Bells, Bikes, and a Song Above Mol

Day 57: Exploring Mol (28 miles / 330 ft. of climbing)

This was one of our so-called rest days, although “preparation day” would probably be more accurate. Our plans were to visit the Tuesday market in Mol, find a few souvenirs for friends at home, enjoy one final ride, and eventually make our way to B&B Molmento to pack the bicycles for tomorrow’s train ride toward the airport.

Peter had already picked up two bicycle boxes from a local bike shop. Knowing the boxes were waiting for us was a tremendous relief. Finding suitable boxes at the end of a trip can become an adventure of its own, and this was one scramble we were happy to avoid.

At about 8:30, we joined Jos for a wonderful Belgian breakfast of meats, cheeses, bakery treats, orange juice, coffee, and pistolets. A pistolet is a small, round Belgian bread roll with a crisp crust and a light, airy center. We also had Greek yogurt with blueberries and Belgian cassonade, a soft brown sugar with a rich caramel flavor. Unlike typical American brown sugar, which is usually white sugar mixed with molasses, Belgian varieties may be made with candy syrup or caramelized sugar.

During dinner the previous evening, Jos had told us about visiting the tower of the Sint-Pieter en Pauwelkerk in the center of Mol. High inside the tower is a carillon, an enormous musical instrument played through a keyboard connected to bells. Jos knows people at the tourism office and also knows Jasper Depraetere, Mol’s young municipal carillonneur. A few phone calls later, we had an invitation to meet Jasper at the tower entrance at 10:40.

Jasper proudly led Jos, Lisa, and me through the tower museum and up the narrow stairs toward the top. The 55-meter (180-foot) tower contains five floors of exhibits related to the church, tower, and carillon. We saw old rooms, historical relics, and the secure place where important documents and valuables belonging to Mol were once stored.

At the top, we stepped outside for a beautiful view across Mol and the surrounding Belgian countryside. We then met the real star of the tower, a carillon of 49 bells weighing more than 16,500 kilograms (36,400 pounds).

A carillon is played from a wooden keyboard using the hands and feet. The performer presses large wooden batons with loosely closed fists while using pedals to control the heavier bells. It requires strength, timing, and a surprising amount of physical coordination. Watching Jasper play made it clear that this was not simply ringing bells. It was playing the entire tower as a musical instrument.

Jasper became only the third person to hold this position in Mol. He studied carillon and music education at LUCA School of Arts in Leuven and now teaches at the Royal Carillon School in Mechelen, where students come from Belgium and around the world.

He asked whether there was a particular song we would like to hear. After thinking for a moment, we chose the Irish folk song “Down by the Salley Gardens.” The song holds several memories for us. Monica and Simon’s daughter, Liesl sang it a cappella at our wedding two years ago, and during last year’s journey through Japan, a Japanese couple played it for us at their guesthouse.

Jasper played it once while we stood beside him in the tower. Before we descended, he told us to find a quiet place near the market and listen for it again.

Back on the ground, Jos led us to a peaceful spot with a clear view of the tower. A few moments later, the bells began carrying our song across Mol. Standing below the tower with Lisa and Jos, listening to a song that has followed us through our wedding, Japan, and now Belgium, was incredibly special.

From there, we walked through the Tuesday market. The air smelled of sausages and other foods cooking, and the square was filled with colorful stands and shoppers. We did plenty of looking and smelling, although not much actual shopping. In fact, we bought nothing. We did run into Jos’s sister, which gave us another nice and unexpected meeting.

Our next stop was Jos’s shoe shop. He always creates a special display in the front window, and naturally we had to stop for a picture among the shoes, pumpkins, straw bales, and his “Swedish Clog Street” sign.

Earlier that morning, we had looked at the Wilfried Peeters cycling route around Mol. Peeters, a Mol native, raced professionally from 1986 through 2001 and became known as a specialist in the cobbled classics. He won Gent-Wevelgem, finished second and third at Paris-Roubaix, and later became a longtime team director.

Jos created a 77-kilometer (48-mile) route in his honor, divided into loops of 47 kilometers (29 miles) and 30 kilometers (19 miles). With bike packing still ahead of us, the 30-kilometer (19-mile) loop sounded perfect.

The route gave us one more chance to enjoy the area around Mol. We rode past a mixture of Belgian homes, followed the canal, visited a beautiful windmill, and enjoyed the changing autumn leaves. After stopping to purchase a special beer to bring home, we added a short detour to Zilvermeer.

Zilvermeer holds its own memories for us because it was where I raced years ago. We sat beside the water and ate the sandwich Jos prepared for us. Then we explored the park, and even tested some of the impressive playground slides. Apparently, a final rest-day ride still requires a little playground research.

From Zilvermeer, we continued to B&B Molmento where Peter and Kristein were waiting for us. It was a homecoming we were anxious about but also cherishing. After a few hugs and stories, the moment we had been avoiding finally arrived. We removed the pedals, turned the handlebars, carefully arranged the bags, and packed the bicycles into their boxes. After nearly two months of carrying us across Europe, our bikes were officially finished with their journey.

By the time everything was packed and we had relaxed for a little while, it was nearly 7:00 and time for dinner with Jos, Peter, and Kristein.

For our final dinner together, we could not resist Vlaams stoofvlees met frieten, Flemish beef stew slowly cooked with Belgian beer and served with fries. The bowl of frieten seemed to be bottomless, which was perfectly fine with us. We enjoyed the meal, the friendly waiter, and the restaurant owner, who treated us to a couple of drinks on the house.

Dessert was a beautiful chocolate mousse for Lisa and me. Afterward, we took the short walk through the cool night air back to B&B Molmento with Peter and Kristein. A wonderful night we didn’t want to end.

Our preparation day somehow became much more than packing and errands. It gave us one final bicycle ride, a tower full of bells, our song floating across Mol, time with people who have become family, and another collection of memories we never could have planned ourselves.Read more