This is a very long post. You've been warned. Enjoy!
So the other night I discovered it's very hard to make small talk in a language you can't speak. I found this out at Agathe's birthday party. I was downstairs for a little while, and no one was talking to me and I couldn't start talking to anyone or join in any conversations, so I was just awkwardly sitting there getting a headache from the smoke. Also, when I tried to start talking to someone and asked them to speak slowly, they all quickly lost interest.... I decided to just make dinner and go back up to my room. That was also awkward because everyone was in the kitchen, but when I had tried to make dinner earlier Bibiane was using the kitchen so I couldn't. My stomach also hurt so I just wanted to lay down. The music was SO loud, and my room smelled AWFUL from all the smoke. I left the window open all night. I tried going to bed around 12 because I had to get up and go to the train station, but I didn't get to sleep until 4:30 it was horrible. I wanted to kill whoever invented bass. I had my noise canceling headphones OVER my earplugs, and I could still hear what song was playing. Also, random people kept opening the door to my room, which doesn't lock. Kind of unsettling. I woke up early the next day anyway, before my alarm. I took a shower to wash off the smoke, plus as kind of a last hurrah because I wasn't planning on showering in the hostel in Bruges. The house was pretty clean already, but the white stairs up to my room were all black and sticky it was pretty gross. It looks like they enjoyed my cake, though, it was totally destroyed.
On the Métro on the way to the train station this little girl sat across from me and kept hitting me with her feet that were hanging over the edge of the chair. Her dad kept moving her legs so they wouldn't hit me, but she kept moving them back. Every time she hit me we would kind of stare each other down it was kind of funny. I got to the train station in plenty of time, and found a grocery store to get lunch for the ride. It was a super sketch grocery store, but it was really cheap so I wasn't complaining. The train ride wasn't too bad. I just listened to music the whole way and tried to sleep. When I got into Bruges I figured out the bus station and headed towards the city. I didn't realize I didn't even know what language they speak there (Dutch). But everyone speaks English, anyway, a fact they seem to be very proud of. All the people there are really nice and very helpful and speak amazing English and French, even some Italian and Spanish! Quite impressive. They can just switch around between them so easily. Jealous haha. I found the hostel pretty easily even though I had written down the wrong address. I wound up at this old lady's house a few doors down; she was very confused. Turns out the hostel even has a sign out front, but that's me and my powers of observation for ya. Oops. I checked in and went up to the room. 
It was pretty decent I guess, a lot like camp. I also had to go through another room to get to mine, so that was kind of awkward. It's a pretty quiet and chill place, though, even with the bar and music playing downstairs. I met another kid in my room who had actually been on the same train. He's at the end of his two month backpacking adventure. We ended up sticking together for the weekend. It was awesome to find someone else to see the city with. I definitely ended up doing more than I would have on my own I think. We just walked around that first night. There is a beautiful park pretty close by and all the trees were changing color and it was amazing. The buildings are cool, too. Apparently some are not as old as people want you to think, but a lot of them are. Very medieval looking. We went to the top of the concert hall and saw part of an art exhibit located in 5 places around the city. Then we walked around some more and got dinner at this little restaurant near the main square. It was 3 euros for a huge bowl of spaghetti. Awesome. The soda cost half as much as the meal. Ridiculous. It was super filling though and delicious. Then we walked around a lot more to walk off dinner, and then, we got waffles. Real Belgian waffles. Holy moly they were good. They're not breakfast there, you get them for dessert with powdered sugar and toppings. I got chocolate and David got caramel and both were amazing. I'm glad we walked so much because I plan on eating many more of those. The city is so beautiful at night. I wish my pictures did it justice, but they just can't. It seems like a really mellow town: lots of old people and horse-drawn characters and stuff. I think it was a good choice for a city to go to alone. We went back to the hostel bar, and these people had brought their dogs in who were barking like crazy. Very strange. I decided to branch out again, and joined a group of girls playing Taboo. It was the British version, though, so we didn't know what some of the things were. Then, these Irish people at another table came over and invited us to play cards. We played Egyptian Ratscrew and then BS which was interesting because the deck was all jacked up. For example, there were eleven 10s and five kings, plus it was missing a bunch of other cards. For the first time, you could put down 5 cards and not be "cheating" (aka using strategy...Bri). Also, you could BS a person for putting down 4 cards, which you would never do otherwise. I came in a solid 3rd place...with my 5 kings. Also it was a French deck so the king had an R on it, the queen had a D, and the jack had a V. I only knew king was R for roi. I guess queen is D for dame, and jack is V for valet? When we all first saw the face cards we were really confused. Also Ace was just 1. I went to bed around midnight and slept pretty well. I'm really glad I brought my own pillow case, but everything else seemed pretty clean, except the comforter which I was careful to wrap in the sheet I hope they washed well. It was really quiet, too, given that the music was bumpin downstairs in the bar. I only woke up when the other people in the room came in and turned the light on. Also they guy in the bunk above me apparently seizes in his sleep, because I woke up to the bed shaking a couple times. He also snored. But it was still quieter than the bass so I wasn't complaining, and I had earplugs that worked this time.
