Beautiful Bruges
Alison Laycock
During the 4 hour train journey from Luxembourg to Bruxelles-midi and then to Bruges, I felt sorry for Bruges as it had to follow on from Luxembourg. As we know from my previous post I wasn’t just impressed with Luxembourg but I fell in love with the architecture and everything else I saw and heard Impressed with Luxembourg.
Of course, I needn’t have worried as once the Markt came into sight with the historical buildings around the edges, I was already excited to arrive at the hotel so that I could immediately get back out onto the streets. The Markt pulls you in in the daylight and the dark and you find yourself just taking in all the buildings, the people around and the horse-drawn carriages. I’m not quite sure my photos do it justice but let’s try.
Once again, I was in the land of canals and my thoughts are wondering how I’ll know the difference between Amsterdam and Bruges when I look at my photos months from now. As with Amsterdam, I found I could easily wander the cobbled streets, sit by the canals and take photos of the canals with the buildings reflected in the water.
Historium, Brugge: I wasn’t looking for a museum experience whilst in Bruges as walking the streets appealed so much, so in that sense it was the Historium which chose me. I remember walking past and glancing in to the entrance and the next minute I was walking to the counter and buying tickets. I chose the explorer ticket for €14 and was also given an audio guide which I was told would move on automatically. The experience is visual and audio as you walk along through the rooms which take you physically and mentally through medieval Bruges. As an adult, I loved it and there were also children with their parents who seemed to find lots to enjoy. The quiz at the end and the way they displayed more information was really appealing especially as you could also listen to it rather than reading it. The panoramic view is also part of the audio guide which provided some interesting facts about the oldest buildings on the Markt.
Costumes de Venise: On Saturday 12th January, as I was walking towards the centre, a crowd gathered outside the theatre which caught my attention. When I looked further, the colourful costumes stood out and I realised later an international group of 50 men and women dressed in magnificent costumes spent 2 days in Bruges. I saw them Saturday 12th January by the theatre.
Camino: I was particularly excited to find a Camino shell outside my hotel and then of course had to go and find more which I did outside St Jacob’s church. As a pilgrim, it is always interesting to see other camino routes and of course each one seems to lead to Santiago. Of course this won’t appeal to all, however for those pilgrims and those wanting to be, I’m sue you’ll want to find them to.
There are many other churches around Bruges and I also managed to go into Onze Lieuve Vrouwekerk and St Salvatorskerk which were both welcoming, peaceful and free which always surprises me especially after having paid entry to so many during this trip.
I spent 3 nights in Bruges and would have like an extra night only because the rain prevented me from reaching some areas, however in the summer months, I imagine that 3 nights would be enough. Bruges has a wonderful feel to it and is easy to navigate so you won’t get lost and if shopping is your thing then you won’t be disappointed.