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August 16, 2019

Belgium - Spend the evening on top of Saint-Donat Church in Arlon

I wrote about the tower of St. Donat Church in Arlon two years ago and almost thought I've covered the subject already, but after reading the post I realised how many things are changing in our little bucolic village.
Two years ago I advised you to drop them a call or check the posters to see when the Belvedere (the tower and the whole area is called Belvedere Arlon, maybe easier to search on google this way) would be opened. This year they have a Facebook page and also Facebook events populated with people's photos of their visits. So although you might think Arlon is stuck in the past, it is slowly evolving.

On another note, also on Facebook you can find the page of the residents of the old neighbourhood, it is so interesting to see how they come together to clean up the area, to plant flowers and how they take care after each other.
Back to the St. Donat Tower here are some facts:
  • The whole tower structure weights almost 6 tons
  • The height of the tower is 35 meter
  • To reach the top of the tower you have to climb 144 stairs
  • You can see from the top to up to 50 km (on a sunny day you can see the Kirchberg towers in Luxembourg)
  • It has three clocks weighing 900, 600 and 450 kilograms
Les Nocturnes du Belvédère de St-Donat took place from the first of May to September, one evening each month. The last one would be on September 7th, on the National Heritage Day.

To visit the tower costs 3 euros (you cannot pay by card) for adults and is free for children up to 12 years.

For me it was a different experience. Somehow the whole summer I managed to miss this event, I was away or it rained and we did not go to walk Luna around the church or something happened, but on August 14th after a heavy rain I wanted to smell the fresh air from the Belvedere, Luna needed a walk and it happened that the tower was opened.

A word of advice, dogs are not allowed inside the tower, but as it was a nice evening we left Luna in the car for a couple of minutes, windows opened, and she was fine.
From the "balcony around the church" you cannot see your neighbourhood so it was nice to see it from the tower and also discover the other places in Arlon and around Arlon. I think we might have spotted a lake we did not know. Also it was a nice way to meet the local community, as only 12 people are allowed one time on the platform, we helped a couple take a picture and in their turned they helped us, we exchanged some impressions.

Also, as I was not aware of the event I did not bring my camera and all the photos are taken with our phones, but it was a gorgeous full moon on that evening and it was a real spectacle to watch the clouds pass by her.
If climbing the St. Donat Tower in Arlon in the evening is something that might sparkle your interest, the next nocturnal visit is on September, 7th.

As usual, you can find me on Instagram @mademoiselle.ralu

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