It was pretty decent I guess, a lot like camp. I also had to go through another room to get to mine, so that was kind of awkward. It's a pretty quiet and chill place, though, even with the bar and music playing downstairs. I met another kid in my room who had actually been on the same train. He's at the end of his two month backpacking adventure. We ended up sticking together for the weekend. It was awesome to find someone else to see the city with. I definitely ended up doing more than I would have on my own I think. We just walked around that first night. There is a beautiful park pretty close by and all the trees were changing color and it was amazing. The buildings are cool, too. Apparently some are not as old as people want you to think, but a lot of them are. Very medieval looking. We went to the top of the concert hall and saw part of an art exhibit located in 5 places around the city. Then we walked around some more and got dinner at this little restaurant near the main square. It was 3 euros for a huge bowl of spaghetti. Awesome. The soda cost half as much as the meal. Ridiculous. It was super filling though and delicious. Then we walked around a lot more to walk off dinner, and then, we got waffles. Real Belgian waffles. Holy moly they were good. They're not breakfast there, you get them for dessert with powdered sugar and toppings. I got chocolate and David got caramel and both were amazing. I'm glad we walked so much because I plan on eating many more of those. The city is so beautiful at night. I wish my pictures did it justice, but they just can't. It seems like a really mellow town: lots of old people and horse-drawn characters and stuff. I think it was a good choice for a city to go to alone. We went back to the hostel bar, and these people had brought their dogs in who were barking like crazy. Very strange. I decided to branch out again, and joined a group of girls playing Taboo. It was the British version, though, so we didn't know what some of the things were. Then, these Irish people at another table came over and invited us to play cards. We played Egyptian Ratscrew and then BS which was interesting because the deck was all jacked up. For example, there were eleven 10s and five kings, plus it was missing a bunch of other cards. For the first time, you could put down 5 cards and not be "cheating" (aka using strategy...Bri). Also, you could BS a person for putting down 4 cards, which you would never do otherwise. I came in a solid 3rd place...with my 5 kings. Also it was a French deck so the king had an R on it, the queen had a D, and the jack had a V. I only knew king was R for roi. I guess queen is D for dame, and jack is V for valet? When we all first saw the face cards we were really confused. Also Ace was just 1. I went to bed around midnight and slept pretty well. I'm really glad I brought my own pillow case, but everything else seemed pretty clean, except the comforter which I was careful to wrap in the sheet I hope they washed well. It was really quiet, too, given that the music was bumpin downstairs in the bar. I only woke up when the other people in the room came in and turned the light on. Also they guy in the bunk above me apparently seizes in his sleep, because I woke up to the bed shaking a couple times. He also snored. But it was still quieter than the bass so I wasn't complaining, and I had earplugs that worked this time.The next day, I woke up around 8:30. Breakfast was pretty decent. Pretty sure they gave us the 65¢ corn flakes, but I had those and some toast and it was good. They also had mini things of Speculoos spread like those mini jelly or peanut butter things. I guess it is Belgian. Then we headed out for the day. A lot of the stuff we wanted to see wasn't open yet or was closed for the day because it was Monday (a lot of museums are closed Monday) and a holiday (All Saint's Day...not really even sure what that's for). We decided to do the canal tour first. It was amazing. It was beautiful, and still sunny and kind of warm. Our guide was a cute old man who was quite the character. It was cool to hear some of the history of the city, like how one bridge has three kind of layers, each built in a different century. Also, there is a row of seven houses, each built in a different building style. There used to be a window tax, too, so rich people would pay more because they had bigger houses and therefore bigger windows, so some of the windows in some of the buildings are sealed shut so they rich people wouldn't have to pay for them. 
