rampchic

Two friends take off for 6 days in Belgium with no plan except for accommodations. We had a fantastic time and encourage anyone who has the opportunity to visit Belgium to do so.
While we did not have any outrageously funny incidents such as those often chronicalled by Fodorites, I'll do my best to impart some information in as witty a manner as I am capable.

rampchic

We fly AA from Chicago to Brussels, scheduled to arrive a little after 8 on the morning of Jan 27th. We arrive on time, grab our hand luggage and set out in search of the train station. We speak neither French nor Flemish, but in a pinch I can read enough French to usually keep us out of jail. In this case the signs are easy to follow and after a serious of escalators down, we find ourselves at the ticketing booth. We are headed to Bruges and are informed that we can take the airport train to either Centraal (sp?) or Midi stations, then connect to the Bruges train. We spend 26 euros on 2 walkup fares and are on our way! Despite the train to Bruges being about 15 minutes late, we still make fantastic time and after catching a cab at the Bruges train station, we present ourselves at 10:30am at the door of our bed & breakfast - the Sint Niklaas. We are booked here for 2 nights and I had indicated to the owner, Anne, that I thought we would be there around lunchtime. Fortunately, she was able to show us to our room at that time and we were able to freshen up before hitting the streets. We had room #3 on the top floor which was spotless and delightful. We emerged ready to tackle Bruges - or so we thought!
Anne provided us with a map and some restaurant suggestions as we were both ravenous. It was quite cold when we headed out and quite a few of the canals were frozen over so we decided hot chocolate was in order along with lunch. In our jetlagged state, we wandered by the same store front with "Hooka Pipe Starter Kits" in the window three times. Really? After about 45 minutes of circling, we located Tante Marie's where we shared a "trio of savories" - quiche w/bacon, cheese croquettes & foccaccia w/parma ham. We each got a small pot of hot chocolate (best I have ever tasted) and we felt ready to brave the streets and the cold.
Still not firing on all cylinders, we stumbled about until we located the Stadhuis, where we purchased a Museum card and then spent about an hour learning more about the history and governance of Bruges.

jamikins

Looking forward to more!

rampchic

The Musea Brugge card cost us 15 euros apiece and was well worth it over the 2 day visit. We then headed to the Gruuthuse to enjoy the tapestries and other objects from a wealthy life between the 15th & 19th century. From there even we couldn't get lost finding the Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk (Church of Our Lady) that boasts the only Michelangelo sculpture to leave Italy during his lifetime. Seriously, it was colder inside the church than it was outside, and that is saying something! We dragged ourselves back to the B & B where our gracious hostess treated us to a pot of tea and a roaring fire in the lounge. Before long, we were both touring the backside of our eyelids. We awoke and were dispatched to Sale & Pepe (salt & pepper)- a charming little Italian Bistro that was quite nearby, where we each chose one of the day's suggestions which were delightful. Our filling meal beside the fireplace, a neglible amount of sleep and an advil pm apiece and we were out for the next 12 hours!

joannyc

Will be there in Sept-Oct!

Waiting for your next installment! Good job!

rampchic

Thanks! I've been out of town again so I'll be back to finish this over the next few days.

irishface

Can't wait to hear the rest of the story! I love the expression "touring the backside of our eyelids"!

rampchic

After channeling Rip Van Winkle, we decided to work off our hearty breakfast at the Sint Niklaas by climbing the Belfort. For the uninitiated, it's 366 steps...progressively narrower until you resemble a dog chasing their tail for the last 12 steps. Two bits of good news: one, several places to stop and catch your breath on the way up (or down) and two: the view from the top is well worth the climb! We shot some decent pictures through the wire enclosure....not sure if that is to keep the pidgeons out or the jumpers in. On the way down we stop in the treasury room for a break and we chat with a young couple from Los Angeles. We exchange some laughs and travel tales and continue back down to terra firma. My travel companion suggests that we have earned a break and we cross the Markt and decide upon the De Beurze Restaurant and Tea Room. The blazing fire and good natured server put us at ease immediately and we embark on the next phase of our Belgian Experience: beer tasting. We sample the Brugge Blond, Hoegaarden White (wheat) and a Brugse Zot. By now my companion thinks we should stumble back into the Markt saying "Do you know Anne? We're staying at her house." Note to self, check the alcohol content before ordering. A croque monsieur sobers us up enough to pay the check and head back out into the cold.
I had the Bejinhof on my "must see" list, so we walk over there, pausing frequently to enjoy the silence and take lots of pictures. We pass Minnewater...more pictures. Around this time, we decide to embark on phase three of our Begian Experience: chocolate. Did I mention that there are 52 chocolate shops in Bruges? We stopped into 2-3 and sampled a few pieces in each one on this walk. Working our way back closer to "home", we decide to stop at the hopsital museum, which we both really enjoyed. Then it was serious chocolate purchasing at The Chocolate Line and Leonidas. We drop our purchases off at the Sint Niklaas so that we can go back to phase two: beer tasting.

