Brussels is blessed with having a remarkable and beautiful forest, the Foret de Soignes, on its doorstep. As part of St Andrews Church of Scotland Brussels eco project we enjoyed a ramble on glorious sunshine through the forest on May 4.

This was the first time our church had had such an outing and it was oversubscribed! Old and young ,many different nationalities came together to walk and listen to our guide,a forest ranger ,as he explained the trees, flora and fauna and also the history of this idyllic spot so close to the capital city. The forest is largely beech and oak , and efforts are being made to diversify.Not only did the group learn about conservation in a practical way , and enjoyed our day out, we had an opportunity to reinforce our friendship with each other, for we are a scattered congregation . By popular request we will be organising another ramble in September and we will then be joined by visitors from our twinned church in Adentan ,Ghana., which is also an eco-congregation.

Margaret Brusasco-Mackenzie