Visited September 2017
Five (and a half) years ago, I launched Jahaungeer with a post on our 2013 trip to Bruges, the charming, curated Belgian town about an hour outside of Brussels. As one might recall, we fell in love with the place on our short, 12 hours in the medieval city center. That entire Europe trip, we couldn’t help but reflect on Bruges and all agreed that we wish we could have spent more time in the quaint village. If only we had the chance.
Four years later and I found that chance. When assembling a trip to northern continental-Europe, I realized that the cheapest way to return to Copenhagen (where our flights in and out of Europe anchored us) was via a one-way flight from Brussels. And I figured if we were headed to Brussels, we might as well trek the one hour further to our favorite European town.
And so, in September of 2017, we found ourselves back in Bruges, Belgium
We arrived in Bruges after a long morning of travel from Amsterdam. Having learned the lesson of treacherous, cobblestone-laden paths from the train station to our hotel on the last trip, this time we opted to head into town via bus. At €3 each, it was well worth the price and we were dropped off nearly beside our hotel—the Hotel Jan Brito (affectionately, the Juan Burrito). On the last trip, this 400 year old boutique hotel provided the highest degree of hospitality I’d ever experienced and this trip was off to a brilliant start as well. We were welcomed back (I’m sure the computer system flagged us as return guests, but still!) and were given a run-down of the city via map.
We stashed our bags and were soon off to the city center.
After a few pictures with the town’s main, iconic vista, we were off to the primary tourist attraction—a boat ride through the city’s canals. Between Copenhagen, Hamburg, Amsterdam, and now Bruges, canals and waterways were the de facto theme of our trip and it would have been a shame to miss a joy ride on this touristy circuit. We know because we missed a ride on them, last time!
After paying $20ish for admission, we were soon boarded onto a slender, tidy vessel. With one row of tandem seats centered on the deck, flanked by bench seating on the port and starboard sides, the boat was small enough to require boarding with care so as to not cause bobbing and swaying. It honestly felt more like a Storybookland skiff than the 100-seater canal boats we enjoyed in Amsterdam. But these were on no track!
Once away, we zipped through the canals, under bridges, and along the 400 year old walls, windows, and garden boxes. Though the ride featured narration by the pilot, we were mostly engrossed in the sights and sounds from the water’s surface.
After darting from the south-western reaches of the canals to the north-eastern edge of the medieval area, our pilot soon returned us to the city center in time to collect tips and catch a short break before his next excursion. This must-do, “e-ticket” experience was over far too soon, but I looked forward to more playtime in the city.
We disembarked and headed north into the town’s center courtyard. Flanked by the imposing Belfry and Provinciaal Hof buildings on one side and a row of restaurants and flower boxes on the other, this cobblestone courtyard still felt right out of the opening of Beauty and the Beast. We grabbed a few pictures and headed west into another, adjacent courtyard.
In this courtyard stood the famous Basiliek van het Heilig Bloed, or Basilica of the Holy Blood. Though comparatively small in stature compared to the great cathedrals of Europe, the church is famous for housing a vial allegedly containing Jesus Christ’s blood, if you believe in that sort of thing. Holy blood or not, I imagine it would be pretty cool to see an artifact plundered during the second Crusade up close. However, the church was closed for lunch hours or something and with limited time, we had to move on.
We skirted along the city’s north-eastern waterways, watching the cruises circle where we rode just an hour before. After a short glance, we chose to pass on the town’s chocolate museum and continue walking. We were officially in territory unexplored on our last journey to Bruges and didn’t quite know where we were wandering to. Slowly, the medieval Flemish buildings gave way to still old, still charming, but more utilitarian structures. With bikes, and cars, and trash set out, we had clearly left the touristy areas and were passing by the homes of Bruggian residents. But we continued on amidst the promise of a city park and…
…windmills!
Encircling most of the Bruges city center is a green city park, ringed by a broad canal. Among the paths and trees and perched atop conical hills were several windmills. These included the Sint-Janshuismolen, active since 1770, and available for photos in its still-pristine condition.
We continued along the park trail for over a mile, stopping occasionally to sightsee at another windmill, bridge, or medieval city gate. While any view towards the city center featured the same medieval charm we had come to know of Bruges, the view across the canal was that of a modern, European city. This didn’t diminish the allure of Bruges, but we were soon ready to return to the clay and tangerine brick buildings and cobblestone streets of old.
Traveling inwards, we arrived at Wijngaardplein, a small grassy park jutting out into the canals. We immediately recognized the area from our canal ride earlier and the hoard of swans dotting the grassy point with their fuzzy feathers.
A little further up the road was the Huisbrouwerij De Halve Maan, Bruges’ local brewery. Naturally specializing in Belgian-styled beers, the joint seemed to be hopping. Rather than queueing, I saw a bottle shop across the street and opted to grab a few of their beers to-go, for enjoyment back at the hotel room.
With beer in hand, it was time to find a treat for Cindy. We grabbed dinner at a cheap shop, saving enough money to justify a large chocolate purchase for her. With many chocolatiers dotted along this particular avenue, Cindy saw the price tags that would win her over.
I, too, saw something that I would find interesting!
After a trip to the chocolate shop, we were soon back at our hotel room. Though our day in Bruges had been short, we had seen far more of the city on this tour than on the previous. Combining the two experiences, we really felt as though we had gathered a sense of the place.
I cracked open a beer and watched the sunset over the belfry. After a thousand kilometers, our journey south through Europe had reached its furthest point. Though it would take 48 hours and three countries to get home, our return journey was about to begin.
The next morning, we awoke comfortably. Unlike our last trip, which involved a 5am departure for Paris, we were able to sleep in and enjoy the full breakfast spread Hotel Jan Brito had to offer. Even despite our arrival at a proper breakfast time, the dining room was still empty—we had the space entirely to ourselves!
Afterwards, we had a bit of time to kill before we had to move onward. I saw a terrific looking bottle shop just off the main promenade. I stopped to grab a custom arranged six-pack to take home and wrapped the bottles in my dirty laundry before departing for the train station.
While the bus lines from the train station conveniently stopped by our hotel, the outward bus lines weren’t terribly helpful to us. As a result, we ignored lessons learned and decided to walk. The one mile journey was as bouncy and unpleasant as I originally remembered. We arrived at the train station sweaty and sore but in time for our 11:00am train to Brussels.
While my story could end here, I’d like to share one more anecdote. As we found our seats and the train left for Brussels, we were approached by an oblivious American couple. The man and woman each had a massive piece of luggage—the kind inappropriate for train travel—and seemed unsure as to if they were even on the right train. The man approached us and asked, “Excuse me—do you speak English?”
I know this is silly, but that was probably the greatest compliment I could have unwittingly received. The idea that we looked comfortable and blended in so well that we could be confused as locals just tickled me greatly. I responded, “We do!” and after basking in the man’s relief, proceeded to hear his confusion regarding the trip to Brussels. I answered his question about the confusing Brussels train station arrangement and went back to gazing out the window.
This trip to Europe was our last, custom-built excursion before Wes entered our lives. It means a lot to me that we got so good at this traveling business that we were confused as locals. There would be one more stop before we returned home, to be covered in a future post. Until then, we’ll catch up soon!
For more photos from our time in Bruges, in 2017, check out the gallery below!
