A Visit to Bruges

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It is good to be back in Belgium, the countryside is so green, air is good, food is good.

We headed out, not so early, to Bruges. This is a city in the Northern part of Belgium, about 1 hour away. We all piled into the van and had a roomy ride.

1^st stop was a castle belonging to the family of Ghislain, an uncle’s family. Ghislan said that they would visit on occasion when he was young. Now they go once every 4 years I believe. The castle is a large building that contains a chapel on one end and the residence on the other end. http://www.kasteelvanloppem.be/infoen.html

On the grounds, near the entry, is a labyrinth with paths separated by hedges. The point of the labyrinth is to get to the center where there is a tree with benches to rest, then to find the way back.

The path of the labyrinth is wide enough for a wheelchair so we were able to push Sunny thru, while she gave directions. Elias, Bel and Charlotte ran thru, back and forth between the dead ends. Dale and I got stuck and couldn’t find the way but we got to a place where they could see the top of our heads. By calling out (a little like Marco Polo) we found each other. Kids running back and forth, us pushing a wheelchair; we were quite a sight!

From the castle we went on to the center of Bruges. There we found lunch of North Sea Shrimp, a specialty of the area. These shrimp are very small but so yummy.



We had hoped to have the kids walk up to the bell tower but it was closed so we had to bury our sorrow in fine Belgium chocolate. Alas!

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Photos

Lunch
Lunch with North Sea Shrimp