My Trip to Belgium Part One: Day 2 Continued & Day 3

Day 2: Ghent was an absolute gem! We first explored the Gravensteen castle, built in the twelfth century! Touring the castle was awesome! It was as if we had taken a step back in time to the medieval days. The castle did have “employees” there who dressed as knights and reenacted medieval time lifestyles, which I didn’t necessarily care for but it didn’t take away from the breath-taking views the castle offered. From atop the castle, you could see all of Ghent and it was an amazing photo opportunity! After the tour of Gravensteen, we visited the St. Bavo Cathedral. The St. Bavo Cathedral was stunning. It had been built in 942 AD which was hard to imagine due to its size and complexity! After marveling at the cathedral and exploring the ruins of St. Bavo’s Abbey, it was late afternoon and we were all pretty hungry. We went to the Ghent town square (which over there they call it the grote markt). The town squares were something I really enjoyed about Belgium. Every city we went to had a “grote markt” which held all the shops, markets, restaurants, and bars and each one also seemed to have either a famous statue/sculpture or a historical site to visit. Even the smaller cities like Aalst had their own “grote markt” and they seemed to buzz with Belgian culture. That is where I learned the most about Belgium. It offers the entire culture of the city all into one town square! At Ghent, we sampled and bought some more chocolate and bread from the numerous bakeries before we sat down to eat. Anna had suggested that we eat something from one of the many street vendors since the street vendors can offer the best taste of Belgium. All of us ordered a mitraillette, which is basically a sandwich piled with frites (french fries), sausage, and mayonnaise and it literally translates to “submachine gun” in French... We sat near the Leie river bridge and ate our sandwiches. After eating, we spent the rest of the evening walking around Ghent which was a treat itself! Walking the streets of Ghent is like walking through a painting of an architectural masterpiece with old cathedrals, merchant houses, churches, and river houses! Like, I can't tell you how awesome it is to walk through the streets and marvel at all the old buildings and take in the smell of chocolate, fries, and sweet waffles! It was amazing! After walking around the city, shopping and gazing, we headed back to Anna’s house and ended our day with a few board games around a fire!

Day 3: Again, we woke up early and after a quick breakfast that consisted of fresh fruit, warm bread, and “pain au chocolat”, we were at the train station by 7 am and on our way to Brugge! The city of Brugge was easily my favorite city of the trip because it seemed to have taken every distinct feature of all the other cities and combine it all into one. It was a cold, cloudy, and foggy morning when we arrived in Brugge, and I think I would have enjoyed the city even more if it hadn’t been so crummy out. Despite this, I actually enjoyed the fog and cloudy sky because it gave the city more of an eerie feeling, especially from the gothic architecture throughout the city. The city was absolutely beautiful and was a walk back in time with the various canals and cobblestone streets! Our first visit in Brugge was the Belfry Tower, built in 1240. After viewing the tower, we spent the rest of the day touring the “grote markt” of Brugge along with the cobblestone streets and the canals. Throughout the day, I was having a hard time putting my camera down, I was too photo happy but I am delighted with some of the photos I captured! For lunch, we settled for some street food in the grote markt. Sammie and I ordered choucroute garnie, which is a plate full of sausage, sauerkraut, potatoes, bacon, and ham. After lunch, we continued to tour the city, gazing at the beautiful sights while sampling many different Belgian beers and wines, even taking a boat tour through the canals in the city which was peaceful and very romantic! After a few more hours, we settled down for dinner, stopping at a small and peaceful restaurant near the Belfry Tower. I wasn’t too hungry but Sammie and I shared a plate full of mussels. After dinner, we headed back to Lede. By the time we got back to Anna’s house, it was late but Anna and Hailey had wanted to go out to a club in Aalst. We had been asked to join them but Sammie and I decided to give Anna and Hailey a little time together so we declined. While they were out in Aalst, we stayed back in Lede and wandered the town, eventually finding a rather romantic spot by cattle pasture, underneath a large tree with a creek nearby in which we took advantage of...defying the cold weather for our only sex escapade of the trip!