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Published: August 24th 2009
Today I went with Magali and Ludger to Ath, which is a small town south-west of Brussels where Ludger grew up. We attended a huge street festival in Ath that has been a tradition for over 800 years. Millions of Belgians attend this festival and it is broadcasted on the news and radio. There is a parade that goes through the streets of Ath (two times...once in the morning and once in the afternoon) and it contains marching bands, decorated wagons, and huge puppets of biblical characters.
La ducasse d'Ath starts on the fourth weekend in August and goes until the 8th of September, when the whole town eats mussels and a special cake made of almonds, cinnamon and bread. One of the main events during this time is the combat of David and Goliath - there is a huge puppet of Goliath and a boy from the town plays David and David has to throw a ball into Goliath's bag. If David successfully throws the ball in the bag, then it brings good luck to the town for the rest of the year.
Ludger's house overlooked the main street of Ath, so we were able to watch the parade from
there. His parents served a delicious lunch consisting of foie gras, tomato and pumpkin soup, veal with mushrooms, croquettes and stewed cherries, and the traditional almond bread cake. It was delicious! Ludger's father is a jewelry designer and silversmith and he gave me a beautiful silver keychain that he made of St. Christophe, who is the Saint who protects travellers.
It was a really fun day and it was great to see a part of Belgium that I probably would have never visited...it's these experiences that make you feel like a true Belgian, not just a visitor!
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Mumfred
non-member comment
On the go again!
I'm so excited to see the pictures - looks like you had a fantastic time! Hopefully you'll have lots more invitations to see the real Belgium. Wasn't the table set beautifully in that lovely home - and the food sounded delicious. Loved the key-chain - lucky you.