What a day and what a long one. Tonight, I want to get some pictures out, but there won’t be as much commentary… or we’ll see what happens. I did a lot of walking, and I saw so many amazing things, so let’s take a look. Warning: this is essentially an unedited photo dump.
I sort of learned how to navigate the public transportation in Japan, so I didn’t feel too intimidated here. I jumped on and after a 30 minute bus ride with one transfer, I easily made my way to the old city and Gravensteen Castle. It dates from 1180 and the current restoration took place between 1893 and 1903. There are multiple spiral staircases, but I managed without too much huffing and puffing.
If you need a bit of medieval armory, they have some very interesting pieces. The one sword is about six feet long. Good luck swinging that!
Later in the day, I took a scenic boat tour. This is the view of the castle from the boat:
Then I walked and enjoyed some of the sights of the old city:
I then entered the Church of St. Nicholas. The day was cool, but the temperature dropped at least ten degrees as I entered… not that my poor heathen soul was the reason for the decrease.
One of the “artistic” shots of the day…
And then, I was at St. Bavo’s Cathedral. I hadn’t planned on it, in fact, I have a ticket for tomorrow, but then… when in Ghent! The pictures do no justice to the Ghent Altarpiece and the Mystical Lamb. I bought a book and will happily show it to you. Truly magnificent!
And now for something completely different! Graffiti Alley… this narrow alleyway is covered from floor to ceiling in graffiti. There is only one shop along the way, and they serve an exceptional espresso and make the most decadent chocolate treats—mine was a cookie filled with raspberry cream and covered with dark chocolate. Yeah… I ate it all.
At this stage, the dogs were barking, and I was ready for a sit-down, although not quite ready to return to the hotel. A fifty-minute canal tour proved to be just the ticket.
The tour guide—who could jump from English, French, German, and Flemish without skipping a beat—actually took his hands off the wheel and took the same picture above. Said it was his favorite view and this was the most beautiful he had ever seen it. I thought I had better do the same.
That is all the photos for now. I returned to the hotel, had a nice cold Belgian beer…
…and worked on that short story for the Writing Battle. Perhaps I shouldn’t be drinking beer while writing, because it has taken a turn for the more-weird-than-usual, but it is fun. Tomorrow is museum day. I’ll try to do more writing with the post but I do hope you enjoy today’s pictures. They truly do none of this beautiful city justice.
Candle in a Cave 