Sunday 24 July:We joined the Bruges free walking tour (donation) which was led by locally born Jan.
The group was very large which sometimes made it difficult to hear.
He filled us in on the history of Bruges - kings, queens, battles, invasions, and rivalries with other surrounding cities.
Like many of the other cities we visited, Bruges has had its ups and downs, but its decline after the middle ages as a trading centre essentially preserved its medieval nature which is now its great attraction.Even with the multitude of tourists and trendy shops, it’s still possible to appreciate its history and architecture.
This included the Béguinage Ten Wijngaerde (Begijnenhuisse), a forested retreat within the city founded in 1244 by Margaret of Constantinople initially for widowed wealthy women as an alternative to joining a nunnery, but later also became a refuge and workplace for other women.
Of course there were ample opportunities to sample the Belgian specialties of beer, waffles, chocolates, frits (chips) and meals featuring cooking with beer (naturally).
We made a home-cooked meal for dinner tonight, a pleasant change, from restaurant meals.This was also because we planned to watch the 2008 movie "In Bruges" with Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson.
Not only is it a classic movie, but it was fun to recognise places shown in the movie that we’d seen during the day.
We were also watching for a very small scene in which our guide Jan appeared.
http://www.abc.net.au/atthemovies/txt/s2335261.htm
