Cycling in Belgium starts at birth, it seems. I remember reading that in Belgium, I believe it was, they place a cold bicycle saddle against the bottom of a newborn baby. The shock supposedly starts the child on a lifetime of cycling. Odd sort of a kick-start, don’t you think?

And indeed, Belgium seems to have a good reputation for cycling. Parts are flatland; and some parts are quite hilly. Something for everyone!

Here are some possible routes. Are you a flatlander, like me? Maybe you’d like to keep to the coastal plain region, and use a road/gravel bike. Any route with cobbles would count me out. Cobbles alone sound bad enough to me; never mind cobbles + steep climbing! I hadn’t though much about the terrain of Belgium; but since it’s included in the the Low Countries, I had vaguely assumed that it’s flat. Not entirely, it’s not!

If I went on a bicycle tour of Belgium, the climate would be hard on me, I suspect. I should be used to rain (we average 60 inches per year where I live). But if it’s going to be chilly or downright cold as well as raining, I would soon be very uncomfortable. Maybe I need a rain suit! Possibly some long johns, too.

Love chocolate? How about visiting Brussels, and the Chocolate Tasting Tour? It sounds like this tour in itself isn’t done by bicycle; but how about the choc-o-tour as a sidelight on a bicycle tour that includes Brussels? After all, as Eddie Merckx said, “Ride lots.”