Internet service is so expensive and slow on the ship that I am going to try to write in a Word document and paste it into the blog. Therefore, my font may change and it may look different but as you know I am frugal and all about time management.
We arrived in Zeebrugge Belgium yesterday around 8:00 a.m. There were several options to get to the city of Brugges which were quite expensive. The cheapest option was to take a cruise line bus and tour Brugges on your own. This would cost $69 per person. With my previous research I realized we could probably get there on our own. A shuttle bus took us to the city of Blankengere. From there we took a 15 minute train ride into Brugges. The round trip ticket on the train was 3.80 Euro each. So for a total of 7.60 Euro we both got to Brugges. It was a good experience to travel by train with the locals and very cost efficient. We took a short cab ride from the train station into the center of Brugges. I tried to talk Bill into renting bikes so we could ride around faster. He gave me a bit fat “no” on that one knowing that I am quite clumsy and no match for the wet streets. I daresay had we done that the locals would have been taking pictures of the two fat asses bumping down the cobblestone streets.
It was raining when we left the ship so it was very cold and damp. For the rest of the day it misted rain which interfered with my high quality photographic attempts. Despite the rain, the town was beautiful. It was early Sunday morning so it felt like Bill and I had the city to ourselves. We walked the cobblestones streets to a less touristy part of town. I tried to get good pictures but is was so misty that it is difficult to see much. In order to keep my camera dry, I made a little condom for it out of a plastic bag. Not very stylish but quite comfortable. I am sure that when people saw that plastic bag protruding from my stomach they assumed I had a severe medical problem. Bill did not find me very sexy with this ornamentation – like I really cared. With the rain all day and having a hood on, my hair was quite slick and boyish looking by the time we got back to the train. I have a bad hair day everyday so it didn’t bother me.
The two sounds that stood out that morning were church bells and horses clip clopping down the cobblestone streets. Some of the buildings were from the 12th century so it was like being in a fairy tale dream. Bill and I wandered into little alleyways and discovered beautiful little gardens. Brugges is the most beautiful city I have been to in Europe.
Brugges is often referred to as the other Venice in Europe due to the canals and its history of trade and culture. This is one of the few European cities that remained untouched during WWII. Hitler appreciated the art and culture of the town. He made an agreement with the Belgian government not to bomb the city. Thank you Adolph.
Since Bill and I have previously spent one day in Brugges we didn’t spend any time in Market Square. We wanted to climb the 366 steps to the top of the Belfry for panoramic views. However, since it was raining we saw no need to go up there. We needed to save our knees and feet for the rest of the day.
There are many art museums in Brugges. To many people’s surprise, Bill and I really like art. We knew we could not make it to more than one with other things having been planned for the day. I read about the Memling Museum which is part of St. John’s Hospital so that was our first official stop. The Hospital of St. John dates back to 1181 and was run by Augustine nuns. The artwork and different objects from the hospital were displayed throughout what was an old hospital ward. This was also a religious center so there were many religious icons.
I insisted that we take a canal boat tour despite the rain. Bill relinquished and it was a great way to see a lot of the city. We were quite wet and cold and it was time to feed Big Billy something. We stumbled upon one of the 130 microbreweries in Belgium. The beer and cheese were wonderful and Bill was very happy. When he said, “I could stay here all day” I knew it was time to move on. We walked to the Lake of Love where Bill instantly became the romantic I have always dreamed of – not! Anyway, it was very pretty.
One of our best memories of Brugges was the Church of Our Lady which was built in the 13th century. One of the most beautiful statues I have ever seen is the Madonna and Child marble statue. It is the only Michelangelo statue outside of Italy. It was very special to spend a part of a Sunday in this beautiful church.
Kevin gave me instructions on what souvenirs to bring him. One was some chocolate from Belgium. We did buy him some and then decided it may make our bags even heavier. So Kevin, the chocolate was delicious. Thanks for the idea.
I am not accustomed to paying to pee. In Brugges you pay a little lady .50 Euro for that privilege. Thankfully, Bill and I had the same urinary schedule so we paid one Euro each time we needed to relieve ourselves. I tried to ask the lady who gets the money for those who pee but she didn’t speak English or she did and did not want to answer my intelligent question. I guess I should be very proud of my job as compared to the pee lady; however, she did seem quite content with her occupation. So what do you get for .50 Euro in a water closet (WC=toilet)? After you do your business she comes in the stall and wipes down the seat. She then hands you 2 paper towels. I noticed cotton hand towels drying on a nearby radiator so was very proud of my 2 (she wouldn’t give you one) paper towels. The real problem was when Bill had to relieve himself. You could see into the men’s WC as the men did their business. He was quite uncomfortable when the pee lady would come in while he was busy. I asked what she was doing in there and he said, “She was just checking things out.” I am not sure if he meant checking him out or checking out the cleanliness of the toilet. Either way I was not particularly concerned. Bill is still slightly traumatized by the experience.
Headed for Copenhagen tomorrow. Thanks for indulging me and reading my blog.
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