Blogs from Bruges, West Flanders, Belgium, Europe - page 3

Yesterday we were going to Bettembourg but Tim had a dream or something during the night and the place changed to the Valley of the Seven Castles. We’d have a look at a couple and come back on another day. The day was overcast as usual but I felt warmer than I had for days. We travelled along narrow tree lined country lanes and happened upon a village that started with an R, had a CH in it and O may have been the second letter. If I can gain a bit more detail, or buy a vowel or a consonant, I’ll let you know. This village was like a ghost town and we only saw about 10 people while we were there, including the 4 customers and the owner of the bar that we had ... read more

This morning we said our farewells to Vienna, then boarded an Austrian Airlines flight bound for Brussels, Belgium. All went smoothly, from the taxi ride to the airport, to check-in and the security screening. Our flight on a Embraer E95 jet was smooth, except for the fact that both of us experienced clogged ears during ascent and descent; not sure whether this was due to the flight profile, or perhaps an issue with the aircraft's cabin pressurization system. In any event, we arrived at the Brussels airport more or less on schedule where, after walking a considerable distance from the arrival gate to baggage claim, and then to the exit, we met our shuttle driver who would deliver us to the picturesque town of Bruges (Brugge in Dutch) in his super comfy black limousine. By 4 ... read more

Dear Blog Readers, Finally taking advantage of a cracking Christmas gift to use the Eurostar and scope out locations for a sequel to a cult movie, we were going to have a few days in Bruges. It was an early start but the authentic French cafe just outside the check in area set us up nicely with a petit dejeuner. It was authentic enough, although I’d have preferred the waiter to at least throw the cutlery down onto our table rather than place it softly. Check in was straightforward and we were on the train in no time and already asleep within half an hour. Next stop Brussels where we had a 20 minute wait before the Belgian Rail train rolled in an took us through the countryside to Bruges an hour later. It was early ... read more

So incredibly thankful we had moved on from Ypres from the music festival and a decent night sleep was had. Onto the town of Ghent (Gent) which had been relatively untouched by war as the Germans had moved through prior to forces advancing and were retreating fast at the end of the war. It is a student/university town and the sheer number of push bikes attest to this. Helen was meeting us, coming from Antwerp, so Marie and Philip went into town first, while we waited for her train to arrive. A trip in on the tram to the centre we came across an 'interesting' person (still not in agreeance on the sex) who went above anything expected in the rain, guiding us to another tram which literally dropped us straight in front of Gravensteen Castle. ... read more

WOW stunning this was my first real up close adventure of a canal medieval township built in the 12th to 14thCentury. All that history is visible to the eye. It was kind of weird to be in awe of a town square that once held public beheadings….. Bruges is stunning township, with canals, cobbled streets, medieval buildings, people of all ages riding push bikes in place of car. I was amazed by one building which is call the Belfry it’s within the town square which in Europe s named Markt square. This Belfry was built in the late 12th century and is 83 mtrs in height ! I discovered a Belfry is a tower that was build to house Bells for the township clock, this one hoses 47 Bells which sounds amazing at each ¼ of ... read more