Tanks in Town part deux

Today was the parade of tanks and vehicles to conclude the 65th Annivesary of Mons' liberation (Sep 2, 1944). There were various activities throughout the day but we decided to catch the vehicles as they passed through a local town. So after hanging out at a local park for a few hours we headed to Hyon which was the last town they vehicles would pass through before heading into Mons. They were supposed to arrive at 1530 but didn't get there until 1630. We weren't sure if they were going to bring the big tanks down the little road they had designated for the route. A local lady was asking me in broken English if they were. I guess her house had a crack in it from all of the vibrations that the tanks have created in past parades. So we waited and finally they came. It wasn't too crowded where we were and it made for some awesome viewing. Emilie and Tori were waving American flags and wearing my Grampi's WWII Army hat, dog tag, and shoulder patches. The vehicles as they passed by were waving to the kids and showing the "V" for victory sign. We figured out why it took so long. All along the route people were stopping the tanks and vehicles to give the riders shots of booze. One local said that it was a tradition kept from the original liberation. We had one such lady near us and it definitely held things up a bit. After the parade we headed to Mons' Grand Place to welcome the liberators. The Grand Place was packed with people and they were parking the tanks and vehicles in front of the Hotel d'Ville. It was getting late and it being a school night and all we decided to head home. It was quite a day.