lyra895

Very much enjoying your report! I'm looking forward to spending a few days in Bruges, so reading your expriences is really fascinating. Can't wait for more!

rampchic

Our logical choice to begin beer tasting in earnest is a place called "The Beer Wall"...with a whole wall of Belgian beers displayed on a long walkway heading into the place...which was actually some sort of tent with space heaters. It was also packed, so we just have a couple of quick beers & a bag of crisps and move on. We're hungry by now, but it's still too early and the restos aren't open yet, so woe is us...we need to sample more beers! We find what is clearly a neighborhood place and hunker down by a roaring fire to try Belle-Vue Kriek (cherry) and a Tripel Karmeliet. Enjoying both, we try to pry a resto suggestion from our server with thoughts of moules & frites. He turns out to be possibly the only Brugian who dislikes this local dish, but he gamely sketches us a map to a place he is sure we'll enjoy and so back out into the cold we go. We must have picked up some sort of learning disability on the flight from the States bcause we have no luck finding the place and after wandering for 30-40 minutes, we give up and eat 2 doors down from where we had lunch. Again, our servers are a couple of festive fellows with good senses of humor and dinner stretches into a game of "Name that Tune" with 80's pop and disco songs. Eventually we fall into bed with visions of lambic beers and chocolate truffles in our heads.

rampchic

It's time to depart Bruges so our hostess calls us a taxi and back to the train station we go. We decide to purchase tickets with a stopover in Ghent as my travel companion has expressed an interest in seeing Gravensteen Castle. We stash our rolling suitcases into a large locker at the Ghent station and head off in search off what is supposed to be a very convenient transit system into the Central Area. We locate maps and trams with no difficulty but for once, all signs and instructions are in Flemish & French only. We roll the dice and jump onto a tram with a sign that is flashing Gravensteen...with no idea of if and where we pay and if so...how much? We take some seats and a herd of schoolchildren and their teachers climb on. The youngsters are excited and the teachers are trying to settle them down so the next thing we know, the group breaks out into a little children's song in Flemish. It is a charming moment and my companion pulls out a Flip video camera and catches much of it for us to enjoy later. Finally, we are the last ones on the tram which hasn't moved in awhile. Several kindly souls have obviously tried to tell us that we have reached the end of the line, but as neither of us speaks a word of Flemish all we can do is smile and nod like a couple of simpletons. We eventually get the idea so we exit and follow the crowd to Het Gravensteen. Now I've visited quite a few castles in various countries and with either guidebooks, audioguides or actual tour guides but trust me - the folks here have really outdone themselves. With the price of admission, you are given a small portable video device and they have made a short film that takes place in all of the areas that you are walking through. So, like an audioguide, when you reach a room with a number on the wall, you punch it into the guide and a little scene plays. It takes place back in medieval times and then switches to black & white and current times where the tale turns to the actors playing the parts and what their little dramas are all about. It made for a unique and delightful visit. By then, our hunger got the best of us so despite the pouring rain, we headed for the Korenmarkt with thoughts of some hot chocolate and sandwiches. We located an establishment and just as we warmed up and were about to dig into our hot appfelstrudel, some characters arrived including an interesting Brazilian woman who was determined to become our lifelong friend, a sullen Belgian with a dog-in-a-raincoat and a man of about 60 who was clearly dead drunk at noon. We wolfed down the strudel in record time (a shame because it was really quite tasty) and beat a hasty retreat back out into the Maelstrom that downtown Ghent currently is. By way of explanation, the city of Ghent is obviously in the middle of a number of massive urban renewal projects, so there is construction everywhere, including blocks of torn up streets and sidewalks. I am certain that is will turn out to be a great investment in the future and a joy to behold, but in a steady freezing rain in January, there is little appeal.
We slog our way back to where the tram dropped us off and board another back to the station. We see some people sliding what appear to be transit cards into slots, but not everyone does it and no one seems to be paying any attention, so we don our simpleton looks again and make our way back to the train station, reclaim our bags and jump on the train for Brussels.