We had an amazing and busy day in Bruges yesterday! It started off with some breakfast that our Airbnb hosts put together for their guests. Just some bread, pastries, meats/cheeses, yogurt, etc. As soon as we finished breakfast, we were out!
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| View from our room |
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| Steep stairs! |
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| Where we are staying |
First we walked to one of the four main entrance gates to Bruges. Along the way, we found lots of adorable bunnies! I was a little too excited...
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| Gentpoort - one of the gates |
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| BUNNIES! |
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| Former guard tower |
We then made our way to the Beijnhof, which is a peaceful convent garden. Only "sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict" live here, but you can walk along the grounds to explore the area, check out their church, and even visit a tiny museum that is more of a re-creation of one of the houses from the 16th century.
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| At Beijnhof |
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| Some of the houses |
After the Beijnhof, we took a lovely 30-minute canal tour! It was really nice being able to admire the city by sitting on a boat.
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| Oldest bridge in Bruges |
We then checked out the Museum St-Janshospitaal, which is a restored 12th century hospital/chapel. The museum talked about how the sick came to the church to be cared for by the priests and nuns. There were also many displays of 15th century art that depicted religious orders caring for the sick/poor, old medical tools, and old hospital records from the time. It was an interesting exhibit!
After the museum, it was snack time. So of course we had to have more waffles. I had a waffle covered in Nutella, while Adam had one covered with strawberries, caramel sauce, and whipped cream. It all was just so-dang-good!
Next, we hopped over to check out Bruges’ Onze-Lieve-Vrowekerk. While it’s not as tall as Antwerp’s, it does have Michelangelo’s famous Madonna and Child sculpture!
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| Sculpture in the center is Madonna and Child by Michelangelo |
By this time I was desperately needing coffee and some rest, so I decided to get a cappuccino at a cafe while Adam took a brewery tour at Brouwerij De Halve Maan. He had a lot of fun, and said his tour guide was hilarious…cracking jokes left and right. They were also able to go up to the rooftop to get a view of the city.
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| Views from Adam's brewery tour |
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| The brewery's bistro |
We circled up after his tour, and enjoyed a glass of the brewery’s beer before heading over to the Basilica of the Holy Blood. This church apparently has a phial of Jesus’ blood that was brought over during the Crusades. But of course, you needed to pay money to the church in order to see “Christ’s blood” and there was even a priest who was watching over it. For us, it just felt too weird to stand in line, walk up to an alter with a priest standing there, and look at something that most likely isn’t real. So instead we admired the art and architecture!
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| Basilica of the Holy Blood |
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| What they carry it around in for ceremonies |
Next stop was Choco Story! This is the chocolate museum in Bruges where you get to sample some chocolate, and learn about the history of chocolate.
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| =) |
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| Statues made out of chocolate! |
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| More chocolate statues |
After Choco Story, we just walked around the city for a bit. Bruges is a stunning city, and it’s so picturesque!
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| Best part of the city! |
By 6, it was time for some more Belgian Beer, so we stopped by a place that has 400 different kinds of brews! After our drinks, we went and god some dinner at a place called De Bierbistro. I was craving some mussels and fries, while Adam wanted a traditional Belgian stew (both are popular dishes here). So we got what we wanted, and both dishes were very satisfying!
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| The beer menu |
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| Mouthwatering |
We ended our evening by taking a stroll downtown. We were able to watch a little bit of a free concert and stroll around the square while admiring the beauty of the buildings at night.
I'm loving your adventure...and still seeing that you're actually involved in this trip as evidenced by the pics. :)
ReplyDeleteYay! Thanks Casey =) I'll keep working on the pics ;). Hope you're doing well!
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