Early Saturday morning about half of the ISA group and I loaded up the bus and headed to the small town of Chimay. Chimay is a town located in the French speaking providence of Wallonia where the famous Trappist beer Chimay is brewed. Our first stop in this quaint little town was Chateau Chimay (pictured above), where the current Prince and Princess of Chimay reside, and are huge supporters of the art and host an annual Chimay Festival. It was a very interactive tour where we each were given iPads and were guided around the castle to points of interest that we could then click on and receive information. A couple of my favorite points of interest included the theater, where decades of musicians and composers have performed, a small cross painted on the wall of the armory, that represented the time during Hitler's regime when the Chateau was used as a place of refuge for the monks who were evacuated from nearby towns, and a statue of the Virgin Mary that was found in the Chapel of Chimay and beloved by the family throughout the years.
After some time to wander around the chateau we headed to the city center for free time for lunch, and I immediately knew that I wanted to try some of the internationally renowned Trappist beer (A Trappist beer is only brewed within the walls of a Trappist monastery under the control of the monks, and the profit from the beer is used for the social welfare of the monk community) So after a quick sandwich my friends and I found a nice sunny table on the terrance to try two of my favorite things....beer and cheese! I happily ordered a Chimay tower with the three different brews; Chimay Blue Cap, Chimay Triple, and my favorite Chimay Red cap and an assortment of Chimay cheeses.
Abbaye de Maredsous
After a nice lunch we jumped back on the bus and headed a short distance to Maredsous Abby, where yet another famous Trappist beer is brewed. After a surprise homemade tiramisu from our lovely ISA leaders Ma & Pa, we met our inimitable tour guide Christian and began our tour. The historical tour of the home of the Benedictine Monks took us all the way through the past and present of the monastery while explaining the symbolism behind the architecture and art.
After our tour we were all inpatiently waiting for Ma & Pa to announce the surprise they had kept secret all day. Finally after keeping us waiting in a secluded dining hall, a line of waiters began to deliver each of us a paddle filled with three beers and of course some delicious cheese. They then announced we would all get the chance to have a private tasting of the Maredsous Beer's and cheese's! I am definitely well on my way to becoming a beer connoisseur!
Cheers from Belgium :)
Cheers from Belgium :)