Women Are Simply the Smarter Sex: Men’s Camping in the Ardennes

Three men and two boys are heading into Belgium’s Ardennes for a camping weekend, carrying bicycles left at home, a forgotten bottle of sunscreen and, fortunately, a corkscrew. Outside, temperatures sit at 20 degrees, but one rain shower follows another. K., the group’s driver, remains cheerful and prepared in his own way.

The plan depends on several uncertainties. The campsite may still be open, although that had not been confirmed when the column was written. If it is, the group hopes to pair fusilli cooked on a gas stove with wine. They have not, however, brought any butter or other cooking fat.

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Damn, I forgot the sunscreen.

Belgium’s liberal shop opening hours offer a solution, and the men are not in a hurry. It is Friday afternoon, with traffic heading toward both the Ardennes and the coast. Their wives and daughters are traveling to a beach apartment rather than sleeping in tents. The column’s verdict is bluntly playful: “Women are simply the smarter sex.”

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There is nothing more beautiful than driving past Wavre in the rain and thinking of Tuscany.

The men crawl through traffic on the E411 toward Namur as rain lashes the road. They think of Tuscany while Spotify plays “Toskana Fanboys” by Peter Fox featuring Adriano Celentano. Along the way, they pass a château-like estate surrounded by cattle and discuss a nearby wedding, a possible stop at Burger King and whether they should have brought a canoe for the Semois River, where the campsite lies.

By the time they reach their destination, it is almost still light and the rain has stopped. Their camping adventure can begin, although the excerpt ends just as one of them suggests finding bait.

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We are driving into the good weather.