DAY 67
Home run via Knokke
Date: Saturday 16 June
Weather: Not too bad.
Mileage: 4650 by the time we reached Knokke.
A final long run of 5 hours on nice motorways north out of Germany and on to the famous seaside resort town of Knokke-Heist. We started early and made good time to our most expensive hotel of the trip. The plan was to go home with a BANG! Top hotel in Knokke, La Reserve, and for din-dins Admin & Hotels had booked us into the best restaurant in town. Cuines, a very smart, trendy, modern Tapas style, fixed menu, five course degustation with wine flight, arm and a bloody leg sort of place.
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But before that we endured a wander round Knokke. It is a funny sort of place, immensely wealthy people inhabit a town that comprises thousands of 5-8 story apartment blocks that slowly melt down into massive detached houses as you stray further from the center. In the center there are hundreds of top shop names scattered along long wide avenues interspersed with expensive eating places.
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This was the place Sara visited at the age of four on her first ever foreign holiday. She thinks the place has come up a bit since then.
Our very expensive and slightly Stalinist hotel
An unusual fountain in central Knokke, see what I mean about the apartment blocks!
Having done the mandatory walking tour of the town we got dressed up. I wore my suit for the second time. I've dragged the poxy thing round the whole of Europe and worn it twice. The first time was 10 weeks ago on the first night - so obviously it had to come out again on the last night. So, suited and booted, off we went to a lovely last nights dinner. For the price of the hotel and dinner we could have stayed a whole week in the Balkans, but we wanted to end on a high and we did. Here are two pics of us on a high!!!!
Having enjoyed a absolutely brilliant dinner we set off to visit the Piano Bar, one that Sara had spotted earlier. The bar had a locked door policy - which we overcame - we staggered in, sat down, ordered a drink, Sara inquired why there was no pianist and no piano, they said the piano had collapsed a week earlier (a likely story!), Sara accused them of being a Hookers bar, we were asked to leave (well Sara was, but i thought it best to leave with her in the circumstances). All in the space of about 10 minutes.
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Next port of call the Casino, but we did not have our passports - so home to bed, thank goodness. Having spent a weeks money in one day another wodge splurged on some pointless roulette table would have been a splurge too far in my opinion.
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So that is it. We end the trip they way we started, in a lovely hotel full up with a lovely meal. Not a bad way to go out.