Ah, Bruges. I LOVED Bruges. The colors, the brickwork, the architecture in general, the canals, the churches, the myriad, winding streets… it really is my new favorite city.
Lace
The Markt (aka Big Market Square)
Amazing Variety of Brick
I should apologize in advance. If you’re not a visual person, you will hate this post. I posted 335 pictures to my Bruges album. It was hard deciding which ones to share here. There was just so much cool stuff to see and to share…
I was absolutely enthralled by the bricks. Everything is made of brick. Houses, barns, industrial buildings, cathedrals, bridges. And they were very creative with their brickwork.
Really.
HINT: If you click on an image, you’ll get to see a bigger version and more detail.
Brick, statues, leaded windows, and a stepped facade. Wow.
Bruges is known as one of Belgium’s best-preserved Medieval villages. Even though it’s big, it still feels like a village, too.
Golden Angel
Belgian’s are proud of their football team, and for good reason.
Brick, brick, and more brick.
On the front of a building in The Markt.
The Belfort, built in the mid-1200s
Belfort as seen from the interior courtyard.
Belfort detail. In brick.
One of many canal “streets.”
Beautiful blue-sky backdrop.
Canal-side brick.
Cool reflection.
Camembert sandwich (my favorite lunch of the trip).
Look closely. It’s all brick.
That tall tower is the Church of Our Lady. Built of brick, the tower is just over 401 feet tall (122.3 meters). It’s the second-tallest brickwork tower in the world.
Even the cathedral ceiling is brick.
Cathedral art.
Incredible stonework.
Cathedral art.
I adore painted statues.
Impressive church.
General interestingness.
Moor very cool brick-work.
Gorgeous skyline.
More brick. Look at those curves.
Still more brick, color, and leaded windows.
Canal cul-de-sac?
Funky-fun mannequin.
Late-afternoon snack.
Those pics are just a sampling of the images I captured. The rest can be seen in my Bruges album on Flickr. Some of Annelies’ captures are in there, too.
So, who wants to go and visit Bruges now? 🙂
12 Replies to “And Then There Was Bruges”
Ah, the legendary Camembert sandwich…
LOL. It was unique. I will be recreating it, too.
When I see the name Bruges, I don’t want to say “broooj” – I want to say broo-jes. Which then make me think of blue jeans and then naturally that hideous song ‘Forever in Blue Jeans’ by Neil Diamond – which I can’t get out of my f’n head now.
and – i read “general interestingness” as “general intestines” the first time. You know what? Maybe i’ll come back and read your blog later after I’ve had 7 or 8 cups of coffee.
“alot”?
oh, c’mon.
LOL. Maybe that’s a good idea.
Ah, the alot… If y’all haven’t yet, you should check out what Allie Brosh at Hyperbole and a Half says about the alot. It’s hilarious:
As for a Neil Diamond earworm, the only known antidote is Crystal Gayle’s “Donuts Make My Brown Eyes Blue” (at least that’s the way me and my siblings heard it when we were kids).
From the sounds of it Fuzzy has had too much coffee, bahahaha. 🙂 I kid
Loved this post. So many cool brick buildings.
Could you imagine living there in medieval times? While I think it would be amazing, I think I like modern amenities and toilet paper too much to want to go back in time for very long.
I like modern conveniences, too. I’ve read too much historical fiction to really want to live back then, but it’s fun looking at the stuff and imagining.
Me, me! I wanna go! But you already knew that. 😀
Shan, you really should go. If only airfare weren’t so dang expensive!
I’m not a religious fellow, but I love the intimacy and sincerity characteristic of cathedral art.
The pizza pics on yesterday’s post had me going “meh”, especially the smoked salmon one, but that of the Camembert sandwich… Mmmm… I was wiping drool from the screen of my tablet. I love meals like that: good cheeses, hearty breads, and fresh greens and other veggies. Throw in a variety of slices from the deli, a good selection of olives, and olive oil and vinegars, of course. Ooo, and don’t forget the red wine (or the beer, Kathy)…
It is dinnertime, right?
Raindog, I’m not a religious person either, but I love old cathedrals. The statues, especially painted ones, stained glass, wood, paintings, and the architecture in general. Especially old cathedrals.
We love cheese, too. It’s become our favorite picnic fares. Its great for bike trips. I’d never thought of putting it all on a sandwich, though, but will from now on.
Ah, the legendary Camembert sandwich…
LOL. It was unique. I will be recreating it, too.
When I see the name Bruges, I don’t want to say “broooj” – I want to say broo-jes. Which then make me think of blue jeans and then naturally that hideous song ‘Forever in Blue Jeans’ by Neil Diamond – which I can’t get out of my f’n head now.
Thanks, Kathy. Thanks alot.
http://youtu.be/QQLWF_ItzYs
and – i read “general interestingness” as “general intestines” the first time. You know what? Maybe i’ll come back and read your blog later after I’ve had 7 or 8 cups of coffee.
“alot”?
oh, c’mon.
LOL. Maybe that’s a good idea.
Ah, the alot… If y’all haven’t yet, you should check out what Allie Brosh at Hyperbole and a Half says about the alot. It’s hilarious:
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/04/alot-is-better-than-you-at-everything.html
As for a Neil Diamond earworm, the only known antidote is Crystal Gayle’s “Donuts Make My Brown Eyes Blue” (at least that’s the way me and my siblings heard it when we were kids).
From the sounds of it Fuzzy has had too much coffee, bahahaha. 🙂 I kid
Loved this post. So many cool brick buildings.
Could you imagine living there in medieval times? While I think it would be amazing, I think I like modern amenities and toilet paper too much to want to go back in time for very long.
I like modern conveniences, too. I’ve read too much historical fiction to really want to live back then, but it’s fun looking at the stuff and imagining.
Me, me! I wanna go! But you already knew that. 😀
Shan, you really should go. If only airfare weren’t so dang expensive!
I’m not a religious fellow, but I love the intimacy and sincerity characteristic of cathedral art.
The pizza pics on yesterday’s post had me going “meh”, especially the smoked salmon one, but that of the Camembert sandwich… Mmmm… I was wiping drool from the screen of my tablet. I love meals like that: good cheeses, hearty breads, and fresh greens and other veggies. Throw in a variety of slices from the deli, a good selection of olives, and olive oil and vinegars, of course. Ooo, and don’t forget the red wine (or the beer, Kathy)…
It is dinnertime, right?
Raindog, I’m not a religious person either, but I love old cathedrals. The statues, especially painted ones, stained glass, wood, paintings, and the architecture in general. Especially old cathedrals.
We love cheese, too. It’s become our favorite picnic fares. Its great for bike trips. I’d never thought of putting it all on a sandwich, though, but will from now on.