A Well Kept Man

Aside from the beer, there was much more about Bruges that beckoned me for a visit. I have only recently become acquainted with Bruges through a film (a rather dark film, not really a family movie...I'll let you figure out the title on your own, but it has Bruges in the name) and as a result of the scenery of the movie I opted to visit. As a part of my hotel package, I received a coupon voucher book which granted me a free guided tour of the city which lasted for a little more than two hours. The only awkward part of the tour was the fact that Bruges has lots of dark alleys and alcoves where one could commit mischievous acts seemingly without notice, which normally wouldn't present a huge problem as most tours involve large groups of people.

I was told there would be at least twenty people on the tour, and there were; but the tour guides split the group up by language to facilitate a more engaging conversation. As my tour choices were Flemish (or Dutch), English, or French, I opted for the English guide as two hours of French would most likely cause me to miss something important. As a result of my selfish language choice, I was paired with the tour guide who spoke the best English and we were off (yes, just me and the 60 year old woman, which one would picture if forced to describe a librarian). This is what made the tour awkward...I felt self-conscious the whole time that this woman probably thought I was going to push her into a canal or steal her purse filled with Belgian chocolates (it was a chocolate tour).

After I assured her that I was completely rehabilitated from my recent troubles with the Swiss Border Patrol, we began our tour of the sites of Bruges. Don't pay much attention to the time of day in the photographs as they obviously were not all taken during the tour.

Bruges is/was a significant economic center in its height due to the port and canals that run through the city. Much of the cocoa that was brought back from the Americas and Africa came through Bruges (and was even used as currency), and Bruges served as an international currency market exchange of sorts (my tour guide claimed that Bruges actually means "purse," or "bag" similar to the Spanish word "bolso" or "bolsa." She also indicated that many other countries stock exchanges have names stemming from "Bruges." Wikipedia and other sources seem to support this theory, although I am guessing that Bruges is just the most organized place to claim the stock exchange origin story...) Anyway, the city reminds me of Venice and Amsterdam, as the canals run throughout the city providing ample spots to stop and take pictures.

The main square used to have a canal running directly adjacent to it until a few hundred years ago. In the main square is the Belfry, a bell-tower that plays different musical tunes every 15 minutes. You can climb up the inside (all 366 steps, most of the way was very narrow) to the top of the 83 meter tower (about 270 feet, or if you figure 10 feet per story, about 27 stories), which I did for some spectacular views. I recommend the climb (if you are in shape), but be mindful of the time so you aren't in the Belfry when "O Danny Boy" starts playing (I think my ears are still reverberating)! Back down in the main square are many medieval buildings (mostly shops, pubs, or restaurants) which are very fairytale-like in appearance. All of the streets in Bruges are made of cobblestone, which adds to the ambiance.

Bruges managed to escape destruction from World War I, so many of it's buildings date back to the 16th and 17th century (if not earlier). This city did not appear to be short of churches either. Apparently the Belgians were/are very Catholic so I was able to see many unique cathedrals. I chose not to go into the Basillica of the Holy Blood (which contains a vial of Jesus Christ's alleged coagulated blood on a piece of cloth...). One of the bigger cathedrals contained an original sculpture by Michelangelo, purportedly his only work to make it out of Italy during his lifetime. It now sits on the tomb of the rich man and his family inside of the cathedral. There is also a small area where the Beguines lived, a small group of lay religious women in the Catholic church. They lived a life similar to nuns, although they spent most of their time making lace and things like rosaries to help support the church, in addition to praying and providing support for one another (albeit in a less strict environment than in other abbeys).

Bruges is a lovely town which deserves at least a couple days to fully appreciate all it has to offer.

It would have been nice to visit in warmer weather to partake in a canal cruise, as well as with someone else to have someone to talk with :( The food in this part of Europe is very satisfying, but then again how can one go wrong with a whole mess of French fries with mayonnaise washed down with a cold Belgian ale???

For those that are wondering (especially my Colorado readers), I managed to sample four different Belgian beers while in Belgium, and brought back an additional nine for further "research." As I have only consumed five beers so far, I can only provide my opinion on those which I tasted. Needless to say the Belgian beers have quickly risen to the top of my international favorite beer list, leaving the Swiss competitors at the starting line. While the German beers will continue to be a mainstay, the world of Belgian brewing has opened my eyes to the wonders of pious men and their saintly craft.

