In Bruges

Now that we were all “warred out”, it was time to head to a city that I, like many others, was inspired to see by the movie of the same name.  What can I say – it is picture book perfect.  The usual adjectives of beautiful, stunning etc come to mind but they really don’t do justice to the wonder of the city.  The mediaeval city has been exquisitely preserved and it is surely the most relaxing city to lose oneself in (except for the hordes of tourists, which are to be expected).  Lots of cobbled laneways, stone bridges, lovely churches and beautiful statues abound.

 

 

The highlight for me was catching a glimpse of the most famous dog in Bruges – Fidel.  Fidel is a golden Labrador who lives a charmed existence at the Cote Canal bed and breakfast overlooking the main canal.  He spends his days sleeping on a pillow in a gable window, sticking out from a mediaeval house over the canal.  Fidel has appeared in many tourists’ photos and he even had a cameo in the film “In Bruges”.  It certainly is a dog’s life!

 

Michael walked up the 366 steps of the belfry.  I remained below, as I didn’t like the thought of climbing the narrow, spiral staircase.  Michael enjoyed the climb and the view from the top of the tower over the old city.

Michelangelo Statue only one outside of Italy

 

We took a canal cruise around the city, which was spectacular.  We don’t normally do such “touristy” things, however Bruges in one city which is appreciated more fully from the water.  We took our cruise early in the morning so the canal wasn’t overrun with all the other canal boats doing the same thing.  There are 20 boats, which ply the river and by the afternoon it does look a little overcrowded.  We passed Fidel’s window but he was taking break from sleeping.

Bruges Brewery

A brewery tour was a must since we were in Belgium so we headed to De Halve Maan brewery. We spent a very pleasant hour touring the brewery and learning all about Belgian beer finishing, naturally, with a tasting.  One piece of interesting information I learned was that women between the ages of 50 and 60 years should drink one glass of Belgian beer per day due to its high oestrogen content.  I am not sure that I trust medical advice given by a brewery!