Brugge, Belgium

Brugge is so cute...as if you couldn't tell that from the adorable home shown in the first picture. I had never heard of this special little town until we arrived here, which is strange since it was a title of a Colin Farrell movie (In Bruges). Any way we had always planned to visit Brussels thinking that was the best place to visit in Belgium, but were urged by some local Germans to skip Brussels and come straight here, so we did. TJ and I both decided that this trip was a pleasant surprise for many reasons. First, it might be the most accessible adorable city we have seen thus far. The streets are lined in cobblestone, horse drawn carriages are quite popular, the cafes are amazing, the canals are enchanting, and the sights (although few) are quite impressive. And we also loved it as it was a low-key and laid back trip, which is nice since TJ left this morning for the States...and it was easy enough to bring Tut instead of board him.
We took endless pictures...but here are a few to highlight how adorable and quaint this midevil city really is...

One of many canals.

A Brugge cobblestone street lined with beautiful old buildings, cafes, and eateries.

There are definitely more cute pictures to come, especially those taken in a fairytale-like park called Minnewaterpark. It was so enchanting...in fact I think it might be where Disney got the idea for the "kiss the girl" setting in The Little Mermaid. See...there are even swans!

The old monastery is the backdrop in this part of the park, complete with a cobblestone bridge over the canal to its entrance.

And down the canal a bit...the most perfect little church with an outdoor grotto.

Among the cute sights there are also important, but not cute ones like the Half Moon Brewery. For two beer drinkers like us...this sight is just as important!

Belgium brews many beers...many of them flavored with fruit and other flavors, but since we have been living in Germany the flavors we are used to are light or dark...or in Belgium...blond or bruin. This brewery makes a great blond!

In additions to the Half Moon's beer, they also have one of the best views in town!

Then there are more important sights that are well known for the area. The locals know the t'Zand quite well as the square displays a beautiful fountain and is also home to the weekly market (more on this later). This was also right outside of our hotel and a perfect location to stay!

The Church of Our Lady was one of my favorites as it is a giant church that is practically ancient but so cool. Not only does it have really amzing gothic architecture, but it also has life size stations of the cross, and one of Michelangelo's sculptures inside. They are renovating part of the outside so unfortunately some of it is covered by plastic.

And inside Michelangelo's Madonna and Child.

And part of the altar...there is another behind this one that is part of the church museum.

Probably the most popular sights are right on the main Market Square. These sights are featured in "In Bruges" and quite grand in terms of size and architecture.

The first is three buildings that look like one. These include the congress and the post, again very gothic and takes up and entire side of the square.

Two sides of the square are lined with cafes and restaurants, where outdoor seating is quite hard to find on a nice day!

In the center is a beautiful fountain and is also a parking lot for horse-drawn carriages. On the last side of the square is the Belfry and Halls, or the Bell Tower. There are halls below it, one of which was the sight for a Salvador Dali expo.

Here we are in the square's center.

Later that night we went out and caught some night pictures of the square...the Belfry...

And TJ in front of the post with the Belfry off the right.

Like I said, Brugge is a very special city and the people here are also special. Most speak three to four languages and are very friendly! I have more blogs planned on Brugge for the week as well as one on Knokke-Heist which is a beach area 20 minutes north of Brugge where the North Sea meets the English Channel. Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!