In Bruges

Snapshot
Where - Bruges, Belgium
Weather - fine

We arrived in France and drove to Belgium specifically to see the city of Bruges. Up until a few years ago I had never heard of Bruges until we saw a couple of movies. One of those - In Bruges - was a rather black comedy about a hitman who was sent to do a job in Bruges when really he was the hit and the boss wanted him to experience a good time before he was knocked off. The other movie was 'The Monument Men' where art historians were commissioned to recover artworks stolen by Hitler during WWII. One of those artworks was a sculpture by Michaelangelo called Madonna and Child which was stolen from the cathedral in Bruges and was discovered hidden in a saltmine in Germany. The sculpture was returned to the cathedral in Bruges and apparently it is the only sculpture of Michaelangelo's that is displayed outside of Italy.

So, apart from the sculpture, Bruges is a very attractive city (not sure if it is big enough to be called a city). There are waterways that run through the city and the best way to explore was on a short boat cruise (half an hour). Many buildings are around 500 years old. It was a very pleasant day.

We had another fantastic host and it was sad to say goodbye. The next day we start to explore France.Read more