Poem Mei Omer Wattez

Once author Omer Wattez stood together with poet Pol de Mont on the Geuzentoren in the music forest in Ronse. There they were, two word artists together, Wattez born in Schorisse, the Mont from another Flemish region. Impressed by the hilly relief, the latter exclaimed in surprise: “But those are the Flemish Ardennes here!”

Pol de Mont may be the originator of the name 'Flemish Ardennes', but it is Omer Wattez who has put the tourist region on the map. Already at the end of the 19th century he wrote A corner of South Flanders: Oudenaarde, Ronse and surroundings and in 1914 the more extensive guide De Vlaamsche Ardennes. Walks and excursions in the country of Oudenaarde and Ronse . He was also a translator and teacher.

Willem Vandenameele