I'm currently sitting in the departure lounge at Brussels station waiting for the Eurostar.
We got up and breakfasted early(ish) and a taxi took us to the station in Bruges where we were to catch the train to Brussels. The train was on time and the hour long journey passed quite quickly.
Brussels Zuid and Brussels Midi are the same station, which is worth knowing as none of the timetables showed Midi when we were checking the times in Bruges.
We had time in the station to grab a coffee and get a Subway to have for lunch on the train. Then it was through security and passport control to wait for the train to arrive.
Monday, May 05, 2008
Sunday, May 04, 2008
On your bike!
We breakfasted in the hotel before wandering into the city centre where we were going on a bicycle your for the morning.
The city centre was pretty empty which gave us some great photo opportunities of Markt and Burg squares compared to the busy crowds yesterday.
There were about eight or ten of us on the tour, from the UK, US and Australia and we were led by Jos. He was a great tour guide, very knowledgable and very funny.
The tour was great, very relaxed and very entertaining. We ended up at the oldest pub in Bruges for a drink with the group before returning back to where we began. If you're in Bruges then I definitely recommend this tour.
After leaving the group we went for lunch at a small Greek/Turkish restaurant where Alicea had lamb and I had falafal. My falafal was really nice. However, Alicea didn't enjoy her lamb. I also tried one of the local trappist beers, which was 9% alcohol!
In the afternoon we went to the Groeninge Museum where they have a large collection of paintings by Flemish artists. It was quite good and as a bonus, we got a discount by showing our hotel key.
We also sat and listened to a busker playing some clasical music in a nearby park and bought his CD.
For dinner, we went to an Italian restaurant which wasn't bad. Then, we wandered around before returning to the hotel where we sat in the garden and had a drink before retiring.
The city centre was pretty empty which gave us some great photo opportunities of Markt and Burg squares compared to the busy crowds yesterday.
There were about eight or ten of us on the tour, from the UK, US and Australia and we were led by Jos. He was a great tour guide, very knowledgable and very funny.
The tour was great, very relaxed and very entertaining. We ended up at the oldest pub in Bruges for a drink with the group before returning back to where we began. If you're in Bruges then I definitely recommend this tour.
After leaving the group we went for lunch at a small Greek/Turkish restaurant where Alicea had lamb and I had falafal. My falafal was really nice. However, Alicea didn't enjoy her lamb. I also tried one of the local trappist beers, which was 9% alcohol!
In the afternoon we went to the Groeninge Museum where they have a large collection of paintings by Flemish artists. It was quite good and as a bonus, we got a discount by showing our hotel key.
We also sat and listened to a busker playing some clasical music in a nearby park and bought his CD.
For dinner, we went to an Italian restaurant which wasn't bad. Then, we wandered around before returning to the hotel where we sat in the garden and had a drink before retiring.
Saturday, May 03, 2008
In Bruges
We were up early to drive to Ebbsfleet to catch the Eurostar to Brussels. It was on time arriving but arrived in Brussels about 15 mins late. We then found the train that would take us to Bruges. It was packed and we had to stand the whole way (about an hour).
Once in Bruges, we caught a taxi to the hotel where we booked in and dropped our bags off before going off to explore the city.
Bruges is a very pedestrian friendly city and nothing is too far away from anything else. The hotel is on one of the canals and we followed the canal into the city centre. We stopped for a bite to eat at quite a nice café - we had a baguette and a drink each - and then went for a wander around some of the local tourist attractions, starting with St Janshospital, a large building that used to be a hospital in the middle ages.
We then went to Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk, which has one of the few Michelangelo sculptures outside Italy. It also has some excavations showing graves beneath the church. From there we went to the Basilica of the Holy Blood, where they have a phial containing the dried blood of Christ.
We went back to the hotel and up to our room. Its okay, but its certainly not a four star like we're used to, and if its a superior room, I'd hate to see a standard one.
Shortly after we went out for something to eat - Bruges isn't a great place for veggies - and we ended up at a café having omellette and chips.
After that we returned to the hotel for the night.
Once in Bruges, we caught a taxi to the hotel where we booked in and dropped our bags off before going off to explore the city.
Bruges is a very pedestrian friendly city and nothing is too far away from anything else. The hotel is on one of the canals and we followed the canal into the city centre. We stopped for a bite to eat at quite a nice café - we had a baguette and a drink each - and then went for a wander around some of the local tourist attractions, starting with St Janshospital, a large building that used to be a hospital in the middle ages.
We then went to Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk, which has one of the few Michelangelo sculptures outside Italy. It also has some excavations showing graves beneath the church. From there we went to the Basilica of the Holy Blood, where they have a phial containing the dried blood of Christ.
We went back to the hotel and up to our room. Its okay, but its certainly not a four star like we're used to, and if its a superior room, I'd hate to see a standard one.
Shortly after we went out for something to eat - Bruges isn't a great place for veggies - and we ended up at a café having omellette and chips.
After that we returned to the hotel for the night.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)