Scherpenheuvel

I’m home for a few days and Little A. is staying with me the first week of school’s two weeks Easter Holiday.

Unfortunately the weather hasn’t been that great. Dull, cold, grey and very rainy.

Past Thursday I took Little A., she is 15, to Scherpenheuvel (Sharp Hill) a small municipality not so far from where we live.
It is know as one of the most important pilgrimage sites in Belgium. Legend goes that around 1500 the Virgin Mary performed a miracle. Shortly after the place was flooded with pilgrims who came to pray for the health and recovery of ill loved ones.

The church was proclaimed a Roman Catholic basilica minor in 1927.

I remember how there were a zillion booths and shops selling catholic paraphernalia but now most of these shops have become restaurants or depository financial institutions.

During the month May groups of people or organizations like the scouts go on pilgrimage to Scherpenheuvel albeit I am not sure we are talking about large groups anymore.

Scherpenheuvel is in a way a sort of symbol of the decline of (commercial) Catholicism.

I visited the place just to enjoy photography as I am an atheist. But of course I respect the beliefs of other people as long as they do not want to convert me.

The place did not inspire me that much and I only took a few images with my Nikon F100 loaded with HP5 Plus pushed to 1600 ISO.

Basilica (2015) Nikon F100 with 24-120mm and loaded with HP5 Plus pushed to 1600 ISO

Candels (2015) Nikon F100 with 24-120mm and loaded with HP5 Plus pushed to 1600 ISO

Light (2015) Nikon F100 with 24-120mm and loaded with HP5 Plus pushed to 1600 ISO

The Hill (2015) Nikon F100 with 24-120mm and loaded with HP5 Plus pushed to 1600 ISO