Portugal, Belgium and the Netherlands

 

We just returned from a trip. As in the past, we sent a report home to friends and family, as we traveled.  My husband, George, writes these reports, and put in the pictures.  I always post those reports on the blog - on the side column, under Trip Reports.  If you would like to read about our latest adventures you can go to the Trip Report column and click on the Portugal trip.  We had a good time, but we always are glad to get back home to our 2 dogs.

 

You could also click on this link to go to the report - http://havelistwilltravel.blogspot.com/p/the-old-legend-of-barcelos-cock-once-at.html

Destination - Bruges, Belgium

"If you set out to design a fairy-tale medieval town it would be hard to improve on central Bruges. Picturesque cobbled lanes and dreamy canals link exceptionally photogenic market squares lined with soaring towers, historic churches and old whitewashed almshouses."

 

Bruges, Belgium

 

Bruges is a charming city of medieval architecture and cobbled streets.  Since 2000, the Historic Center of Bruges has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site, for its "outstanding example of a medieval historic settlement, which has maintained its historic fabric as this has evolved over the centuries."  Canals, cobblestone paths, and medieval and gothic buildings give the city an old world feel.

I have not yet been to Bruges, although it is one of the stops we plan to make in 2014 when we meet up with our friends from Scotland.  My plan is to fly to Amsterdam, then take the train to Bruges, and then on to Lisbon, where we will meet them.  We'll have 6 days on our own and then 2 weeks with them in Portugal, which should gives us some time to explore.  So now I am looking at what there is to do in those cities.

The area of Bruges that most tourists spend all their time in, is the Historic Center of Bruges which is contained within a canal, or moat.  Nearly everything of interest and importance is within this convenient cobbled stone area between the train station and Market Square.

Market Square and the Bell Tower

Market Square (Markt) - This is the heart of the city. It is ringed by banks, the post office, restaurants and dominated by the 290 foot high bell tower.  Most of the buildings are gabled and quite majestic. Horse-drawn carriages clip-clop through the square.  Geldmuntstraat, just off the square, is a delightful street with many fun shops and eateries. 

Bell Tower (Belfort) - This bell tower has presided over the square since 1300.  It is 366 steps to the top, and the view is worth the climb and the small charge.  It is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Just before you reach the top you should peek into the room with the 47 bells which are played on the quarter hour. 


 

Burg Square

Burg Square - This is Bruges civic center, historically the birthplace of Bruges and the site of the 9th century castle of the first Count of Flanders.  Today it is the scene of outdoor concerts and a place for people to gather.  It is surrounded by six-centuries of architecture.

Flemish art and the Gruuthuse Museum which is a 15th century mansion of a wealthy merchant and displays period furniture, tapestries, coins and musical instruments. Those are probably the most well known of the museums in the city.  There is also a lace museum - The Face of Lace.  Belgium is famous for its lace.


Madonna & Child

There are churches with wonderful architecture to see.  The two most frequented by tourists would be the Basilica of the Holy Blood (which supposedly has some of Christ's blood), and Church of Our Lady which stands as a memorial to the power and wealth of Bruges in its heyday.  It has on display a sculpture by Michelangelo - Madonna and child.  This exquisite sculpture was the master's only work to leave Italy in his lifetime.  One oddity, high up in the church wall, is the personal observation room of the Gruuthuse family who lived in the adjoining palace, now the Gruuthuse museum.

You could also visit the City Hall's Gothic Room which is full of maps and paintings,  The Gothic Hall which dates back to the 1400's features painted and carved wooden ceilings and hanging arches.  And the Renaissance Hall has a chimney carved from oak.  If you are into heraldry this is a good place to stop and look around.



Chocolate Line Shop

But there is so much more too Bruges then just the history and the architecture.  For foodies you have to stop and try the  famous Belgium chocolates.  Some of the best places to buy chocolate are Dumon and The Chocolate Line.  In fact, there is a chocolate museum, The Choco-Story where you learn all about chocolate.  Don't forget that fries (or chips) were invented in Belgium, not France, and you will find stalls that sell these, and there is even a museum to visit about them, the Frietmuseum.  Bruges is also famous for their beer.  The local brewery, De Halve Maan, is open for daily tours, you will get one free sample of beer and there is a good café where you can get a good meal with of course, a beer.



boats on the canal

There are lots of tours available.  There are boat tours of Bruges' canals which are a great way to take in the medieval architecture of the city.  And a tour that I thought looked interesting was the Quasimodo Tours which specializes in full (and half) day tours of the historic castles, chateaus and landmarks of Flanders.  It even takes you to visit the WWI landmarks of Flanders Fields.  This tour would get you out of the city to show you some of the surrounding areas.

Just a 10 minute walk from the historic center of town you can visit the city's northeast area, where you will find authentic, lived in Bruges with its quiet cobbled streets of step-fronted houses in brick.  The houses quite often have hand-made glass windows and doors that are painted burgundy and dark green.  If you walk a little further you can get to the windmills next to the canal at Kruisvest.  You can also visit the Lace Centre, where you can learn all about Belgium's lace, which includes demonstrations.

