Rajeev's World: Bruges

Showing posts with label Bruges. Show all posts

Monday, July 27, 2015

Vaarwel Brugge...

Earlier today, we said farewell to Bruges.
This visit to Bruges was an exciting one, despite the fact that rain played spoilsport multiple times botching our plans to visit local museums and cathedrals. But we did have an amazing time exploring the Markt, cycling down to Damme, the boat ride on the canal and the lovely dinner that followed.

As we sat down to have breakfast this morning the lovely sights of Bruges flashed in our minds. Indeed after the washout of this trip we vowed to return soon.

Our hotel was located along one of the most picturesque canals in the peaceful old quarter of St.Gillis, between the Augustine Bridge and the Tower Bridge. This building was once a warehouse for goods that were brought in on the canals. The oldest reference to this building dates to 1470...

The basement of the building has a beautiful vaulted cellar that is believed to be older than the upper floors. Today the cellar has been modelled into a restaurant that serves as a magnificent setting for breakfast, overlooking the canal...

A short 10 minute taxi ride with an elderly taxi driver brought us to the railway station from where boarded our train to Brussels - Bruxelles-Midi station. We were quite tired and we slept through the journey...

Arriving at Bruxelles-Midi station...

In about 30 minutes, we boarded our Thalys high speed train from Bruxelles-Midi station, headed to Paris, Gare du Nord. Thankfully, we weren't too sleepy and we could make full use of the complimentary on-board wifi service...

As we get ready to say goodbye to Belgium, we wish we are able to come back again and explore more of this country. Till then, goodbye...

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Een Avond In Brugge...

We did the most that we could, and with copious since afternoon, that meant scrapping our visits to the museums and churches here. And to substitute for what we couldn't do, we did a very touristy boat ride around the canals of Bruges...

And the rain accompanied with the really cold breeze from the North Sea chilled us down to the bone. We needed something really warm and hearty...

And we walked into the nearest chocolate shop around - there are many of them around here in Bruges, handcrafting and selling some of the most exotic handcrafted chocolates...

After doing some rather extensive window shopping and quite a liberal sampling, we ordered two cups of steaming hot dark chocolate...

We walked a while and reached the Brugge 't Zand sculpture...

And the rain started again - we were caught rather unaware and had to run from this open square and take shelter...

And it turned out that we gotten into a restaurant. It seemed having food here was the right thing to do - it was quite late by then and we were hungry...

And I ordered moules et frites - a dish of mussels and potato fries which is considered as the national dish of Belgium. It is believed that the dish was originally created by combining mussels, a popular and cheap foodstuff eaten around the Flemish coast, and fried potatoes in winter when fish and vegetables are in short supply...

Neeti stuck to a very conventional pumpkin soup with a yummy tuna salad...

And I taste the sea in every morsel of moules I have. Indeed an enjoyable meal to end our trip to Bruges, before we leave tomorrow morning...

A Place Beyond Belief... Part II

And continued to brave the rain as we continued on the boat ride around the canals of Bruges and enjoying the sights on the way...

Sculpture along the canal...

Passing by the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk again...

Another view of the Belfry...

It's biting cold...

Everyone's trigger happy...

Placid...

A lovely view...

That's like me in the morning...

And some more sculptures...

Life in the canal...

A Place Beyond Belief... Part I

The rain trapped us at Damme's Cafe de Katte for over 45 minutes screwing our plans to visit the museums and cathedrals in Bruges.

When the rain did subside a bit, we took a chance to head back and cycled along the canal. We would have cycled just a few hundred metres when there was a sudden an heavy downpour. We had to take refuge under a tree, which also started dripping in sometime drenching us to the bone! As they say in Hindi, सिर मुंडाते ही ओले पडे, that really happened with us...

We had no choice but to cycle back to Bruges in the rain and looked like zombies when we reached our hotel.

It took us a while to dry ourselves and change into warmer attire before we could head out again, losing precious time in the process. When we were done, it was quite late and drizzling a bit. Undaunted by the elements we decided to go for a bike ride around Bruges.

A candy store...

The cobbled streets...

At the Burg...

Right in the middle of the frame is the Stadhuis or the City Hall. Built in 1376, the Stadhuis is one of the oldest in the Low Countries. It is from here that the city has been governed for more than 600 years...

The Brugse Vrije or the Liberty of Bruges...

This mansion was constructed between 1722 and 1727, It was from here that Bruges’ rural surroundings were governed...

The building functioned as a court of justice between 1795 and 1984. Today the city archives are stored here...

An extension of the Brugse Vrije...

As this display says, Bruges is indeed this is a place beyond belief...

The illuminated display was the brainchild of Scottish artist Nathan Coley and seeks to convey the wealth of heritage that Bruges has...

The first in the series of these displays was installed in New York in the aftermath of September 11, 2001 attacks, conveying that the spirit of the city was alive and thriving...

The small building with the small gilded statues towards the centre-right of the frame is the Heilig-Bloedbasiliek or the Basilica of the Holy Blood. This church, built between 1134 and 1157, is believed to house a venerated relic of the Holy Blood allegedly brought here by the Count of Flanders, during the Crusades...

After crossing the Burg, we came across a small quayside on the canal from where canal tours are conducted. On the spur of the moment we decided to go for it. We parked our bikes at a secure location, bought the tickets and boarded the boat...

The starting point for the tour boat...

The boat operator turned out to be a Bollywood enthusiast. He looked at us intently and then asked if we were from India. We nodded in the affirmative mentioning we were from Mumbai. "Ah, Bollywood. Indian music very good. Nice dances too!"

Of all places, Bollywood has made a mark in Bruges as well. The Bollywood hit, PK was shot here and that is probably why locals seemed to be aware of Bollywood. But this is more than just awareness, it is enthusiasm and probably much more. And that again brings me to my favourite topic of how India can literally "capture" the world through the brahmastras of soft-power - Bollywood, yoga and Indian cuisine...

Imagine the history of the place, it seems each building has a story to tell...

Waiting for the boat to start...

The drizzle is back...

The canal has been an integral part of life in Bruges...

The Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk or the Church of Our Lady, built in the 13th century, with its 122 metre tall brick tower makes it an unmissable feature in the skyline of Bruges. The church houses the world famous marble sculpture by Michelangelo, the Madonna of Bruges. The rain played spoilsport and we could not visit this place...