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Dinant, Belgium

The Meuse River flows northward from the highlands of the Lorraine region of northeast France, through the Ardenne Mountains of eastern Belgium, then it becomes known as the Maas and continues northward through the Limburg region of the southern Netherlands before it turns westward and finally empties into the North Sea. Dinant is located on the Meuse River in the Ardennes in southern Belgium. To get to Dinant, I traveled from Maastricht to Liege, from Liege to Namur, and from Namur to Dinant.

Eastern Belgium is an upland region with formerly prosperous mining and industrial cities, many located along the shores of the Meuse River. Nowadays, however, these cities are dirty, becoming rundown and unpleasant because mining and industrial activities have been abandoned. The Meuse Valley between Liege and Namur is especially dirty, dusty, and unappealing. Several limestone quarry and associated quarry operations have covered large portions of the valley with a light-colored, powdery dust. Liege and Namur are not attractive, pleasant places to visit.

On the other hand, the beauty of the Meuse River Valley returns between Namur and Dinant. The photos shown below illustrate that beauty. All along the limestone cliffs and outcrops that form the sides of the valley are located chateaus, palaces, and castles. This makes for a very picturesque landscape. Dinant is one of those river towns in a wonderful setting.

	Dinant is located astride the Meuse River. You can see the narrow valley as it has cut its way through the Ardennes of eastern Belgium. This is the same river that flows through Liege and Maastricht.
	The city of Dinant is built in a very narrow floodplain and partially up the steep slopes of the valley sides. It is very picturesque.
	On the right bank is the town center - a very small area dominated by a huge cathedral. You can also see a citadel on the high limestone cliff in the background. The citadel was built in 1051 by order of the Prince Bishop of Liege, but destroyed later by the French in 1703. The current structure was build in 1820 while the area was under Dutch occupation.
	This is the view I saw as I began to walk across the bridge. The church is the Cathedral of Notre Dame, built about 1100 AD
	This is the interior of the huge Catholic church in Dinant. Like other churches we have visited, the interior had extraordinarily high ceiling and it was cold - no heat.
	As I arrived in Dinant and left the train station, I could see this fortress. At first I did not know what was between the station and the fortress. It was only when I started to explore did I find the river and the cathedral. You should know that my two-hour stay in Dinant was an accident. I was sitting on the station platform waiting for a train and only later realized that the train I needed was sitting at another platform. I watched it leave and finally determined it was the one I should have taken. Luckily, I had time to explore Dinant!