havecarryonwilltravel

Boy am I happy we are not riding today. There is a RED wind warning, gusts up to 70kph! Fingers are crossed that the wind abates some by tomorrow when we have to get on our bikes again.

There is an immersive Dali exhibit showing which we go see. It was informative and intriguing and very well done. I loved the music in one room and the visuals. The last room was a VR experience. Headsets were placed on us (mine worked better without my glasses on) and it took us to a ship. We could walk about the ship and watch as the ship passed isles, rocks, elephants. Objects appeared on the ship too – a giant candle, an egg and ship parts. Now I can tell my children I have experienced VR!

Next stop is The Church of Our Lady to view the Madonna and Child by Michelangelo. The charge is 8 Euros to be able to wander the back of the altar and the sides of the nave looking at the huge paintings, sculptures and prayer rooms. And then there is the Madonna and Child. It is small but beautiful, sculpted in the early 1500s.

Around the world it is not unusual for museums or art galleries to be closed on Monday. Even though we have been travelling for many years we still get caught on that one every once in a while. If visiting Belgium you have to keep your head up. It not just the tourist attractions that close on Mondays and Tuesdays. Things like restaurants work on the weekends and rest on Monday. There are those that stay open but if you had eyed a particular place to eat on your Sunday tour it may not open on Monday when you had intended to frequent the place.

The sights today were not nearly as crowded as yesterday. There were lots of tourists but there was a bit of breathing room. I knew there was ‘Open Monuments Weekend’ on Saturday and Sunday but did not realize it would attract so many extra people. There was not just your normal tourist crowd but Belgians from miles around hopped on the train and came for the day. The popular tourist attractions were crawling with people.

Another random thought about the wind. Debbie mentioned the gusts were 70+kph today. There is an extra danger that lurks on such windy days. Almost every day we have ridden we have come across wonderful alleys of trees that line the bike roads. As we pass under those trees there is a constant crunching of the nuts that have ripened and fallen to asphalt. We ride over them and there is a snapping crunch as we crack the shells with our tires. Today in those winds we found it dangerous to stand under those oak (maybe) trees. The nuts were raining down and plunking on anything and anybody within a few meters of the trunk. We survived the on-slot and will live to tell about the trauma.

Oh, the tourists. Bruges is the most crowded city we have been in so far. In the first hour of being downtown, I think I hear more English than I have heard from the start of our trip. So many people here.

We get out of the crowd by going into the Groening Museum. The museum has a collection of paintings from the 14th century and each century after. It is interesting to note the changes in the painting techniques and subject matter as time went on. There is an exhibit of books that had incredible colour and script.

We wander to the main square and sit to eat a quick sausage roll for lunch. We share our ledge with a couple from Belgium and have a wide ranging chat. Later in the day we share our bench with a lady from Kortrijk and we discuss politics. These conversations are what makes travelling special.

Today, we have time to sit in the square and watch the action. Two things… First, folks passing by are wearing sensible footwear. With all the cobbles, heels do not work so flat shoes, or sneakers, are the footwear of choice. Second, mostly women like to pose for photos. They place their feet a particular way and the arms are expressive. We see one fellow push up his sleeves so his watch and bracelet are showing for his posed photo. It seems that the person is saying “Look how fabulous I am, standing in front of the Stadhuis!” She is more like an actor in a scene rather than a traveller letting the scenery, ambience and culture sink into her bones. Has social media done this?

Mussels, with garlic celery and onions, for supper. We manage to consume the whole bucketful and are thankful for the long walk back to the hotel.

Murray says:

There are so many different types of bikes here. Over the past couple of weeks I have seen bikes that look like they have been resurrected from the 1800s to racing bikes worth $10,000 plus. I saw two bikes today that I thought were worth a picture. One is a cargo bike with a roof and wind shield for the passenger and the second an enclosed recumbent, efficient from the aerodynamic perspective and protected from the elements.

The other thing that I have been seeing is the juxtaposition of architectural styles that sit side by side in every village, town and city we have visited. As I think I mentioned, that at least the facades of the old building are protected by the city or even the country. Which is sort of not true to the past, but these building fronts do remain and when a new building is placed adjacent to an old one the result can be quite stunning. I don’t know why cities like the one I live in, Edmonton, do not have enough balls to tell the developers they have to respect the existing city fabric and work with what makes the city unique.