the place must have been like once.
At the same time this was a strange place, though. I was there on a Sunday, and found the Abbey shop open for business. You could buy bread there, cheese and medicinal herbs. The abbey is located in a very nice area in Belgium close to the Dutch border so on Sunday a lot of people from Belgium and the Netherlands drive down there for a walk. And where people go for a walk you need to provide refreshments and food. So just across the road from the abbey there is a small collection of the more traditional fast food stands, Belgian "frietkotten" (chip shops). A strange mixture.
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