| Taking the train from Antwerp
Central Station towards Rotterdam/Amsterdam, you reach
the small town of 'Essen' (15.500
inhabitants) after a 30 minute ride (not to be
confused with the West-German town Essen north of Düsseldorf
in the Ruhr-area by the way) Essen is the northernmost town of Belgium/Flanders and borders with Holland, yet the whole city is on Belgian territory still. |
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City boundary:
street bord with city name, signpost of the Flemish
community and old boundary post. Essenseweg (NL) / Nieuwstraat (B) [N133] |
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View towards Essen-town centre (Nieuwstraat) with Belgian national signpost in the middle of the road. |
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At the small
intersection, the borderline is marked on the street with
little bricks. On the right the house where customs used
to have its office. Grensstraat, corner Nieuwstraat |
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The "grensstraat" (literally 'border street') 120 yards further: the whole street is on Belgian territory, the border follows the left verge. |
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Small detail: Belgian streetname (grensstraat) and Dutch street name. (Kloosterweg) Behind the mini-wire lies the Dutch community/district 'Roosendaal-Nispen'. |
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former border check-point (customs) on the N133. |
| 4 miles south of Dutch town Breda, along a tiny river, we find the border to neighboring Belgium: |
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Coming from Antwerp: End of National Road "N14", we are entering the Netherlands. |
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Old borderstone marking the border between the Provinces North-Brabant (NL) and Antwerp (B) in the middle of the river. |
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120 yards from the border-line: street sign informing about Belgian speed limits (in km/h). |
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Borderstone and river again. |
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Directly at the border: Belgian Restaurant "De Douanier" (="the customs officer") |
BK December 2000
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