4-27 Brugge (Betty)

We started the day rather early today.  We're up at five and out of the house by six to catch the 7 am train to Brugge, the Venice of the north.  After 3 train transfers and 3.5  hours we arrive in Brugge.  The sky is still cloudy, but the sun will peek out later during our visit.

We stroll into the old city center, walking along the river and canels our first stop is the Beguinage, a Catholic order of lay women who wished to serve God, but not enter the convent - oh I'm sure there's more to it!  We also visited a similar settlement in Amsterdam.

Our second stop was at a little sidewalk cafe for a ham and cheese sandwich and some of the famous Belgian beer.  We order out of our pilsner comfort zone and opt for some local favorites.  We feel a few sprinkles of rain but wish it away.

After a great lunch and some good "girlie" conversation we continue on into the city.  Many of the churches and historical building now charge to enter.  Deb & I opt to climb the belfry tower while Sue sits with our back packs in the courtyard.  366 steps later we have a beautiful view of Bruge and the surrounding countryside.  Now for the climb down.  Ahh, much easier.

Our next stop was a 30 boat tour of the Canals.  Our tour guide's name was Sean Connery - so he claimed.  It was nice to see the canals from the water level.  During the tour we spotted a canal side bar that had 3 empty bar stools calling our name.  More  local beer to sample.

After our beer it was time to head back to the train station.  But we couldn't leave town before sampling a belgian waffle!  Lucky we're walking our way through Europe otherwise we'd have to buy some larger pants! 

This is where the day gets a bit rough.  While on the 6 pm train, almost in Ghent where we're spending the night, Sue realized her wallet was missing.  So we hop off the train and catch the return train to Brugge to return to the waffle shop.  I'll let Sue fill you in on the rest of the story.

Finally, at 9 am we check into the Ghent River Hotel, exhausted!  Tomorrow we plan  to tour Ghent.