Brugge, Day One
Merry Christmas to all of our readers. We've just returned from our holiday in Brugge, Belgium. That's right. Brugge. Haven't heard of it? Well, it's not as well known as Brussels or Antwerp but Margo suggested it because it's a pleasant town with a nice Christmas village and has something of a reputation as a hidden gem. And Belgium was attractive for several reasons: Belgian beer, Belgian chocolates, and Hooverphonic. It's also low-hanging fruit: it's an easy trip from London by Eurostar train.
Our trip started Saturday morning with a cab ride to the station and a train ride to London Liverpool Street station, where we then took a cab across the Thames to the Waterloo station and its Eurostar terminal. Being a popular holiday travel time, the terminal was quite busy with an impressive queue for customs and boarding but despite this our train left only about ten minutes after its scheduled departure.
It was about two hours to Brussels. We got help to find a train that stopped in Brugge; apparently it wasn't the last stop for any trains, which is how they are listed. The signage was mostly non-English; Dutch and French are the primary languages, but everyone seems to speak English anyway so we were able to get help. We also tried to get Euros from a cash machine but we only found one and it wasn't working.
About an hour later we arrived in Brugge after passing through Ghent. Our taxi driver had to find a cash machine for us on the way to the hotel so we could pay him. We were pleased to find our room; it was much larger than many rooms we've stayed in, with creaky hardwood floors and a huge bathroom.
After a bit of settling and unpacking, we went out to hunt for dinner and ended up settling to eat at the restaurant downstairs. I had onion soup and a "Fish Dish" of salmon and two white fishes baked in a white wine cream sauce. Margo had a salad with warm goat cheese wrapped in bacon, and steak. We also got the famous fries with dinner. Fries are common in Belgium, often served with mayonnaise.
And the beers! Leffe (both the blonde and bruin) are favourites of mine here in the UK already, so I tried a few others with dinner. I started with a Rochefort Trappiste 8° - a small token of moderation from the heavier 10°. It was splendid. Then I had two different tripels. I probably only needed one. The Rochefort was a knockout 9.2% alcohol by volume and I'd guess the tripels were similar if not higher. Portland has an esteemed international reputation for its great beers, many featuring the excellent Cascade hops ... but as a result many of the beers are quite hoppy, whereas I love the sweet, strong maltiness of Belgian beers. I've heard that the Belgians appreciate their beer like the French do their wine.
After dinner we walked the two blocks down the street to the central square housing the Christmas village: a collection of stalls surrounding an ice rink, all dotted with white lights. We got some hot cocoa for Sarah and some "Gluhwien" spiced wine for ourselves and watched the ice skaters while an ABBA medley played, followed by medleys of songs by the Beatles and Grease.
Our trip started Saturday morning with a cab ride to the station and a train ride to London Liverpool Street station, where we then took a cab across the Thames to the Waterloo station and its Eurostar terminal. Being a popular holiday travel time, the terminal was quite busy with an impressive queue for customs and boarding but despite this our train left only about ten minutes after its scheduled departure.
It was about two hours to Brussels. We got help to find a train that stopped in Brugge; apparently it wasn't the last stop for any trains, which is how they are listed. The signage was mostly non-English; Dutch and French are the primary languages, but everyone seems to speak English anyway so we were able to get help. We also tried to get Euros from a cash machine but we only found one and it wasn't working.
About an hour later we arrived in Brugge after passing through Ghent. Our taxi driver had to find a cash machine for us on the way to the hotel so we could pay him. We were pleased to find our room; it was much larger than many rooms we've stayed in, with creaky hardwood floors and a huge bathroom.
After a bit of settling and unpacking, we went out to hunt for dinner and ended up settling to eat at the restaurant downstairs. I had onion soup and a "Fish Dish" of salmon and two white fishes baked in a white wine cream sauce. Margo had a salad with warm goat cheese wrapped in bacon, and steak. We also got the famous fries with dinner. Fries are common in Belgium, often served with mayonnaise.
And the beers! Leffe (both the blonde and bruin) are favourites of mine here in the UK already, so I tried a few others with dinner. I started with a Rochefort Trappiste 8° - a small token of moderation from the heavier 10°. It was splendid. Then I had two different tripels. I probably only needed one. The Rochefort was a knockout 9.2% alcohol by volume and I'd guess the tripels were similar if not higher. Portland has an esteemed international reputation for its great beers, many featuring the excellent Cascade hops ... but as a result many of the beers are quite hoppy, whereas I love the sweet, strong maltiness of Belgian beers. I've heard that the Belgians appreciate their beer like the French do their wine.
After dinner we walked the two blocks down the street to the central square housing the Christmas village: a collection of stalls surrounding an ice rink, all dotted with white lights. We got some hot cocoa for Sarah and some "Gluhwien" spiced wine for ourselves and watched the ice skaters while an ABBA medley played, followed by medleys of songs by the Beatles and Grease.
posted by Michael Nelson at 12:02 pm
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