There are also tons of swans and ducks in the canals. Our guide told us "Duck à l'orange" is a French "delicatessen." I think he meant delicacy. There was also the cutest old dog just chillin with its head and front paws out a window over the canal. He was just sleeping there it was adorable. I tried to capture everything in pictures, but the boat was going so fast it was hard to get decent shots. I think I got a few, though. Hopefully. After that, we went to the City Hall, which is a museum, too. For 1 euro we got tickets and audioguides. Basically we got a very detailed history of Belgium and the Dutch. Flashbacks to AP Euro. One painting was funny because it looked like the head of one of the people had been painted on a different piece of canvas. Turns out, the artist did most of the work in his workshop in Italy, but the face was done on location I guess and then brought back and attached to the main painting. Upstairs was a beautiful Gothic room, but you couldn't take pictures, so of course I snapped a few. Then we went back to the church that had been having mass earlier to see a Michelangelo statue (one of the few outside of Italy). On the way we passed a parade...not sure what it was for, but there was a marching band and a few people following them. Kind of bizarre. The church was pretty, but I'm also glad it was free. Then we went to the French fry museum and learned all about the history of potatoes and fries. Turns out there are like 4000 different types, and they used to be really small. We learned how they're grown and what nutritional qualities they have, etc. The plant itself is actually really poisonous. And although invented in Belgium (supposedly, but a fact they are very proud of), they are called French fries because during WWI some Belgians gave some to some Americans, and the Americans thought the Belgians were French so called them French fries. America fail. 
The traditional topping there is mayonnaise, but I couldn't bring myself to just dip fried food into mayonnaise and eat it. I'm sure it's good, but I stuck to ketchup. Which I also learned is most likely based off a Japanese sauce called "ke' tsiep" that the Americans tweaked a little bit. The fries were frickin good. After the Friet Museum we went to the church that has a vial of blood that supposedly came from Christ...not sure I believe that one. I felt really uncomfortable as the two priests came out carrying this ornate vial filled with blood and then put it on the altar and started talking about how it "wasn't a tourist attraction, it's an expression of faith." Then you could, for a small "donation," go up and touch the vial. We didn't. Jews and idol/object worship don't mix. Especially when Christ is involved. It was a very strange and semi-unpleasant experience. I don't think it should be on the list of touristy things to do if they don't want tourists in there. I'm guessing they actually do, though, because they probably make a lot of money.
Anyways, after the creepy church, we went to the local brewery for a tour. I hadn't been planning on doing this, but thanks to a lot of the museums being closed we decided to do it. It was actually pretty cool and really interesting. Our guide was awesome. She had a really dry sense of humor and half the time I wasn't sure if we should be laughing, but that made it that much better haha. Among other things, I learned that hops is related to cannabis, which I guess is kind of like caffeine being related to cocaine. Also I learned that Belgians are very proud of their beer and take it very seriously. The laws there don't regulate what you can put in your beer like in some other countries, so they infuse it with a ton of random flavors. They used to use it to preserve fruit, so they have fruity beer. One brewery started making banana beer and chocolate beer, but apparently that was just a capitalist move/tourist trap. Our guide warned us against it. We also got an amazing view of the city from the roof. Getting around inside was kind of tricky. There were a lot of really steep staircases and really small doors we had to squeeze through, but everyone made it. The malt kind of made it smell like the pet food aisle at the store, and it tasted like it, too, lol. At the end of the tour we got a glass of the beer they brew there, which was OK, but I think I just really don't like beer. After the brewery tour we headed back to the hostel and met another kid from Australia named Matt. We all went out to dinner, and the restaurant played the most random music ever. 
It changed from Simply Red to Shania Twain to Bridge Over Troubled Water to that song from Miss Congeniality. So random. After dinner we got waffles with whipped cream this time. Soooo freaking good. One of the guys in the restaurant where we got the waffles was really adamant about me sitting down while we were waiting two minutes for the waffles. And then he grabbed my camera and started taking pictures of all of us with our waffles and tried to convince us to come to breakfast at his restaurant the next day. We left pretty quickly after that.