Street Food in Bruges includes waffles

You'll find some good places to eat in Bruges.  The specialty of the city is mussels, cooked a variety of ways.  You can eat outside in the squares or along the canals.  These places are great for people watching and are popular with tourists.  Some of the better places are the bistros on the back streets where the locals eat.  There are also many bars or pubs where you can get a light meal or a drink.  And when visiting any new place, I love to try the street foods.  In Bruges that would be the fries and the Belgium waffles which are not eaten for breakfast but as a snack.



Belgium Chocolate

Bruges is a city for walking around in, for taking in the sights and the architecture and soaking up the atmosphere.  For enjoying the canals and taking a boat ride.  And certainly for enjoying the chocolate and the beer, both of which I love.  I'm looking forward to exploring this city.

 

Street Foods

"Street cooks are magicians: With little more than a cart and a griddle, mortar, or deep-fryer, they conjure up not just a delicious snack or meal but the very essence of a place."
Unknown

 

Viet Nam, street food vendor with Banh Mi sandwiches

Whenever I travel I like to experience the food in the place I am.  Most of the time that means eating at local restaurants.  But it also means eating street food.  Street Food is any food or drink sold in a street or a market area or fair by a hawker or vendor, usually from a portable stall or truck.  Most street foods are also food that can be eaten with your fingers and are cheaper than food you would buy from a restaurant.  Almost any city you visit has street food that is very much a part of that place.  

Banh Mi Sandwich

Some people worry about eating in places such as this, for health reasons, but if you use a little common sense, it is not a problem. If you do not try something that looks good you are denying yourself an essential part of the travel experience.  Go where the crowds are, the locals know where the food is safe to eat.  And if it doesn’t look clean, then go somewhere else.  But try the local foods.

Suman, a street food in the Philippines

We lived in the Philippines many years ago.  I used to go out to the local market to buy fresh shrimp.  They would unload the boats of fresh fish early in the morning, and you could get fish and shrimp right off the boat. The shrimp were still alive and jumping. If you waited until later in the day, then it was no longer fresh, as it would have been in the open with the heat of the day, and the flies covering it.  I never went to the market later in the day.  But while there I quite often would also buy some of the Suman which is a sweet rice that was wrapped in banana leaves and cooked there in the market.  They were delicious.  I never got sick from eating there, but like I said, I got there early in the day when things were still fresh.

That was my start on street foods.  Over the years I have tried many more versions of street food.  Each country has things they are famous for.  When we visited Istanbul, Turkey, I noticed that there were many carts selling fresh corn-on-the-cob.  I love corn, and I bought and ear one day and ate it as I walked down the street.  It tasted really good.  The other street food I had in Istanbul, was simit.  Simit is a bagel style sesame bread.  I enjoyed that also.

Simits in Istanbul

Corn on the Cob in Istanbul

While in Germany we had bratwurst on a bun, cooked on a grill.  It came with onions and green peppers.  Another German street food is the pretzel, big doughy pretzels with salt or mustard.  We have some that are similar here in the states, but somehow they just tasted better there.
 

George with our friends Bonnie & Pete
Having pretzels at the Christmas Market in Germany

Baguettes in Paris

In Paris we purchased long sandwiches with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil in a baguette from a street vendor, and ate them in the park.  Another Paris treat is a crepe made with nutella. 

 



Frites in Belgium

Another place known for street foods – Belgium where you can get the crispiest, freshest fries (frites) served in a paper cup, or waffles from a street vendor.  For those who do not know, the Belgiums are the ones who originated what we now refer to as French Fries.

Israel is known for falafel balls served with pita bread.  Viet Nam has their Banh Mi sandwiches which are baguette bread filled with grilled pork and pickled vegetables.  Mexico has street tacos. 

 

We saw some really interesting street food in China.  There were scorpions on a stick and some drink that had smoke coming off of it, which seemed to be quite popular with the locals. 

Street Vender in China

Drink in China, Never found out
what it was

 

Singapore Street Food

And Singapore probably has the safest street food, and some of the best.  The government enforces health standards at all places that serve food.  Singapore is so clean, you could probably eat safely off the sidewalks.  And they are famous for their food stands, and food carts.  We went to a place that was famous for serving the local food.  It had probably 20 carts in an area with tables set up.  The tables had numbers on them, and you would order the food and they would deliver it to your table.  My mistake was that I didn’t know they had 2 sizes of plates.  I had seen little plates being delivered to the table, so I thought that is what I was ordering.  I decided to order a variety of food.  I wanted to try a little of everything.  When I realized that I was getting large plates of food, it was too late.  We had enough food to feed a small army.  We did waste some of it, there was no way we good finish it, and I’m sure the local people were laughing at us.  But everything we ate was good, and even though we ordered alot, it was cheap, so we didn't break the bank.

Hot Dog Vendor in New York

Even here in the states we have street food.   And I don’t mean all the fast food restaurants, that is not street food.  Food trucks are becoming quite popular all over the states, and many of them are now serving ethnic foods.  I know the Vietnamese Banh mi is becoming quite popular here because of the food trucks.  And if you go to New York or Chicago, you will see the hot dog vendors on the street corner, they are an institution. 

So when you are exploring a new place, make sure you take the time to also try some of the local favorites and get a taste of the place you are in.  Use common sense, yes, but be adventuresome.  Look for the crowds, and see what they are eating.  Sometimes the street food is really the essence of the place you are visiting. 

 

 o