Brugge

We arrived in Brugge at 10 am and it felt as if we traveled back in time to the 1500s. The tiny city was a huge clothes export back in the day (1300-1500s) and when the main rivers silted away, the city was trapped. To this day, most of the building are from that time period. When we got off the train we walked through the cobble stone streets to the main square. The walk was a quite one. Compared to other cities, we felt like we were walking in a ghost town. Quite a different experience. As we reached the center of the city and the Belfry, all the tourists came out. Chocolate shops, small cafes, and tourists shops surrounded the outer rim of the square. Horse drawn carriages paraded around the square and throughout the city. Boat tours through the canals were also motoring around. With the sun still shiny, it was easy to feel joyous at the site of the ancient city.

 

After  hanging around the square for a bit, we headed out on foot to see the city (which was only about 2 km or so in diameter). As we ventured away from the squares, the quieter it was. We followed the canals and gazed at the houses. Soon, it was so quiet, that we were whispering to each other. That would not be possible in the other cities. The more we roamed the less people we saw. No one was out and about. It was peaceful and relaxing time. We kept roaming for awhile and ended up on the opposite side of Bruges, before heading back to the heart of the city.

 

We visited the Basilica of the Holy Blood. This church was build early 1600s and it felt like it too. They supposedly have the blood of Christ. We aren’t 100% sure it’s His real blood – like his actually DNA – but it was a powerful thing to see. It’s contained within a glass vessel and we were allowed to go up and see it. It looked like old dried up blood that was separated into red blood cells and plasma. It got our hearts racing a bit when we saw it.

 

After hanging out at the square some more, we walked down more canals and took some pictures. There were some picture perfect spots that were neat to capture.  Soon, we started getting board. Haha. Just like the movie In Brugge, there is nothing to do there. It was an awesome experience to see. The canals were beautiful, the square was massive, and town seemed very peaceful. However, only old rich people live there. It would be a nice place to retire some day. But for us, it is off to Antwerp.