For Laura’s last weekend in the Ruhrpott, she, Susanna, Claire, Gabby, and myself made a little trip to the edge of Germany. We based ourselves in Aachen, right at the corner of Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
Maastricht’s Vrijthof Square
First up on the three country tour was Maastricht, the birthplace of the European Union. We got there early afternoon, and spent most of the day taking in the sites (churches, lots of churches). Highlights include the Treasury at Sint Servaasbasiliek (SO MANY RELICS) the Star of the Sea shrine at the Basilica of Our Lady. My favorite place in Maastricht, however, is the Boekhandel Dominicanen, a 700 year old church-turned-bookstore (it appears on lists like this one). The first floor is new stuff, but the upper levels are all used and antique books. At first it appears that it’s a run-of-the-mill used bookstore, and then you pass a cabinet where the books are first editions from centuries ago that cost a cool 500 euro. They had a pretty decent collection of English books, too. Needless to say, we were there a long time.
Boekhandel Dominicanen
We started the next day at Aachen Cathedral for mass. That cathedral. Y’all. One of the most beautiful churches I’ve ever seen. Absolutely exquisite. I would go back at the drop of a hat.
Just one view in the Aachen Cathedral
After mass we went to brunch close to the cathedral and attacked that all-you-can-eat brunch buffet like nobody’s business. Then it was on the bus to Vaals, a city on the Netherlands side of the border and the starting point for our hike to the Dreiländereck (“three country corner”). The hike was lovely (albeit somewhat confusing – it took us a while to get on the right path!), and the view from the hill into Belgium was gorgeous. We didn’t get to spend a whole lot of time exploring Aachen, but it’s such a cool city, and I’m looking forward to going back, maybe for some Christmas markets!
Gettin in on that three country action
Laufen mit Liz 