Gent, Belgium Last Full Day

Today is our last full day here in Gent.  I really like this place.  Much less crowded than the larger cities.  You still have to watch out for the bikers.  They seem to have their own set of rules.

We got up and had tea and coffee in the room.  Cleaned up and out for our breakfast.

Dinner last night was at a small restaurant on the square.  Seems you end up spending about $100. for food that is just okay.  Will probably go back for pizza and beer tonight.

We decided we would walk to the museum.  It did not seem too far away and we needed the exercise.  We followed the canal so that we could find out where we were easily.  Too difficult to read the street signs and then find them on our little map.

We walked past some pretty nice homes.  This one has a lawn and outdoor living space which is quite rare here in Gent.

Another home which we found along the way.  This is about on the fifth floor.

We entered the Citadelpark.  This part is lovely.  You can see that the trees are now blooming.  Spring is finally here in Gent.

Our destination was S.M.A.K.  This is a contemporary art museum.  To say it was strange art, well you can decide for yourself.

Just on of the pictures we saw.

This picture shows skulls and candles.   Plus hundreds of snails.  Something about the length of ones life.  What?

In another room we found this large pot filled with mussel shells.  The pot stands about three feet tall.
One man's art is another man's trash.

To remind us of Florida, these three gators were made of clay covered with netting.

And if all that was not enough, here we have a crow.

The description to follow might tell you something.  Who knows?

Do you now understand?

We left the museum and decided to walk to the train station and buy our tickets to Brugge for tomorrow.  The trains run every hour so we should have no problem getting there.

It was now around lunch time so we stopped here for a sandwich.  But no bread so plan B.  We are inside as we felt we have had enough of the sun and wind.  It was a very sunny day and we had been walking for quite a while.

The clock tower at the train station.

We took the tram back to the center of town.  We were not too sure how to buy a ticket but with some help from the locals, we managed to do it.  By the time we got to the hotel area, it was covered with local folks sitting around the canal enjoying the sunny day.  

While we walked back to the hotel, we passed the Belfry once more.  This time we spotted this sculpture.  This is the facade of an old jailer's lodge which is adorned with the Mammelokker.  It shows the legend of Cimon, who was condemned to starve to death.  He was saved by his daughter who fed him daily from her breast.   Moved by this sign of love for her father, the warden sets the convict  free. It was built in 1742 in only four months.  

We returned to the hotel and found the room had been made up.  We did not get service yesterday as we were napping when our time came.  So today we asked for early service.  We took a nap and now working on the blog.  I am not a real napper but with walking about six miles and then a beer for lunch, I find I nap just fine.  

We will head out for dinner and then back to the hotel.  Not very interesting but okay with us.

Gent, Belgium

The day started out with us going to McDonald's for a light breakfast but it was closed.  Do not open until 9am.  So we went the the place next door Exki.  Here we had tea for me and cappuccino for Bob.  Plus we each had a chocolate croissant.  All very good.  It was spitting a bit so we returned to the hotel and worked on our computers.  I did the blog and Bob did pictures.

It appears there are two different spellings of Gent.  I had be spelling it with the h as Ghent.  I stand corrected and now will spell it Gent.

We decided to take a walk since it had stopped raining.  We walked to St. Michael's Church to find it closed.  We then decided to walk to the shopping area.  As we walked along, we found we went the wrong way and we were in the Vrijdagmarkt area.  Found the other beer joint that serves over 250 kinds of beer but we felt it was too early for a beer.  I told Bob it was never too early but we did not go in.  Made our way to the shopping area and saw the Opera House and the Justice Hall.  We now knew where we were so we walked along the canal and stopped for lunch.

The square where we found out we were in the wrong section of the city.  Not really wrong, just we had not intended to be here.

They sell 250 kinds of beer here.  At least, we now know where it is.  And how to get here.

All of the restaurants have outdoor seating and some with heaters.  So we stopped and sat near a heater only to be surrounded by smokers.  So we asked if we could eat inside.  Had a nice lunch and then back to the hotel and a nap.

On our way to the shopping district, we passed city hall.

Another view of city hall.

City Hall.

Opera House.

Over the door of one of the guild houses.  This would seem it was the home of a ship builder or sailor.

The red brick with the golden swans is the face of the Marriott Hotel.  It is nice that they kept the original front and built a modern hotel in the rear.

After our nap we continued working on the blog, pictures, and such.  It is nice to have a free day to play catch up with everything.

I put the TV on and watched the prolog to a bike race.  Might be in Switzerland.   They are speaking Dutch I think.   At  least I know it is not English.  So mute the screen and just watch the bikers.

Not sure where we will have dinner but will report later.

Amsterdam to Gent - Updated 4/23

Today we leave Amsterdam and travel by train to Gent, Belgium.  We had a good night sleep and woke refreshed.  Dressed for the day and headed out to McDonalds for breakfast. The breakfast at the hotel would be about $40 per person while we spent only 5 euros for our McMuffins and coffee and tea.  Back to the hotel to get ready for our trip.  We are storing our luggage at the hotel as we will return here next weekend.

We walked to the train station and now having tea at Starbuck's with free internet.  Our train trip involves two transfers.  First one is in Rotterdam and the second in Antwerp.  Hope we make all the transfers.  Boy, in Rotterdam, we had to walk up a flight of wooden stairs.  This, dragging my suitcase.

Well, we made it to Gent.  We booked second class and it tends to get crowded and my luggage was a little too big to fit in the overhead.  So I kept it on the floor so I took up two seats.  I was not the only one to do this.  I think on the way back to Amsterdam, we will book first class.  Just more comfortable if you have luggage.

The lobby lounge.  On the wall are poppies.  Not sure why but there they are.

The glass elevator we take up to our room

When we got to Gent we took a taxi to the hotel where our room was ready.  We will stay here for three nights.  I booked this hotel using Capital One points.  We were suppose to get here yesterday but I called Capital One and told them we would be coming in on Monday and they said fine but we could only stay two nights as the hotel was sold out after that.  I also called the hotel to tell them we would be arriving on Monday and not Sunday they said fine.  So when we checked in, the man said you will be here for three nights, right.  We said right.  So much for sold out.

The lobby of the hotel here in Gent.  The elevators are glass.  This is the lobby lounge.

We walked from our hotel to the first canal we found.  They have canal tours so we might take on later on in our stay.

The buildings near the canal are the same as we found in all of Belgium and Netherland.

This is St. Nicholas Church.

Some figures we found on one of the buildings.  I found them quite amusing.  This is the original sixteenth-century Masons' Guild House.  On the stepped gable Moriscos dancers turn in the wind.

Inside St. Nicholas Church.  There was a lady having an organ lesson which was quite pleasant to listen to.  No pews as we know.  Now they have chairs at least.

More of St. Nicholas Church.

More of the interior of St. Nicholas Church.  The church in bluestone from the Tournai region is one of the most beautiful examples of the Scheldt Gothic style.

This is the Belfry.  You can walk up the 280 steps or take an elevator to the top.  Bob wants to walk but if I go, I will ride. This is a symbol of Gent's independence.

The rear of St. Nicholas Church.  We find the churches of Europe quite impressive.

We stopped here for a hot chocolate and some chocolates.  They melt in you mouth.  Good stuff.

This is the interior of the Cathedral here in Ghent.  Just a side aisle.

The altar area of the Cathedral.

More of the interior of the Cathedral

These figures are at the base of the pulpit.

The Cathedral is undergoing renovations.  This was on the floor of one of the side chapels.  I think they took it down from somewhere but do not know this for a fact.

The very top of the Belfry.  We think it is a winged dragon.  The dragon has been watching over the city since 1380.

Another view of the buildings around the city.

An old castle inside the city.  We will try and visit it another day.

We opened up the restaurant.  Here in Ghent, most of the restaurants close between lunch and then open for dinner at 6:30pm.  We were a bit early so we stopped for a beer at the beer house and then for dinner we had beer and pizza.  Notice no one else in there.  It did start to fill up as we were leaving.   Food was very good.

These were the beers we had for dinner.  Notice that the kind of beer you drink is on the glass.  You cannot drink a Maes beer from a Grimbergen glass.

The room is great.  Lots of storage and a nice bathroom.  All non smoking.  We unpacked and then headed out.  Visited two churches and just walked about this city.  Stopped for a hot chocolate and candy.  Bob got to see "The Lamb Of God" painting.  Part of it is being restored.

This is a copy of the "Lamb of God" painting.  You had to pay 4 Euros to go to the chapel where the original painting is hung.  Bob did this.  They are in the process of restoring it.  So the original top part is somewhere else.  But the bottom part will not be restored until 2014.  Actually it is called "The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb".  It was painted by the Van Eyck brothers.  It survived the Protestant iconoclasm, fell into French hands under Napoleon and was requistioned by Nazi Germany during WWII.  The Just Judges' panel, stolen in 1934, is still missing.

Back at the hotel, watching tv and then bed.  A busy day.  Will post pictures when they are downloaded.