As the actual Venice, this one also has canals, although its far lesser known, and in a whole different country. A country I didn't had on my places to travel list, but where I found myself thanks to lady fortune and a work conference, a couple years ago. And I'm glad I visited, because I ended up loving it!
Belgium has a lot of gems, and this one was a great experience, since i only vaguely knew the name before I got there. Meet Bruges!
Bruges is a small town near the coast, around 90 km from the capital Brussels. It's a Unesco World Heritage Site, and it's easy to understand why when you visit: a medieval town, full of historical buildings, stone streets, canals and parks!
I was staying in Gent, and found out Bruges was just a short train ride away, so taking advantage of a free day before the conference started, off I went for a day visit. And it blew the expectations.
The train network in Belgium is quite good, and it's likely the easiest way to travel to Bruge. Did I had a perfect itinerart planned for the short trip? Nope, neither the friends travelling with me; nor did we had a clear idea of what we were going to find. So shortly after leaving the train station, a beautiful park looked the perfect place to start exploring.
Withouth realizing, as we were strolling through the park in the direction of the buildings in the horizon, we were already finding landmarks: the Minnewaterbrug, aka the "lover's bridge", with a view to the lake of love.
From there, we were getting closer and closer to the town's center. The cobbled streets and typical houses immediatly caught out attention; it seems you're entering a different era!
I'm pretty sure I missed a ton of "must-sees", but for me one of the joys of exploring is also getting lost and seeing what I stumble upon, and get a good feeling of a town's vibe. We ended up finding something I didn't knew existed, a beguinage : if I understood correctly, it was a community for single religious woman, but not nuns! They simply lived independently in a community.
Not only that, I also found out that Belgians have a great sense of humour! Although I must say I was a little disappointed by the lack of topless bartenders... oh well, the waffles had to do as a replacement! :)
Apart from the historical buildings, there were countless souvenir shops, little bars and restaurants; catering to the huge amount of tourists, the only downside of Bruges.
A few museums can also be found, although I haven't entered any of them. The church right beside this one was stunning enough to me. I would have enjoyed entering some of the buildings, but there's only so much you can do with limited time.
It wasn't visible on the previous photo, but this church (the name literally translates to Church of Our Lady) has one of the most beautiful towers in the city; lucily I got a good view at it from another street.
Also visible here, one of the several canals throughout the town, hence the comparison with Venice!
With all the walking, we found ourselves near one of the main squares. As we got closer, another of the famous Bruge towers fell into view, the Belfort.
And finally, Bruge's main square: the Markt, the market square.
The Belfort steals the show: you can climb to the top of this medieval tower, and enjoy a stunning view of Bruges from nearly 80 meters above the ground. The amount of tourists was insane, and this was off the peak tourist season and during a week day, so I can imagine how insanely crowed the square can get.
All around the square we can find typical old buildings; apart from the tower, this palace also grabs the eye.
As well as the statue in the center. Who is it... I have no idea. But pretty sure the information will be easy to find. I was more interested in enjoying the view!
How cool are all these buildings? From what I researched later, most guides recomend going to the square first, and using the Belfort as an orientation guide, since all the main attractions are a short walk from the main square.
We enjoyed lunch in a nearby street, and from there we kept exploring some more, getting lost in the side streets.
Some clouds came and went, but fortunately the day was perfect, not a single rain drop. And I think these canals were some of my favourite sightings here. Not only you can walk the streets, you can also enjoy a boat ride, with equally stunning views.
You can even do some birdwatching as well!
Between medieval towers, cobbled streets, typical sweets and local beer, the surrounding nature... Bruges has plenty to offer!
So if you happen to visit the country, definitely place this little gem on your travel list!
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