Bruges
September 22, 2013 [continued]: We arrived in Bruges without any trouble. We stayed at another airbnb apartment and it was lovely! It was two bedrooms, so more than enough space, with the living room and kitchen area on the second floor (first floor by European standards), so we had a perfect view of the canal out front. Our apartment was located on quite possibly the prettiest, most fairytale-ish street in Bruges.
We unloaded our bags into our new apartment, then parked our car farther north in a residential area with free parking. On our walk back, we saw a bunch of old-style windmills (very dutch). After settling in, we went out for a snack (frites) in Markt Square. We also visited a bottle shop that had a great, huge selection (and cheap compared to the states – 2.15 EU for a bottle of Duchesse de Bourgogne, a typically expensive sour). Back at our apartment, we watched “In Bruges” with Colin Ferrell. It was a dark comedy (if you can even call it a comedy), which is not my type of movie; however, it was fun seeing places we had just walked by/through (like crossing under the Belfort). We went back out later in the evening. We tried to go to Tom’s diner for dinner, which was highly recommended in the guest book at the apartment, but it was closed for two weeks or so. Se la vie. We ended up at an irish pub for a more american style dinner. Fortunately, we got some local flavor through our brews — bruges zot blond.
September 23, 2013: We woke up leisurely the following morning and made breakfast at the apartment. We made a breakfast scramble with eggs, some leftover reypeneur cheese and sliced chicken. Not surprisingly, Rob had a beer with breakfast and in response to a comment by me, confessed he had never heard of “keg and egg.” Did we go to the same college? Different circles, I guess! After breakfast, we headed to the Belfry and climbed every step (366 to be exact). The view, although nice, was not quite as nice as some of the views from other belfries we visited during our trip — especially because there was some sort of metal lattice spanning the entire view, so you had to sneak a peek through the small openings to get a good look. Not at all good for pictures.
After our descent from the belfry, we went to a tea room for tartlets and coffee (or in my case 1/2 espresso and 1/2 hot chocolate). Relish and very quaint. We sat on a cute bench outside sipping from our teacups and taking in a good view of Markt Square.
Next, we walked to a nunnery, Begijnhof, by minnewater park. It was very green, pretty and serene (other than fellow tourists). We next visited the Chocolate Line for some belgian chocolate — some to eat and some to take home to share. After the Chocolate Line, we walked a bit more and found a beer place which was recommended — bruges beertje or something like that. Looked nice, but wasn’t open immediately, so we decided we may comeback. We popped home for a bit so Rob could do a bit of computer work. I fed the ducks outside since it was such a beautiful day.
Sept. 22-24: Bruges
Sept. 24-28: Brussels
