Bruge Belgium

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Our first full day in Bruge, Belgium, draws to a close. We are now relaxing in our hotel room. We spent the morning on an escorted tour of this ancient city. As our guide pointed out the various buildings , churches and cathedrals, she would mention, for example, this building was built in 1100, this one dates from the 13th century, etc. Made me feel somewhat young. Our tour included a trip on a river boat. There are several rivers that flow trough the town, reminiscent of Venice, but these are rivers, not the ocean, as in Venice. Things are a bit more expensive in Bruge, as this example shows. There was a small condo or house for sale beside one river -- built in1647! The price was 2 million euros. It takes $1.40 to buy one euro, so you can do the math. And no, we didn't put a deposit on it... (grin).

We had lunch at one of the many restaurants that surround a big market square in the middle of town. Great for people watching. I had a small bowl of tomato soup with a side salad of smoked Salmon on a bed of greens. Zee had a bowl of mussels, which she loved. Yuck! She had a coke and I had a couple of beers (I was thirsty). The meal was very tasty, and the bill was $104! So much for a light lunch. But, in full disclosure, the beer was very good...(grin)...

Belgium is a small country. About 40% of the people here speak Dutch, about 30 % speak French and the rest speak German. They get a dusting of snow a couple of times in winter, but nothing serious. Today our weather was wonderful -- sunny and not too warm. Tomorrow we go on a bus tour of this country, which should be most enjoyable, and, it is a very small country. Then, on the next day, we travel to Antwerp, where we board our river ship for a leisurely cruise down the Rhine and Mosel Rivers. One aspect of doing a river cruise that is very nice is that all meals are included. I won't have to buy any more $104 lunches...Yea!....Jim

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