The next day, we got up early again and rented bikes and tried to find a castle I had read about online. It was a little off the map we had, so we had to kind of guess. It was nice to bike around instead of walk, but we got wayyy lost. First we made a wrong turn and went the wrong way for a while, and on the bike back towards where we had turned the wind was against us so it was really hard to pedal that way. Then we thought we were on the right street, but basically we saw the industrial side of Bruges plus a landfill (mainly bicycles). Not very scenic. We went even farther that way and didn't see any castles, so biked all the way back against the wind again. Also a ton of HUGE trucks kept driving by, spraying us with "water."
I was glad I was going home that night to my shower. Then we decided to look for a different castle that was on our map because we decided the one we had been looking for had been demolished. A nice man directed us the right way, but we didn't find that one either. We did find a lake and a very muddy bike trail, though. Oh well, can't say we didn't try. Then we headed back towards the city to find the windmills, which we did successfully. We biked up to one of them, and I thought my bike was going to collapse under the strain of having to go uphill. I gracefully got off the bike and slipped and almost fell down the super steep hill. Close call. And typical. 
When you've seen one windmill, I think you've seen them all, so that path got old pretty fast. We biked towards the Jerusalem Church and Lace Museum, but we decided we'd seen enough churches and couldn't find the museum. Then we got lunch at a place with "Flemish cuisine" apparently. 
We both got the plate of the day, which was pumpkin mashed potatoes and a cheeseburger. It was basically bright orange mashed potatoes and a patty, sans bun, covered in gravy. Also it was pork. Apparently there was cheese in there somewhere. It was good, though, just not what I was expecting when we ordered a "cheeseburger" haha. We got back on the bikes and headed for the chocolate museum. It was pretty interesting, like the French fry museum, and we saw the ChocObama. I renamed him that because it sounded better than just "Chocolate Obama," kind of like "Dunder Mifflinfinity" We missed the demo but got to taste the chocolates. Delicious. Obviously. Then we went to the van Eyck and Dürer expo. Pretty much, it was countless depictions of Jesus being crucified and pictures of the Madonna and Child. Got old pretty fast. After, we went to the Hospitaalmuseum, which was pretty cool. I guess they used to have the hospital beds in there, but they don't anymore. They did have two "ambulances" though. Little carts two guys would put people in and carry around. Upstairs, there another one of those modern art exhibits. Think Macy's Day Parade balloons. Now picture a giant hairy man version of one of those balloons. Now picture that...ahem, well-endowed...man-balloon in his birthday suit. And that was the exhibit. That upstairs room used to be where the nuns lived before the convent was built. I thought it was appropriate. 
Then we went to get our amazing ice cream topped waffles, which may have been the best yet. They were actually freshly cooked instead of just reheated like the other ones. The batter was sooo thick, more like cookie dough than waffle batter. Definitely learning how to make those back in the States. After, I bought some chocolates to bring back to Paris. And while they are delicious I'm not sure it was the best idea because I'm having self-control issues haha. We walked our bikes back to the hostel because at this point we were so sore we could hardly even walk. Those bike seats were less than comfortable, and every successive time we sat down it was more and more painful. It didn't help that the entire city has cobblestone roads, and are therefore incredibly bumpy. We got dinner at the grocery store and made it in the hostel kitchen. I got soup which was mostly broth but was also only a few euros. I also got Sprite in a blue bottle (!) but I seemed to be the only one who thought that was cool haha. Then we walked to the train station and I thought it would be a good idea to run across three lanes of traffic going opposite ways, but we all need a little excitement in our lives I guess. We said goodbye and I started the long journey back to Paris. Two hour-long trains, one hour-long layover, and one Métro ride later, I was finally home and in the amazing shower. I hope David made it back to the hostel OK. I navigated pretty much the whole trip and once we were literally standing across the street from it and he was like "OK boss, where are we?" I was like, "Um...."
