Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Day 10--Exploring Bruges

A whole day to explore Bruges! 










Our first stop was the Markt,





where we planned to climb 366 stairs to the top of the Bell Tower.




Beautiful views!



(Lists distances to other cities, which I thought was pretty cool)



(made with autostitch again)


 After stumbling to a bench to rest as the bells started a short concert, we took a quick trip back to the hotel to get our purses (having our hotel be so close made it an easy decision to leave the heavy bags for the climb), then made a quick shopping break. 

(Christmas ornaments!)




before heading off on Rick Steves' Markt to Moat tour, which took us to the Windmills near the old town moat! 


















On the way back to the main park of town we stopped at two of Ricks recommended chocolatiers to get a few samples. 







From here it was time for real food--lunch! We stopped at a cafe on the Markt square. Very pretty setting, and a sandwich!





After lunch we started Rick's other walk to the main sites, 


(more chocolate stores!)



 starting with Burg Square, just off the Markt.  We went in the Basilica of the Holy Blood, said to have a vial of the Blood of Christ. 





 The bottom of this church was in dark Romanesque style 





then upstairs into the gothic part of the church with its shrine to Christ's blood.





Then we went back out in the square then into Town hall to see the banquet hall (painted in the 1800s in neogothic style--oh, my pre-Raphaelite heart!). 








 The ticket also included a visit to the Renaissance Hall where town leaders gathered for meetings.








We continued on with the walk, crossing through the Blinde-Ezelstraat.







From here, we basically retraced our steps from yesterday's walk, until we again reached the grounds of the Church of Our Lady.


 





(Twelve Aposotles line the nave)

(Very nice Baroque pulpit) 

(Tombs of Mary of Burgundy and Charles the Bold)



This church is the home of a statute by Michelangelo of Mary holding baby Jesus. 






 At this point we had finished so it was back to yesterdays tearoom for hot chocolate, (including a taste of chocolates from the store across the street)


and a fancy dessert of chocolate ganache around chocolate mouse with orange.



When in Bruges!

After a brief break it was off to dinner in the Huidevettersplein. We apparently choose a fancy place for tonight's dinner!  




 (I had pork cheek stew with fries--yummy!)

(View from our table by the window)



Later we headed back to the Burg Square 





and then do the Markt for nighttime pictures.








 Now that it is full dark, another couple pictures in Burg Square,



before heading back.


 



2 comments:

  1. • I don't recall much (or anything) about the actual tower-climbing process in Bruges. I remember the long-ass wait to actually begin the climb, and then being at the top. Which probably means that the ascent itself wasn't too terrible! Definitely a plus to be free of my absurdly giant bag, which is hard to maneuver when climbing.
    • LOL Käthe Wohlfahrt. We were so excited when we saw it.
    • Every single photo from the Markt to Moat walk is amazing, but Photo No. 27 needs to be on your commemorative wall!
    • Ugh, those chocolate shops. I miss being surrounded by chocolate shops and therefore able to purchase handfuls of chocolate at any given moment. I feel like one of those shops was the one with the amazinggggg salted caramels.
    • I have no memory of that lunch place whatsoever. It looks like we had an impressive view, though. WHAT DID I EATTTTTTT?
    • I want to teleport myself into your photos of that tearoom with the hot chocolate, haha. It probably would have been obscene for us to squeeze in a third trip there, but I 100% would have been up for it had it been physically possible.
    • This was the dinner where that obnoxious girl at the table next to us WOULD NOT STOP TALKING ABOUT GAME OF THRONES while I was trying to remain unspoiled! Sorry that I spent the entire meal with my hands over my ears while humming loudly to myself to drown out her voice. That was probably as annoying for you as the girl was for me, haha.
    • I think this was also the restaurant where I ordered beef stew and had to eat it with a fork. Challenge accepted!
    • LOL at your photos of the same buildings in different phases of descending night. A precursor of Grand Place in Brussels. :-P. Very lovely, though, as always!

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    Replies
    1. Commenting again to officially correct the record that this was NOT the night that I hummed my way through dinner and ate an entire bowl of beef stew with a fork because I was too embarrassed to request a spoon for some reason. Those are tomorrow night's anecdotes!! This was a different dinner of which I have absolutely no recollection whatsoever, haha.

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