The View from Here

Good morning, Bruges!

It was so nice to wake up in Bruges this morning with no agenda other than to follow our hearts. Every other day in Belgium has been spent rushing to breakfast, rushing to conference meetings or concerts, rushing to this or that. On this, our last day in Bruges, how wonderful to luxuriate in time.

We did have a full schedule planned in hopes of seeing and doing as many things as possible. Two days is not enough for me in the beautiful city…but I think this is a place that my heart will never get enough of. We headed toward the Market Square and stopped for a quick breakfast and an all-important coffee for Dan before heading into the chaos of the Market Square on this gorgeous day.

We began with a tour of a wonderful Salvador Dali exhibit in the square. Both Dan and I have a fascination with Dali and his work; he is the Einstein of the art world. The exhibit was really well done and had many works that we had never seen before.

We followed Dali with a visit to The Historium. While the presentation was a bit hokey, it was still really interesting to get a glimpse of what life was like in fourteenth and fifteenth century Bruges. The best part of the tour was getting to sit out on the patio of the Duvel Beer bar. It was so fun to sit above the crowds and observe the craziness of all going on in the square. Dan is new King of Belgian Beer and Chocolate…:))

Next, we walked around the city some and ventured to Choco-Story, the chocolate museum of Bruges, and the Luminiere Exhibit housed within it. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’ve had enough chocolate for a while…I discovered that you can truly have too much of a good thing. I’m dreading that first meeting with my scale when I get home…

After a little rest in our room, we headed just down the street from our hotel to dinner at the Vivaldi Brasserie. Dan taught the bartender how to make Negronis (much to the bartender’s delight), and our dinner of roasted chicken, salad greens, and frittes was prepared to perfection. We sat so close to the street that we could have reached out to touch the carriage horses as they passed by. This place is absolutely magical to me.

How grateful I am for our two days in Bruges. As we dined, Dan and I talked about how this city has touched our hearts and we so hope to return some day soon. Florence touched me in this way, but with Bruges there is not the mad press of so many tourists everywhere. The pace is slower here, more gentle, more us. There is such a pride in the people of Bruges of their city and the treasures of history that it holds, and it shows in their faces and in the high quality of their work. I could honestly live here very happily…who knows- some day?

And now we take the train back to Brussels for another day of exploring before heading through Copenhagen as we begin the long journey home. We’re looking forward to being in Brussels while not jet-lagged as we were at the beginning of our trip, heads bobbing as we tried so valiantly to stay awake on the bus tour. Still so much to see and do! Of it all, though, Bruges has been the real gem of our travels, and I will cherish every single memory that we’ve made here. Life is good. So good.