So that concludes Bruges, congratulations to those of you who made it to the end of this post. It was 10 pages in my Moleskine, so I tried to leave out some stuff that wasn't important (you're probably thinking, "Wow what the heck did she cut?") But as a reward for getting here, if you mention this post, I will make you the best version of Belgian waffles as I can when I get home :)
There are also tons of swans and ducks in the canals. Our guide told us "Duck à l'orange" is a French "delicatessen." I think he meant delicacy. There was also the cutest old dog just chillin with its head and front paws out a window over the canal. He was just sleeping there it was adorable. I tried to capture everything in pictures, but the boat was going so fast it was hard to get decent shots. I think I got a few, though. Hopefully. After that, we went to the City Hall, which is a museum, too. For 1 euro we got tickets and audioguides. Basically we got a very detailed history of Belgium and the Dutch. Flashbacks to AP Euro. One painting was funny because it looked like the head of one of the people had been painted on a different piece of canvas. Turns out, the artist did most of the work in his workshop in Italy, but the face was done on location I guess and then brought back and attached to the main painting. Upstairs was a beautiful Gothic room, but you couldn't take pictures, so of course I snapped a few. Then we went back to the church that had been having mass earlier to see a Michelangelo statue (one of the few outside of Italy). On the way we passed a parade...not sure what it was for, but there was a marching band and a few people following them. Kind of bizarre. The church was pretty, but I'm also glad it was free. Then we went to the French fry museum and learned all about the history of potatoes and fries. Turns out there are like 4000 different types, and they used to be really small. We learned how they're grown and what nutritional qualities they have, etc. The plant itself is actually really poisonous. And although invented in Belgium (supposedly, but a fact they are very proud of), they are called French fries because during WWI some Belgians gave some to some Americans, and the Americans thought the Belgians were French so called them French fries. America fail. 
The traditional topping there is mayonnaise, but I couldn't bring myself to just dip fried food into mayonnaise and eat it. I'm sure it's good, but I stuck to ketchup. Which I also learned is most likely based off a Japanese sauce called "ke' tsiep" that the Americans tweaked a little bit. The fries were frickin good. After the Friet Museum we went to the church that has a vial of blood that supposedly came from Christ...not sure I believe that one. I felt really uncomfortable as the two priests came out carrying this ornate vial filled with blood and then put it on the altar and started talking about how it "wasn't a tourist attraction, it's an expression of faith." Then you could, for a small "donation," go up and touch the vial. We didn't. Jews and idol/object worship don't mix. Especially when Christ is involved. It was a very strange and semi-unpleasant experience. I don't think it should be on the list of touristy things to do if they don't want tourists in there. I'm guessing they actually do, though, because they probably make a lot of money.
Anyways, after the creepy church, we went to the local brewery for a tour. I hadn't been planning on doing this, but thanks to a lot of the museums being closed we decided to do it. It was actually pretty cool and really interesting. Our guide was awesome. She had a really dry sense of humor and half the time I wasn't sure if we should be laughing, but that made it that much better haha. Among other things, I learned that hops is related to cannabis, which I guess is kind of like caffeine being related to cocaine. Also I learned that Belgians are very proud of their beer and take it very seriously. The laws there don't regulate what you can put in your beer like in some other countries, so they infuse it with a ton of random flavors. They used to use it to preserve fruit, so they have fruity beer. One brewery started making banana beer and chocolate beer, but apparently that was just a capitalist move/tourist trap. Our guide warned us against it. We also got an amazing view of the city from the roof. Getting around inside was kind of tricky. There were a lot of really steep staircases and really small doors we had to squeeze through, but everyone made it. The malt kind of made it smell like the pet food aisle at the store, and it tasted like it, too, lol. At the end of the tour we got a glass of the beer they brew there, which was OK, but I think I just really don't like beer. After the brewery tour we headed back to the hostel and met another kid from Australia named Matt. We all went out to dinner, and the restaurant played the most random music ever. 
It changed from Simply Red to Shania Twain to Bridge Over Troubled Water to that song from Miss Congeniality. So random. After dinner we got waffles with whipped cream this time. Soooo freaking good. One of the guys in the restaurant where we got the waffles was really adamant about me sitting down while we were waiting two minutes for the waffles. And then he grabbed my camera and started taking pictures of all of us with our waffles and tried to convince us to come to breakfast at his restaurant the next day. We left pretty quickly after that.The next day, we got up early again and rented bikes and tried to find a castle I had read about online. It was a little off the map we had, so we had to kind of guess. It was nice to bike around instead of walk, but we got wayyy lost. First we made a wrong turn and went the wrong way for a while, and on the bike back towards where we had turned the wind was against us so it was really hard to pedal that way. Then we thought we were on the right street, but basically we saw the industrial side of Bruges plus a landfill (mainly bicycles). Not very scenic. We went even farther that way and didn't see any castles, so biked all the way back against the wind again. Also a ton of HUGE trucks kept driving by, spraying us with "water."
