After one busy day of sightseeing in Brussels we felt like we had seen it all.  So on Sunday we decided to head out to see new sights in the nearby city of Bruges, Belgium.  Located in the Dutch speaking part of Belgium, called Flanders, Bruges reached it peak on the world stage in the middle ages.  Its old brick buildings, and narrow canals have survived through centuries of war and modernization to give today’s tourists a wonderful glimpse into its former glory.

At the Brussels train station we were happy to find out the round trip ticket to Bruges was just 15 euros.  However, we were unhappy to find out that our train was half an hour late.  I guess if you want Swiss efficiency you have to pay for it.  Eventually, around 12:30 p.m., we made it to Bruges, then we took the short walk from the train station to the historic old town.

The old town of Bruges is larger than most other European old towns I’ve seen.  The uniform brick buildings are built with no space in between which makes wondering through the city’s narrow brick streets feel like walking through a maze.  Even though the city center is almost 10 miles from the ocean, Bruges rose in power because of ocean trade.  A system of narrow canals, with low bridges run throughout the city harkening back to a time when they would have been an adequate size for merchant ships.

Our first stop in Bruges was a brewery called, De Halve Maan.  We reserved a spot for the 2 p.m. brewery tour, then grabbed some lunch while we waited.  Our crowded English tour went right after a French tour, which went after a Dutch tour.  This caused us to often be waiting for the groups ahead of us as we went along.  The brewery isn’t old by European standards, being founded in 1856, but the tour took us through a facility barely changed by time.  As we walked up and down stairs, and into rooms where I wasn’t the only one who had to duck, our tour guide showed us the interesting old equipment used for brewing.  We learned that currently only the first process of brewing is done on site, then the beer is piped almost 2 miles to a larger, more modern, facility to finish.  The best part of the tour was getting a beer at the end of it, that came along with the ticket price.

After the brewery we continued our exploring by heading to one of only three buildings that rise about Bruges’s uniformly short skyline: the Church of Our Lady Bruges.  (Our tour would later take us to St. Salvator’s Cathedral, and the Belfry of Bruges, the other two tall buildings of the town).  The Church of Our Lady of Bruges is famous for having a 401 ft tower, the tallest structure in Bruges, and second tallest brickwork tower in the world, as well as having an altarpiece sculpture created by Michelangelo.  The white marble sculpture features the Madonna and child and gained fame for twice being looted, once by the French, in 1794, and once by the Germans, in 1944.  Outside the church we saw a replica of the sculpture, and inside we learned it would cost 4 euros to see the real thing.  Being cheapskates we felt satisfied only seeing the replica, and continued our tour by walking next to the cathedral.

Saint Salvator’s cathedral was a pretty typical medieval European church.  It too was unique in being made of brick instead of stone. Inside the church there were heavy renovations going on that took away some of its awe factor.  It was interesting to learn that parts of it date to the 10th century, and that it only became the city’s cathedral in 1834.  In Bruges’s heyday a different church called St. Donatian’s was the cathedral, but it was razed by French revolutionaries in 1799.

From the cathedral we followed curving, narrow streets to the main square called the Grote Markt.  When we arrived we stood amid a throng of people admiring the 360 degree view of charming, but common, medieval buildings.  One building, however, the Belfry of Bruges, stood out.  At 272 feet tall, the octagonal, intricately designed, Gothic bell tower has risen to be the symbol of Bruges.  First built in 1240, it has been destroyed by fire multiple times, and had various additions added to it throughout the centuries.  There is a narrow steep staircase of 366 steps that lead to the top, but we decided out\r view from the square was awe inspiring enough.

Next to the Grote Markt square is a slightly smaller square called the Burg Square.  In this square there was some kind of event being put on by the police.  Among their various displays and booths the most interesting thing was a car that they would buckle people into then push a button to have it flip upside down.  Our purpose of entering the square, however wasn’t the festival.  We had come to see the Basilica of the Holy Blood located in the corner of the square, where allegedly a vial of Jesus Christ’s blood is kept.

According to legend Joseph of Arimathea collected the blood, and a nobleman named Thierry of Alsace brought it to Bruges after visiting the holy land as part of the Second Crusade around 1147. However conflicting theories say the vial may have come to Bruges sometime in the 1200’s, and have originated from the sacking of Constantinople in the Fourth Crusade.  Whatever its origin may be it has played an important part in the history of Bruges. Unfortunately when we came into the Basilica a note said it was just out of sight behind a tabernacle.

We then began slowly walking back toward the train station, stopping often to admire the city and once for ice cream along the way.  As we crossed one of the many canals of the city we saw there was a boat tour ready to depart just below us, so we decided to hop aboard.  Cruising over the murky water the boat driver was also the tour guide telling all aboard about the buildings we passed and the history of the city in the three languages of Dutch, French, and English.

When we eventually made it back to the train station, we board a very crowded train that forced us to sit separately.  In Brussels we walked to the Grand Place for a beer and appetizer dinner, and enjoyed seeing the square lit up at night.

Our flight out was Monday afternoon, and after two busy days we took Monday easy.  Britt had to go to work, and left before Melissa and I  were out of bed.  Our laid back day began around 10 a.m. by walking through the large Parc du Cinquantenaire.  We found some famous Belgian style French fries for lunch and met up with Britt to say goodbye.  We then walked back to the Grand Place for one last visit and to have our last taste of Belgian Beer before boarding a train for the airport.

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