Head 30 miles north-west of Waterloo and you can see a mini version of Dinant, a beautiful city on the Meuse. Head 50 miles in the opposite direction and you will find the real thing. The mini-city is part of "Mini-Europe Brussels," a park with dozens of famous buildings from every EU country, all at a 1:25 scale. I'll post pictures of the park separately.
Dinant itself is situated on the Meuse River, near the border with France, at the foot of a steep ridge of cliffs. High atop the city (408 stairs atop, to be exact; those stairs have been there since 1577) is the 600 year-old citadel, site of fortifications, battles, destruction, and rebuilding many times over. There is a small French military cemetery nearby, honoring the dead from both world wars. The citadel itself was the scene of vicious hand-to-hand fighting between German and French soldiers just days after WW I began, in August 1914. Much earlier, Louis XIV spent time here and his famous military engineer, Vauban, is responsible for much of the present layout.
On a more peaceful "note," Dinant is famous for one more thing: the home of Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone.
On a sunny fall day like today, this is a marvelous get-away, with few tourists, little traffic, and enough chocolate and beer to satisfy anyone!
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