Bokrijk Open Air Museum

Today marked the first official day of Summer for Brandon. Russ had the day off of work, so we took off to explore the Bokrijk Open Air Museum near Genk. Poor Jess missed out on this one, because she still has a few more days of school left. Not to worry. We'll be back. We spent several hours exploring, and still managed to see only about 1/3 of the park. The park covers 550 hectares (that around 1,359 acres), divided up into 3 major areas. There are over 100 buildings there, dating from the 11th to 19th centuries, and they were carefully dismantled at their original locations and reassembled in the park. At the entrance to the park is this castle. Just around the corner (on the left side of it) is a great restaurant where we had lunch after exploring. I recommend the chicken panini (sandwich). Delish! Yep. I'm a sucker for windmills, so I had to get a picture of this one. This grain mill weighs 35 tons, and it it's prime, it milled around 700 kg of grain per hour. Now, the trees have grown up around it and block most of the wind, so it no longer turns. There are stairs on the back side of it, and you can climb up and explore it's inner workings. This is a long farmhouse from Helchtern, built in 1815. It houses the private residence, barn and stables, all under one roof. Bokrijk is a "living museum". Walking around in these towns is like transporting back into the past. When you enter the farmhouse, you see the people living as they did back then. This farmer's wife is knitting by a cozy fire. She's happy to take the time to answer any questions you might have about their way of life.

Although it's hard to see in this picture, this house has a water wheel in that middle section behind the half fence. When the stream turned the wheel, it turned a pump inside the house that was attached to a butter churn. Running water equals fresh, home-made butter. Very smart!The lady inside the house had just finished doing her daily laundry in front of the fire. This was a house for a poor family in town, like a broom binder. It was very small, but cute. The blacksmith was off running errands when we happened by his work place. Still, it was interesting to look around at all of his tools.

I just have to include a picture of this little fellow. He and his friends were having lots of fun, playing in a field behind the Blacksmith Shop. They were running around and kicking up their heels, while their Mom's were quietly eating and ignoring them. I'd love to take him home with me. Everyone we met was very kind. One gentleman even shared his pancake lunch with us (topped with homemade strawberry jam), cooked over an open fire in his home. I'm already looking forward to our next visit to Bokrijk, and finding out what other treasures it has for us to discover. It was very relaxing, just wandering through the woods and exploring Flemish life as it once was, many years ago.