Bruges!!

Preface: All of the Pictures posted below were taken by the fabulous Lori Mullins, who is both better at photography, and more diligent in her picture uploading. Thanks Lori!!

On Saturday I ventured outside of Brussels for the first time since my arrival. We woke up bright and early Saturday morning (and it actually was sunny and bright out!) and headed to the train station, only to discover that we had chose the right day to go to Bruges: the fare was only 8 Euro!!! We piled excitedly onto the train and headed to Bruges.

The train ride was lovely, and it was very nice to get to see some of the Belgian countryside. The roommates and I have discussed doing several other day trips around Belgium, and I am truly excited to see more of this interesting country.

Bruges is a tiny town to the west of Brussels. It is located in Flanders, the Dutch-speaking region of Belgium (the dutch name of the city is Brugge). The town was a center of trade waaaay back in the day, but when the River Zwin silted up near the end of the 15^th century, the trade pretty much died out. Because of this, the city never really felt the pressure to modernize, and much of the architecture has been preserved; as they say in the recent movie In Bruges, Bruges is just like “a fairytale.”

When we got off the train we started to wander into the city and were amazed by how gorgeous it was. There is a little canal that winds all over the little town, and there are stone bridges galore! The narrow cobblestone streets were sooo beautiful, and the architecture was just gorgeous. We were mesmerized by the city, and immediately started snapping pictures.

After about half an hour of gushing about the beauty of the town, we realized that we were hungry and wandered around in search of food. Initially we were looking for a little coffee shop or something, but the fact that the average price for a cup of coffee was 4 euros combined with a sudden craving for hamburgers led us to look for something more substantial. As we reached the Markt, basically the town square, we saw a sign that read “Hamburgers.” It turned out just to be Quick, which is basically the Belgian McDonald’s, but we dug right in. It was not as good as McDonald’s, but it hit the spot, and we were ready to get out traveling.

The Markt

We embraced our status as tourists, and set out on the walking tour that was suggested in Celeste’s guidebook. The tour took us by some of the most beautiful building I have ever seen, reflecting in the placid water of the canal. We saw the really neat fish market, as well as many little shops selling chocolates and lace (some of Belgium’s specialties).

We continued along the tour, and continued to be amazed by the beauty of Bruges. About halfway through the tour we realized that there was an older couple that seemed to be stopping and looking at the same things that we were. Looking closer we noticed that they had the same guidebook, haha! We laughed hysterically about it for awhile and Celeste appropriately compared it to the awkward feeling you get when you are putt-putt golfing, and have to wait behind the same people at each hole. Excellent comparison, Celeste. Eventually we overcame the hilarious awkwardness and spoke to our tour partners. We worked through the slightly confusing instructions in the guidebook with the older couple, and continued to explore the city.

We headed around the shopping area, and went into several little shops. Then we each invested in the famous Belgian waffle. Since I referenced the waffle in my last post, I will try to keep my waffle musings to a minimum this time however, believe me, it was delicious. We took our waffles over, and sat on a little wall outside of a church, then commenced to try to eat our waffles like polite young women. We failed miserably. We sat outside this church, laughing loudly, snapping pictures of each other with whipped cream and chocolate all over our faces. It was a total blast.

We felt the need to work off the waffles, and decided to climb to the top of the Belfry. Warning: This is not a task for the weak of heart. The climb up the 366 stairs to the top of the Belfry takes considerable time and effort and, true to the claims made in the movies, it’s incredibly narrow. When we got to the top, however, it was well worth the effort. We marveled at the beautiful view, and were even up there as the giant bell began ringing!

We headed down and continued walking around, eventually making it to the Heilig Bloed Basiliek (The Basilica of the Holy Blood) where there is a vial that is said to contain a few drops of Christ’s blood. The vial is kept in a really cool silver tabernacle, and the entire mood of the church is very quiet and reverent. Overall, it was a really neat experience.

Next, we headed over toward the cluster of whitewashed houses where a community of nuns live, and looked around there, which was really cool. Along the way Lori found the swans, which, I think, was a major turning point in her life. Then we walked into a really neat Cathedral and saw Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child, which is apparently the only Michelangelo statue to leave Italy during his lifetime. That was REALLY cool.

By this point we were starving, so we found this really fun restaurant that served North African food, and it was absolutely delicious. Feeling satisfied with the day, we made our way through Bruges, and headed toward the train station, proclaiming it a successful day.

It was a great trip, and I am really looking forward to heading to Antwerp this weekend.

More Shots of Bruges: