Following our epic night of beer heaven in Antwerp, we hopped on the train to Bruges, which is about 2 hours from Antwerp, with a change in Ghent. A beautiful day in Bruges greeted us as we checked into our hotel, which was only a 3 minute walk from the main square. We stayed at
Hotel Cordoeanier, which is around a hundred euros and has a nice bar that has a nice selection of beers. The morning after I had to work and the hotel owner was kind enough to let me work in the bar. After I was done he served me a rare Struise beer, which was yummy.
After we checked in we took advantage of the beautiful weather and took a
boat tour of the canals. The 45 minute tour takes a good stab at getting a whistle stop tour of the city under the belt. You can get on the boat at a few different places around the city.
After the canal tour, we realised we were off track and needed to hit up a couple bars.
'T Brugs Beertje was the first great pub to quench our thirst. We again had four great beers, this post was meant to list all the beers at all the bars we went to but it got misplaced somewhere in our flat and tossed, apologies for that as this would've been a great post to share the great beer we sampled.
We then headed along the canal to Auberghe Vlissinghe, which is said to be the oldest pub in Bruges, since 1515. The main room of the pub resembles what I picture an old guild hall with great wood paneling, a warm fireplace (when lit) and old wooden tables.
Oh yeah, and lots of great old paintings.
Following the bar it was back along the canals to dinner. I don't remember the name mostly because it isn't too memorable. Yet again we didn't get a chance to ascend the old tower to see the city, which would've been nice. However, walking the canals and sitting in the square is really all one needs to do in Bruges.
Of course it is important to take in the old square at sunset, a majestic sight. If you have a chance, spend the night here as most of the day tourists stay in Brussels or elsewhere and the city is much more serene and beautiful at night.
Once the girls went to bed, we went to the final bar of the night, De Garre. Again, down a little alley, the pub also oozes character and is a must visit in the old town, capping a great trip to Bruges! Will we be back.....stay tuned.