I was glad I was going home that night to my shower. Then we decided to look for a different castle that was on our map because we decided the one we had been looking for had been demolished. A nice man directed us the right way, but we didn't find that one either. We did find a lake and a very muddy bike trail, though. Oh well, can't say we didn't try. Then we headed back towards the city to find the windmills, which we did successfully. We biked up to one of them, and I thought my bike was going to collapse under the strain of having to go uphill. I gracefully got off the bike and slipped and almost fell down the super steep hill. Close call. And typical. 
When you've seen one windmill, I think you've seen them all, so that path got old pretty fast. We biked towards the Jerusalem Church and Lace Museum, but we decided we'd seen enough churches and couldn't find the museum. Then we got lunch at a place with "Flemish cuisine" apparently. 
We both got the plate of the day, which was pumpkin mashed potatoes and a cheeseburger. It was basically bright orange mashed potatoes and a patty, sans bun, covered in gravy. Also it was pork. Apparently there was cheese in there somewhere. It was good, though, just not what I was expecting when we ordered a "cheeseburger" haha. We got back on the bikes and headed for the chocolate museum. It was pretty interesting, like the French fry museum, and we saw the ChocObama. I renamed him that because it sounded better than just "Chocolate Obama," kind of like "Dunder Mifflinfinity" We missed the demo but got to taste the chocolates. Delicious. Obviously. Then we went to the van Eyck and Dürer expo. Pretty much, it was countless depictions of Jesus being crucified and pictures of the Madonna and Child. Got old pretty fast. After, we went to the Hospitaalmuseum, which was pretty cool. I guess they used to have the hospital beds in there, but they don't anymore. They did have two "ambulances" though. Little carts two guys would put people in and carry around. Upstairs, there another one of those modern art exhibits. Think Macy's Day Parade balloons. Now picture a giant hairy man version of one of those balloons. Now picture that...ahem, well-endowed...man-balloon in his birthday suit. And that was the exhibit. That upstairs room used to be where the nuns lived before the convent was built. I thought it was appropriate. 
Then we went to get our amazing ice cream topped waffles, which may have been the best yet. They were actually freshly cooked instead of just reheated like the other ones. The batter was sooo thick, more like cookie dough than waffle batter. Definitely learning how to make those back in the States. After, I bought some chocolates to bring back to Paris. And while they are delicious I'm not sure it was the best idea because I'm having self-control issues haha. We walked our bikes back to the hostel because at this point we were so sore we could hardly even walk. Those bike seats were less than comfortable, and every successive time we sat down it was more and more painful. It didn't help that the entire city has cobblestone roads, and are therefore incredibly bumpy. We got dinner at the grocery store and made it in the hostel kitchen. I got soup which was mostly broth but was also only a few euros. I also got Sprite in a blue bottle (!) but I seemed to be the only one who thought that was cool haha. Then we walked to the train station and I thought it would be a good idea to run across three lanes of traffic going opposite ways, but we all need a little excitement in our lives I guess. We said goodbye and I started the long journey back to Paris. Two hour-long trains, one hour-long layover, and one Métro ride later, I was finally home and in the amazing shower. I hope David made it back to the hostel OK. I navigated pretty much the whole trip and once we were literally standing across the street from it and he was like "OK boss, where are we?" I was like, "Um...."So that concludes Bruges, congratulations to those of you who made it to the end of this post. It was 10 pages in my Moleskine, so I tried to leave out some stuff that wasn't important (you're probably thinking, "Wow what the heck did she cut?") But as a reward for getting here, if you mention this post, I will make you the best version of Belgian waffles as I can when I get home :)
OK, that was great - and I can't wait for my belgian waffle - yum! Remind me to tell you about the time I went to Amsterdam and we literally asked someone for directions to the hostel WHILE WE WERE STANDING UNDER THE SIGN THAT POINTED TO IT. True story.
ReplyDeleteLove you,
M
u passed up the friet saus?? you crazy girl. its different from mayo. you gotta try it if you go amsterdam or some dutch city.
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