Waterloo In A Day (Or Less)

The rain caught up with me today as I made my way back to Belgium to see the Waterloo Battlefield. Unfortunately I missed my stop (usually bus drivers are really good at nudging you out the door if he knows where you're going). So what should have been a 5 minute walk turned into 25 minutes. Which would not have been an issue if it hasn't been raining and very windy.  The good news is my backpack did is job and kept everything dry. The bad news is my shoes and socks were soaked and I was cold. I found the air dryer in the restroom took the worst of the water out of my socks, and with my wool socks, that's all I needed. (They also worked on my shoes.)  In addition, the wetness gave me blisters

Due to time, i limited myself to 3 items:

 The memorial 1815 - explained how napoleon came to powers, the events in the years leading up to waterloo, what countries were involved, and their uniforms. It was cool how what looked like paintings were actually HD screens with an antique gold border. The best part of the whole trip,was the 4D video of the battle. When the canons shot, the floor rumbled and smoke seemed 

right in front of you;  when the calvary  came over the hill, I swear a horse's muzzle was right in my face.

The Lion's Mound - 131 feet tall.  There are 226 steps to the top where you get a Birdseye view of the battlefield and farms that were involved in the battle.  A lion statute on top symbolizes the monarchs' victory. It was a long way up, but I made it.

The panorama of the battle - a 30 foot painting of one is the episodes in the battle.  Painted in 1912 and one is the few panoramas left. 

 
Definitely worth the effort to see it. Wish I had had a little more time.

I made my way back to Netherlands, and arrived in Utrecht rather late, but was impressed with what little saw.