brugge and ghent

In late February of this year our friends Patrick and Annie visited us from northern California. They first came to England for a few days before all of us chunneled to Belgium.

This was our first trip with Simone outside of England.  We spent the first (rainy) day and night of the trip in Lille, France. We had a long cozy lunch and then spent the day ducking in and out of shops and cafes to take breaks from the drizzle.  We ended the night at a great bar where Frenchmen flirted with Simone.

The next morning we grabbed baguettes and drove on to Brugge, Belgium.  Marco and I had visited Brugge with Marco's parents a few years ago.  We were excited to get back to the beer-centric small city.  Though cold, we had great weather.  We roamed the city a bit before getting to the main task at hand, beer bars and beer tastings.  We knew we wouldn't make it to De Struise Brouwers this trip but we went to their beer shop and tasting room located on a main square.  I had only tried a few of their beers before, it was great to taste such a large selection - all of it amazing.  After a full day in Brugge, we grabbed some waffles with Nutella (always with Nutella) before heading to Ghent.

It was late evening when we arrived to Ghent.  Thanks to Patrick, we had another amazing Marriott stay, in a great location - right on the river.  We dropped our bags and headed out to see the city at night.  As we walked, we were taken aback by the beautiful city.  I don't know what I was expecting, but Ghent exceeded my expectations.  Come to learn later, the city has won awards for it's lighting plan. As we walked, we passed so many great old "brown bars", all bustling.  We chose a cozy one lit entirely by candlelight. We enjoyed our drinks while sitting back on old velvet sofas, looking around at the young crowd and reminiscing about those days.  We hit one more bar where Marco made 15 or so  new best friends while bonding over yard stick beers.  Annie, the very patient pregnant one, was such a trooper as Marco, Patrick, and I combed over the thick beer menu.  After several, Patrick and Annie headed to dinner while Simone was telling Marco and I that it was time for bed.

The next morning we checked out some design shops, enjoyed coffee and Belgium waffles, and picked up a dress for Simone in a Belgium lace and linen shop.

Next post, photos from some brewery visits.