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While Bruges was the capital of West Flemish, Ghent is the capital of the East Flemish Province. Ghent was quite the hidden gem and our B&B hosts recommended it over the other cities which see quite a bit of tourism.

There was an interesting contrast between the two cities that were near eachother. Bruges felt very manicured and heavily renovated. Beautiful and very quaint, a picturesque Belgium town. Ghent felt a little more original , more grand and had some rough edges showing their original state. Ultimately, we found Ghent a bit more liveable and had some amazing shots of multiple cathedrals lined up in a row.

Archaeological research has shown that the earliest signs of human settlement in Ghent date back to prehistoric times. However, it was during the Roman period that a community began to grow near the confluence of the two rivers Scheldt and Leie. In the Middle Ages, the Abbey of Saint Peter was founded commercial activity began. By the late 15th century, the cloth trade had begun to wane, though Ghent remained prosperous by shifting its economy to the shipping trade along the Leie and Scheldt rivers. In the latter part of the century, however, the closing of the Scheldt brought with it commercial decline, a decline not to be reversed until the revival of cloth working during the industrial boom of the 19th century. It was not until the early 19th century, when the city became a part of the French Empire, that peace and prosperity was restored to Ghent. From 1800, new factories were constructed such as sugar refineries and cotton mills causing the population to triple.The poor working and living conditions resulted in the creation of the first Belgian trade union in Ghent. Today, Ghent is a lively city with a population of about 250,000 inhabitants.Read more

Bruges is the capital of the West Flanders Province of Belgium. This was significant to us because while Brussels was French speaking, Flemish = Dutch and another language after only an hour train ride. The common languages were Dutch followed by English, French then German. It was amazing how many people spoke at least 3 languages in this part of the country.

The old town of Bruges is a UNESCO world heritage site, which, like Brussels old town was littered with Waffles, Chocolate, and Beer. Bruges is the "Venice of Belgium" and it was easy to see why with the beautiful canals that ran through it. Although it was particularly cold this time of year it was a nice time to visit as tourists overrun this city during the spring summer and fall.

Fun fact, apparently Dr. Evil from the Austin Powers series was raised in Bruges.Read more