Netherlands Trip - Ostend      12th June:

    We awoke to the sound of a massive dredger disgorging its full hold onto a large mound of gravel on the quayside. It was low down in the water, full to capacity. A huge conveyor belt hung off the side of the vessel. Various mechanical shovels and scrapers on the deck loaded up the long conveyor belt, and the ship adjusted its position periodically so the belt deposited its load in the correct location. I find the operations within working ports fascinating; I could watch it for hours.

Dredger Discharging Gravel onto Quayside

    I located the harbour master in his cramped workshop, and we walked around to his office where I paid him for our stay. He promised to come down and switch on our electricity supply soon, and while we waited, I watched terns swooping over the water before dropping vertically into the water and fly off almost instantly with a fish in its mouth, all part of the working harbour experience.
    We attended various jobs: check the oil level, clean all the mud out of the anchor locker, clean off the inches of mud off the anchor etc, and check the tram times into the town centre.
    Once we were all sorted, a chap came up to say hello. He had sailed across from Titchmarsh the previous Thursday, and intended to return the following morning. He often sailed across to Ostend. We enjoyed a chin wag with him before we headed off to get a tram into town. The 65km-long Belgium coastline is fronted by wide white-sand beaches, backed by dunes and dotted every few kilometres with resort towns. The tram we alighted travelled the full length between De Panne and Knokke.
    The tram ride was standing room only but quick and painless, and we were soon walking down to the sea front. Ostend is the largest city on the Belgian Coast and its only truly year-round destination. Along its wide white-sand beach is a spacious promenade surveyed by an interesting mix of midrise architecture atop cosy seafront cafes with glassed-in terraces. It is visited by many day-trippers heading to the beaches, especially during July and August. Tourists from inland Belgium and from abroad mostly arrive by train (day trips) and head for the closest beach area, het Klein Strand (small beach), located next to the pier. The locals and other residents in Belgium usually occupy the larger beach, het Groot Strand (large beach).
    We passed several stalls selling all manner of sea produce, surrounded by swarms of people eating their wares from small cartons. Not for me I'm afraid. Down by the pier we came to the Klein Strand. It was in the process of being landscaped, though why on earth anyone would want a beach landscaped is beyond me. The amazing spectacle was a solitary couple sunbathing on the beach. They lay there in the sun oblivious to diggers, a bulldozer and trucks which were encroaching on the area where they lay. Passers by were gobsmacked by this sight, some laughing and some taking photographs.

Solitary Couple Sun Worshiping on the Klein Strand

    We walked past a gathering of garish, red meaningless sculptures, and came to the Groot Strand. This was heaving with people taking advantage of the upturn in the weather.

Groot Strand

    The beach didn't hold any attraction for us, so we headed down Louisastraat and stopped off in Wapenplein for a couple of beers; it was hot away from the sea breeze, and the heat dissuaded us from exploring the town. For those who are interested, an account of some of the historic sights that we visited in 2014 can be found at - davedouglas.co.uk/sailing/netherlands_belgium_trip_2014/diary_entries/2014_07_06_ostend.html .

Esplanade

    In the Early Middle Ages, Ostend was a small village built on the east-end (oost-einde) of an island (originally called Testerep) between the North Sea and a beach lake. Although small, the village rose to the status of "town" around 1265, when the inhabitants were allowed to hold a market and to build a market hall. The town was frequently taken, ravaged, ransacked and destroyed by conquering armies. The Dutch rebels, the Gueuzen, took control of the town. The Siege of Ostend, 1601 to 1604, of which it was said that "the Spanish assailed the unassailable and the Dutch defended the indefensible", cost a combined total of more than 80,000 dead or wounded, making it the single bloodiest battle of the Eighty Years' War. In the 20th century, both World War conflicts brought significant destruction to Ostend. In addition, other opulent buildings which had survived the wars were later replaced with structures in the modernist architecture style.
    A stout lady sat down at a table next to us. She must have been eavesdropping to our conversation because she suddenly turned around and gave us a broad smile. We soon learned she came from Antwerp. She and her husband were staying with friends in Ostend. She understood the vagaries of British politics very well and laughed openly about a recent Nicola Sturgeon fiasco, and grimaced also at the latest Donald Trump dilemmas.
    She explained to us the situation within Belgium, where they have the predominant north Flemish part of the country, the French-speaking Walloon region of southern Belgium, and another group who tried to control both halves. It was almost an impossible task to run the country with these three factions, and also very expensive. Her husband joined us and we all had a giggle about the state of affairs before we parted.

Sunset Over the Marina and Port

    In the evening we enjoyed a pleasant meal on the outside balcony of the Bistro Clubhuis RYCO, overlooking the marina and port. It was still bright and sunny, but the wind was getting up. This left us trying to second guess the wind patterns for the following day, when we hoped to head up the coast.