Encompassing a relatively small, yet astonishingly beautiful, area they can be found in the country s southeast corner, in close proximity to the borders of both Luxembourg and Germany. One overcast Saturday morning I was filled with more determination than ever to visit a part of Belgium so close to me, yet one that I d for so long neglected in preference of Brussels, Bruges and Antwerp. With my time in Belgium drawing to a close, I decided it had to be now or never, and what a lovely day I had. The towns of Coo and Stavelot are easily accessible from Liege the town rather unfortunately referred to as the effective gateway to the Ardennes. On no accounts should you base your illusions of the romantic Ardennes, before arriving there, on Liege a rather grimy, filthy and industrial place you ll be pleased to leave behind.
Trains run every two hours from Liege, in the direction of Luxembourg.
Not because there s anything of particular interest there, but this is the place to be to pick up the bus for a quick ride over to Stavelot, just 5km away. Stavelot is a quaint little town and well worth a visit for a number of reasons. Let yourself wander to see what is across the other side of the river and you ll certainly be struck upon beholding what must definitely be one of the smallest and oldest of churches that I have ever had the chance to come cross. There are many walks to chose from, of various lengths, and each one individually identified with a name and symbol. And if you do give up with the labelled map idea completely, you could just always follow the road signs, designed for the motorists as opposed to hikers, and you ll fare just as well.