The second beer comes from the only remaining brewer in Bruges, the Brouwerij De Halve maan (or the Half-Moon Brewery in English). I decided to take a tour of the brewery (which included a sample at the tour's finish), as well as have lunch in the brewery's cafe (with a beer, of course). For both the tour and lunch, I had a Brugse Zot, which is a more golden blonde pale ale with a nice finish reminding me of fruits such as green grapes and melon, with a spice finish (clove or coriander maybe). The brewery only filters the beer that goes out to the stores and shops, leaving the beer at the source unfiltered...which I think makes for a better experience. Definitely a great beer to have with a meal!

Beer number three was a pre-dinner beer in a Bruges pub named Leffe Blonde. Leffe is one of the easier to find Belgian beers and most likely you will be able to find it at a well stocked store near you. This ale had a nice quality that made it drinkable (much like a table wine) and enjoyed with bar snacks. It was a golden blonde with a more amber color than the others. As Leffe is one of the largest breweries in Belgium, the beer definitely had a controlled flavor which I guess is to ensure that each beer tastes the same (i.e. no variation from beer to beer). I will definitely look for this when I am back in the States instead of the usual Stella Artois I have look for when yearning for a Belgian ale.

The fourth beer complemented my Grandma's Style Rabbit Dinner on my last night in Bruges (rabbit is my new favorite meal). The beer, Tongerlo Double Blonde, is made by monks in the Tongerlo Abbey. This might have been my favorite of the draft beers I had while in Belgium. Like the Brugse Zot and Leffe Blonde, it is an ale with a fruity palate and spice finish, although the color was a deeper amber and the malt flavor was more pronounced than the Brugse Zot. It went very well with the rich onion sauce on the rabbit and french fries.

The fifth beer I consumed at our apartment in Switzerland is from the Orval Abbey. The Orval beer is a Trappist Ale (in the picture it is the third from the right), brewed by a Trappist monastery of which there are only seven remaining in the world that continue to brew beer (six of the seven are in Belgium, the other is in the Netherlands) out of the 171 Trappist orders. The beer in question is the Orval Trappist Ale, an extremely tasty ale that was dry yet fully flavored, much like a glass of champagne. It starts out with a nice hoppy flavor and transitions to a smooth, spice finish. If this can be found in the States, go for it. It is truly a great beer.

I drive through countries like Americans drive through states. On Tuesday I drove from Switzerland to Belgium (about 8 hours in the car), which for the geographically challenged enabled me to see three other countries (although the most direct route would have only put me in one more). After leaving Switzerland, I made my way into France but I soon realized I was heading for the motorway which would cost me an arm and a leg (in France you can figure the tolls will cost you about 10 Euro for every 100 km, or around $13 every 60 miles) since I would be in France for about 300 - 400 km so I quickly took to the country roads on the most direct route to the mothership...Germany. The best part about Germany is the Autobahns (which is really just a fancy German word for highway) which in most places aren't limited by speed. Although this guzzles the gas, it allows one to traverse large distances over short time periods (provided you aren't freaking out the whole time about getting run over by a supercharged German sports car).

Since our car is currently in winter mode (normal tires swapped with snow tires...not so good for traction at high speeds) I never went faster than 140 km/hr (more math fun... 1 km = 0.62 miles). Nevertheless, I made great time en route to Luxembourg, a parliamentary representative democracy with a constitutional monarch ruled by a Grand Duke. I have no idea what this form of government entails, but it kind of sounds like a fraternity of aristocratic country club types that vote for their favorite type of after dinner cognacs while debating the finer aspects of 1000 thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets. Whatever it may be, it appears to be a nice little country (and by little I mean even Rhode Island makes fun of how small it is) although it was rainy when I made it so I didn't do much (I was probably in the country for less than one hour).

After leaving I toyed with the idea of trying for six countries by driving up to the southernmost part of the Netherlands, but I decided I wanted to get to my hotel before 6 pm so the Netherlands would have to wait until Friday. I spent the remainder of my drive in Belgium, which quickly transitioned from hills and valleys to flat plains and canals as I approached the coast. So I managed five countries in eight hours, that has to be some kind of a record...for me.

P.S.   All of these pictures are from Luxembourg, except perhaps the first one where I may still technically be in Germany but they don't paint lines on the borders like they do on maps so I wasn't 100% sure...

Starting Tuesday, I will be traveling in Belgium via Luxembourg (purely for bragging rights at cocktail parties...I've always wanted to go to one of the tiny European nations just so I could appear more attractive to members of the opposite sex.  Alli will let you know if it works).  I will be staying in Bruges (Brugge if you're Flemish) for three nights, and then driving to Frankfurt, Germany where I will spend one night (I will probably have to do a beer taste comparison here as well, um, for research purposes).