Monday june the 6, 2005.

Main impression:
Visit of Brugge.

Odor:
Acording to experts, the sence of smell is what is best to triger the memory. We will remember all our life a smell that marked our childhood and memory will flow as soon as we encounter it. Sadly I think I have trust that a bit too much. When I got back from my trip I rushed to sort my photos but I neglected to complete my journal... So today, two months after my return, I don't have any odor to associare to Brugge photos. If you make a travel journal, take the trouble to maintain it up to date!

Color:
The white asparagus with sauce that I took for lunch where making a nice contrast with the piece of beef and peas and carots. It's the first time I taste white asparagus, it's good but not enough to throw me of my chair.

Flavor:
The anniversary beer of "café De Gaar".

Sound:
Everyone speak flemish here, sure all makes effort to speak to me in english or french but I will make some attemps to learn some basic skills of flemish before my next trip to Belgium.

Texture/sentation:
Brugge is the lace capital, even if lots of laces are now comming from China or elswhere (nuns from Belgium have teached the skill) we still find some pieces made here and we can even see somes ladies make the tradition live.

Day summary:
My landlady, Anne-Marie de Groot had an apointement at the Brugge hospital for her work and she left me at the entrace of Brugge, near the train station. I started right away to look for 't Brugs Beertje but it's not open at this hour. Facing it you find "The Hobbit" that is also close but the "Café Tolkien" will open soon, I will walk around a bit and come back for lunch.

During lunch a couple from Switzerland sit at the next table so we start a conversation, they are kind and interesting. The meal was very good, it'S good to be back in Belgium where you can eat well anything anywhere and at an appropriate price without risquing a deception.

After the meal I walked around in the direction of the "Begijnhof" (flemish) or "Béginage" (french), I walked in front of the Straffe Hendrik brewery, a guided tour was beginning so I joined the group. The view from the roof worth the visit by itself. For collectors, there is a good glass, bottles and cans collection. At the end of the visit we where able to try a Half Maan (i'm not sure of the name), the only beer still brewed here.

Then I went to the "Begijnhof". The "Begijnhof" appeared during the crusades, it was there that ladies from nobility waited praying for their husbans gone to fight for the supposed glory of God. It's a bit like a nunnery with the difference that the ladies didn't have to prononce their pledge of celibacy. The "Begijnhof" is then, from it's vocation, a very calm place and propitious for contemplation.

I would have liked to have more time but the god of commerce took the place of the nuns one so I whent to look for autenthic lace from Brugge to bring back as souvenir for my sister. I found a little shop not far from the nunnery where an old lady was making the spindle dance in a corner of the shop. Her spindles where mooving so fast that this lady would have been able to swindle any steet swindler at the three cup game.

I then choose to eat at restaurant De Koetse. After the meal I go to 't Brugs Beertje. I'm happy to have now the "Good Beer Guide to Belgium" from Tim Web and also "332 Originele cafés in Vlanderen". I lost so much time because I didn't have precise informations and didn't got time to do more research after loosing all I had found before my trip. Sadly I got those book too late in my trip for them to be realy usefull and even now that I have them I don't have time to read them. I tell myself that next time I will be more prepared.

At 't Brugs Beertje I meet Charlie Scollard from Stone brewery with whom I take a few beers. He suggest that I go to "café De Garre" since theire anniversary beer is the best he tasted so far in Belgium. Before leaving I colect my stamp and instead of having a free drink Dasy give me a small teddybear that is the bar logo.

Finding "De Garre Café" is not easy if you don't know where to look, it was good to have somes indications in my "Guide du routard" and that Charlie also gave me directions. You have to take Breidelstraat street between the Markt and the Burg, in a small alley on the side you will find De Garre café near the end. The decor is good, classical musique, professional and courteous service, this place have some class.

I take a "Triple de Garre" brewed by Van Steberge, very good beer with lots of body. I must hurry since I have to take the last train for Brussels. When I ask for my stamp before leaving, they refuse to give it if I don't take the free drink that come with it, it's the first time that someone insist to give me something free after I paid! I take the occasion to buy a bottle of their anniversary beer.

I hurry back to the station limping a bit, Brugge sidewalks and steets are have stone pavement that are far from even and my knee feel it. I arrived at the station 5 minutes before the train. The return itinary was eventless to the exeption that an arab seated on the bench in front of me was using the train to sell drogs and since it's arabs who stole my backpack, I felt a bit paranoid.