Peculiar

24^th of January, 2022.

              Sister Christel brings me breakfast at the time agreed. It is an amazing breakfast! With a delicious coffee! Yummy! I leave around 8 o’clock, as we planned, and I see another sister before I leave. They are bot so sweet!
              I walk a bit more than I thought, but at least it is a good spot. It does not take long until Geert stops for me.
              At the beginning, Geert says he can drive me closer to Mons, but soon enough he says he has the time so he can drive me all the way there. Great!
              We talk about many things and he is very surprised about my travels. He works with some kind of measurement of gas. By the time he drops me off in Mons, I though I would have plenty of time to explore the town. Nope!
              First of all, when I am almost in the city centre, I notice I have lost one of my gloves. Shit! I cannot find an easy place to drop off my backpack, while I go all the way back searching for my glove, so I have to take it with me. I knew I had dropped when I left Geert’s car and there it was when I came back. All this back and forth cost me about 1 hour.
              In town, at the tourist office, they refuse to keep my backpack there. Why? They say something because of Covid. Bullshit! Anyway, I get real upset and start walking around looking for a place where I could drop it. It takes me sometime and even when I ask in a tattoo shop (where I wrongly supposed people should be more cool), a lady all covered in tattoos and with a cool style, refuses to help me. Stereotypes! Actually you will find out that this text will have a lot about that.
              In a fancier place, a big and nice restaurant, a wonderful lady promptly accepts to keep The Hulk. Stereotypes! But by the time I start doing my tour the weather is already turning shitty. I managed to see some of the buildings though, and the Saint Waltrude Collegiate Churc is a master piece! I could spend much more time in there, just starring at all that beauty, but I knew I had to leave.

              Mons is a very peculiar small town. It is super well organized and informative about its historical buildings. Walking on the historical centre you will find small informative plates about the buildings all over the place. I have never seen anything like that, at that level, in any other small town in Europe. Also the Cathedral it has information about every sector of it. It is true that, at least in my opinion, there are not that many amazing buildings in the old town, but I am sure it worth the visit.
              I had to cut my tour short because it started to rain. I had a hard time deciding, even before the rain came, if I should carry on or come back to the tourist office, because the weather was looking bad. Luckily for me, I make de right decision and came back. I still got a bit wet.
              Back at the tourist office, I get connection and check directions to a church out of town. Again, for the forth time today, I take the walk towards out of town.
              The small church is closed. There is a house just beside it, in the same plot, and I don’t remember why now but for some reason I know it is the house for the nuns. I have to be careful now, after that disaster in Edam.
              An elderly lady, Afro-European, comes to talk to me. After I explain everything to her, she seems very reluctant on helping me. What? Am I being prejudiced by thinking that she would help me more easily because she is Afro-European? Stereotypes? Or that is it based on my experience in Africa, where everybody was so helpful, friendly and welcoming?
              She cannot speak much English but I understand she is saying something about me going back to town. I tell her I cannot because I don’t take public transport plus I am leaving by hitchhiking from this area tomorrow morning. She asks me to come with her somewhere nearby, where a lady she knows can speak English.
              At this family house, I meet a lady, her son, and what I though it was her husband but actually I would figure out later is her brother.
              We all get in the car and they drive me to another place in town. It is really deep inside Mons and I am getting very nervous about tomorrow morning. I try to explain to the lady about my hitchhiking thing but unfortunately, after all, she does not really speak English.
              At this huge church complex, after talking with two really old women, sisters, they seem to not give a shit to me. Mostly when they get to know that I am trying to live without money. Laugh. This happens so much, in many churches I go. As soon as I tell them the “non money” part, they change their attitude. All I want to ask them, when I see this reaction is: Excuse me, wasn’t that guy of yours, the son of your god, praying about simplicity and a life without luxury? More than that, wasn’t he living with nothing, in a extremely humble life style?
              I cry a little bit when I think about that. The lady try to calm me down and say it will be OK. They drive me to another place. Another church, I think, no! It is a Hostel. I remember I passed in front during my tour in town. What they were planing to do I will never know, the Hostel is closed.
              I ask them do simply drive me back to their place and I will find a place to camp. The sister stays in town for some reason and we go back. They talk for a while in the car and after all, they tell me I can stay in her brother’s house. At this point I not only discover he is her brother and not her husband, but also that her son is actually her nephew, her brother’s son, and they live together.
              They stop at the supermarket to get some food and a costume to the boy. It is Carnival and he needs a cosplay for school. The boy, like the majority of the kids in the world right now, loves Squid Game and want to go dressed like that. What it will be of the future of the world?
              At her brother’s house she start to prepare some food. They tell me I will sleep in the couch and give me some bed linen. I offer to help her with dinner many times but she refuses. After a while she finish the food and tells me that is for me. What? Aren’t they going to eat also? No. She made some chicken with vegetables and rice. I wish she had told me that before and I would have not let her prepare anything. And I seriously don’t understand what happens because she also tells me they are all leaving and I am staying alone in the house. I don’t mind that but I would like to understand why. Are they afraid of me?
              After they leave, I have dinner and do some stuff on my computer because he gave me the wi-fi password. Next morning, I get up early and have some breakfast. I leave them a note saying thank you for everything and with the address of my blog. The house is only a few blocks from the main road I have to take to my hitchhiking spot. I actually passed through here yesterday when I arrived in town.