Day two: Bruges and Ghent
Ashley and I went to two different Belgian cities today! We drove up to Bruges, which is where lots of tourists tend to go and I can see why. It’s a beautiful little town, very quaint. Anna had made us lunch reservations at a pretty fancy restaurant there. We ate some really nice food and then I told Ashley I wanted to do the boat tour around town. So, we did that, and it was beautiful! They told us information about the history of the town, and mostly it was lovely to just ride around and see the beautiful sites.
We left Bruges around probably three or so, and went to Ghent. Ashley prefers Ghent to Bruges because it’s less touristy and a bit more off the map. I think she’s right…it’s really very cute. But I did find touristy things to do! We went up to the top of the belfry in town and saw some amazing views. I do love a boat tour and a view from the top, so we had some pretty interesting touristy experiences today!
These are pics from around Ghent
These are pics from the Belfry
We also went and saw the Gravensteen Castle in town. From Wikipedia: “The Gravensteen (Dutch; literally "Castle of the Counts") is a medieval castle at Ghent, East Flanders in Belgium. The current castle dates from 1180 and was the residence of the Counts of Flanders until 1353. It was subsequently re-purposed as a court, prison, mint, and even as a cotton factory. It was restored over 1893–1903 and is now a museum and a major landmark in the city.
To me, it looks pretty much like the castle from the Smurfs. You decide… Anyway, I Ghent is a super cute town and I would love to come back here on a summer afternoon.
We left Ghent a little later than we probably should have because Anna had made dinner reservations for us at a quaint little fondue restaurant in Waterloo called Le Chalet with a couple of their friends. Ashley and I ended up being about an hour late because of traffic, but once we got there, it was great! We had all this amazing meat (fillet mignon and chicken breast) to dip in oil, and some bread to dip in cheese. And of course, there was lots of wine and lots of laughs. We met a couple of their friends, one who works with Ashley, and his wife. They are Americans who work and live in Belgium, much like Ashley.
After fondue, we went across the street to a really cute bar and had a drink - it was called Edward's. I really like their town. Or maybe it’s just that they really know how to pick good places and show visitors a great time. But I thoroughly have enjoyed my time in Belgium, and being with Ashley and Anna!
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