De Twee Schacten

Today I went shopping with my friend Mary to Maasmechelen Outlet Village. It's a great place at the best of times with everything at discounted prices, but during the sales it's fantastic!

Maasmechelen is very close to the Dutch border, so we had a drive of just over an hour, but it was well worth it. When we left Waterloo it was grey and damp and it apparently snowed, but when we arrived in Maasmechelen it was sunny with clear blue skies!

The GPS took us in a slightly different direction than normal and we ended up in front of this amazing building, so when we parked up we went to have a look. It's called 'De Twee Schacten' which means 'The Two Shafts', and looks like a small Chateau with lovely gardens. Behind the building were two mining shafts which are remnants of the old coal mine 'Limburg-Maas' which closed in 1987. The water from the fountain looks better if you take a closer look.

Anyway, after taking a few photos - some of which I've put in my blipfolio, we went shopping. We literally shopped until we dropped, and got quite a few bargains - more than planned! There was a bag full of goodies for Alan, a couple of baby things and a few birthday present for me :-) My birthday isn't until the end of the month, but my mum gave me money to spend in the sales, and Mary said to choose a present from her and the girls, so I was very spoilt!

We had a great day, and got home just in time for Alan finishing work, so I went to meet him for a drink at our local Brasserie, and now we're relaxing in front of the TV. It's Friday night, so happy weekend!