Model Show and Museum in Brussels...suggestions for more needed

[ChrisSavaglio]

I'm in Germany right now on business. At the advice of a friend who comes out here for a few months at a time for the last 15 years or so, I've been hitting up the local museums every spare moment I get.

So far, I've gone to the Sinsheim and Speyer technical museums. In addition to the OT stuff, I also like seeing the WWII stuff and I'm a big time car guy.

I went to Brussels last weekend with the intent to hit up the Royal Army Museum. Walking in, I was just about floored to see a model contest going on. Well, more of a social get together and lots of vendor tables. Modelers make quick friends with other modelers, and I even ran into a business aquaintance of Eric of Copper State Models. Turns out it's one of the larger shows, and only happens every other year.

Of course, I was completely amazed at the WWI a/c and weapons.

I usually have horrible timing, but I nailed this one. I spend a completely absurd amount of euro on kits that are hard to get in the states, so I'm happy.

So, to my question....are there any other model shows or museums to go to....wwi and/or automobile...that are within driving distance of Landstuhl, Germany. It's about an hour and a half south/west of Frankfurt, near Kaiserslaughtern and Ramstein AFB.

Anything about 5 hours or less is feasible for me as a good day trip.

I have directions to the museum in Hermeskeil and I'll go to that this weekend if I don't go to winefest instead....

BTW, this isn't my first trip out here, but this is my first trip where I wasn't so busy traveling and partying, that I've had a chance to see the modeler interests.

Chris

[alan giles]

Chris,have you heard of the Schlumpf Collection? It's 160 miles south of you,in Mulhouse,France. Especially if Bugatti turns you on,they've got 123!

[Regulus]

Seriously, you went to the army museum and didn't visit Autoworld on the other side of the building/square ? It's really big to Belgian standards !

[ChrisSavaglio]

Originally Posted by Regulus

Seriously, you went to the army museum and didn't visit Autoworld on the other side of the building/square ? It's really big to Belgian standards !

No, as I came stumbling out of the Army museum in a daze (mostly from the WWI stuff and model show, but the beer the Brits seemed to be constantly offering helped...) I noticed the auto museum and was glad I went in. It was well worth it. Beautiful automobiles.

It was also one of the nicest laid out museums, being that you start from the early 1900's and move through until current times. Very well done.

I've noticed a lot of American marques in the Euro museum, especially cars from the 50's, much to my liking.

At home, I've got a '53 Chevrolet, '58 Cadillac, and '69 Corvette convertible, so I love seeing cars of the 50s. Easily my favorite era. It's nice to be able to see the European cars that are never seen in the states.

I'll have to try to get down to the Schlumpf Collection in France.

Chris

[Scimitar]

Chris,

If you are still on that side on the ocean in october, there will be the IPMS Belgium National Convention on the first week-end. See here:

http://ipms.be/NC2008/Booklet2008-EN.pdf

And with my friends Osterkamp and Edmond Thieffry, we are organizing the "WWI Challenge" during the contest

[Wienne]

This weekend there is more than enough you can visit!
Sunday it is the KMK model show, also one of the biggest in Belgium. Emphasis is more on crawly things, but there is always a nice number of merchants from Germany, France, the Netherlands, UK, etc...

It is also Open Monument day here then too. Especially in in West Flanders the emphasis is huge on WWI. All the regular sites have extra tours and guides.

Zonnebeke has in the morning the unveiling of a new monument for a NZ VC-winner and in the afternoon special tours around Polygon Wood and Cryer Farm (German bunker used as dressing station). Bayernwald (reconstructed German trenches) is also open. All the musea are open (Flanders Fields, Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917, Hooge Crater...)

On the Belgian Coast you have also Domein Raversijde with the Atlantik Wall museum (collection of preserved trenches, bunkers, gun emplacements, etc... dating from WW2 and WW1).

I believe some of the forts around Antwerp (the old Fortsbelt from the National Redoubt Antwerp from WW1) are also open to visit, some with re-enactors.

A search on Open Monument Flanders will give you more than info enough I suppose.

PS, glad you liked the museum (wander around it several times per year myself and always finds new things!) and the show (first time I visited it myself, very friendly atmosphere.)

Wienne

[Kofoed]

Chris, I don't know whether you can reach Munich in 5 hours from where you are, but I can warmly recommend a day at Deutches Museum in Munich.
They have lots of most interesting stuff, planes from both wars, ships & cars. And a very nice collection of aircraft engines. Apart from loads of other artifacts.

Regards
Kofoed

[ChrisSavaglio]

Thank you for the suggestions, guys. I'm still in Germany....at least for another week and a half.

I was feeling a little bit under the weather today and with it raining as hard as it is, I didn't want to venture too far. I went to a hobby shop in Alzy, about 45 min away from Landstuhl. A few interesting things on the shelves. He had several of the Dragon WWI kits, several with the busts. I picked up the Jacob's boxing of the DML tripe. I also picked up a neat little 1/100 HO scale triplane as well. Maybe a good cure for a case of AMS down the line somewhere....or it may make it worse...

Then I went the other direction and went to the private museum in Hermeskeil. For OT stuff, they had a Bleriot XI, a tripe replica (as it seems every museum in Europe does....all of varying quality....), and several engines.

If I feel better tomorrow, I may venture farther, although I'd like to get better since I have to teach for the next two weeks.

Chris