Bruges.

Bruges:

We awoke bright and early to catch our train to Bruges. The old town is so cute. Like many other old towns we’ve encountered, it looked like something out of a fairytale. Fall was in full swing by then, with the trees a broad array of colors. It was colder than in Paris, and the sharp wind cut right through us. Once we arrived at our hotel, we layered up, and made our way to lunch, and a free walking tour! The tour group was small, and even though none of us had seen the movie, “In Bruges,” the guide kept referring to it, and pointing out different spots from the movie. I guess we should watch it.

Got Belgium waffle? yummy.

Bruges used to be thee merchant port before Amsterdam took over. The old town looks like a mini Amsterdam, but much more quaint. The canals give the whole place a peaceful feel, and the cobblestone streets add a certain magic. Our tour guide took us to a Belgian chocolate shop, where we were able to sample the chocolate, we also had a chance to try some Belgian fries…NOT French fries, which were just okay. On our tour, we met an American, Alex. After the tour, the three of us shared a chocolate covered Belgian waffle as an appetizer, and then made our way to a bar that was pointed out to us by our tour guide.

Jackie and Alex

This bar is located in this narrow alley, which is actually a street. They have their own beer that can only be purchased on site, and they pair it with cheese. So, naturally we had to give it a try. We are happy to report that the special beer was quite good, as was the cheese. After beer, we went to a restaurant, also recommended by our guide, that offers local food at a decent price. We all tried the Flemish stew, again, good choice. We visited with Alex for a while, and I was shocked when I learned he was only 22. Not that he looks older, he is just so well spoken, intelligent, and mature, you would never guess he’s fresh out of college. We were talking about needing to buy a ticket to get back to Paris, and the trouble we have had with the French train system.

NIght in Bruges.

Alex told us that he found himself in the same position at one point, and he was instructed to go straight to the train conductor to get a seat. Apparently, since the French trains only hold a certain number of seats for pass holders, they fill up quickly, and more often than not, there are still available seats. The conductor basically charges you the price of the reservation and puts you in one of the open seats. Well, this information was revolutionary for us! He had found the loop-hole! The three of us walked around the city to take night pictures, tried and failed to get some hot chocolate, also recommended by our guide, said our good-byes and called it a night.

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The Markt of Bruges… the heart of the city

The next morning, we walked around the town and enjoyed the Christmas decorations. We had a hearty breakfast of Belgian waffles- this time with sour cherries and whipped cream. As we were stuffing our face, who do we run into? None other than our friend, Alex. Together we walked to see Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child, aka the Bruges’ Madonna. This famous sculpture was purchased by a family in Bruges, when it’s original owner in Italy, didn’t want it. It is one of the only Michelangelo sculptures that can be found outside of Italy. Side note, we recently saw ‘Monument’s Men,’ and were really excited that this Madonna was the holy grail, if you will, of art that was to be recovered. We were like…Ah! We’ve seen that! 🙂

Madonna and child by Michelangelo. Bruges

We walked across the street to the hot chocolate recommendation. They serve you hot milk in a cup and give you a separate cup of liquid chocolate from the chocolaterie across the street. Of course, this decadence would not be complete without a small variety of chocolates to nibble on. We felt sick afterward. Belgian waffles for breakfast and hot chocolate with more chocolate for lunch…ugh. But it sure was good going down!!! Our last stop was a brewery that was recommended by our new friend, Steve, from Paris. When we told him and Caroline we were going to Bruges, he mentioned that we HAD to go to the brewery. We didn’t want to do the whole tour, so we settled for a beer. It was a good choice. 

More beer in Bruges.

It had started to rain, so we decided to make our way to the train station. When we arrived, we asked about the next train to Paris…guess what??? Nothing available until around 9pm. Of course! We saw that there was another train leaving for Paris much sooner, but it was leaving from Brussels. We decided to try Alex’s trick from Brussels, so off we went. Once in Brussels, we noticed there were plenty of trains and thought…we’re in luck! We went to the conductor and…were instructed to go down to the ticket office. Ugh. Once at the ticket office, we were told we had two options, pay something like 300 euros to take the train, or take the bus for much less, but arrive in Paris around midnight. We didn’t like either of those options. We asked the guy about filling the open spaces on one of the trains, our “loop-hole.” He informed us that this only works with national rails, the French rail is private, and therefore they play by different rules. Doh!!! We opted for the regional slow train the following day.

Quick stop in Brussels.

We sat at a little cafe in the train station, ordered some tea, and used their wi-fi. We found a very economical hotel, not too far from the station. We booked, and started walking. After arriving at our hotel, which was one of the nicest we’ve stayed in, and had the best wi-fi by far, we found a great little sushi spot! Of course, we got lost on the way there, but everything was great, and again, very economical. We called Jean and Brenda from the hotel and told them that we wouldn’t be coming home until the following day.

Our short trip to Bruges turned out to be more of an adventure than either of us had planned, and I have to say, that in the end, we made lemonade with our lemons, and it turned out to be quite good!

To see more pictures of Bruges, click HERE.