Beautiful Bruges!

I got to write this entry enjoying some quiet time at our hotel bar while Sean put the kids to bed in our room!

What an amazing city! For those of you who know nothing of Bruges, it is a beautiful Flemish town in Belgium about 10 miles south of the coast.  It was the trading center of Europe from the 11th through the 16th century when the harbor had dried up and there was no link to ocean.  It was known as the dead city until the late 18th century when a new port opened in the area. Now it is mainly a tourist area with lots of chocolate shops, lace shops, canals and charm!

Bella was super excited to moment we got there and proclaimed that this was her town! It was so fun seeing her so excited to go sight seeing since the last time we really went sightseeing was in Italy when she was almost 3 which was not pleasant experience (screaming toddler through the Sistine Chapel anyone?). I started to at first try to cram everything in to the 2ish days we were there when I had to take a step back and realize that this was only a little over 2 hours away an easy day trip back. So this is what we did:

Carriage Ride: We got in around 830 (2030 for those military types and Europeans) and after being in the car for a bit the kids were dying to get out and walk around.  Our hotel was right around the corner from the Markt which is where the Horse Carriage rides started, so we were off!  It was a great preview to the city and what we might like to see.  It was a little spendy (39 Euro) but well worth it for the look on Bella's face.  Halfway through we stopped at the Begijnhof which is a beautiful little convent inhabitied by Benedictine nuns. The kids loved the swans and ducks that swam in the canal below!

Bella got to sit in the front!

Silly faces in front of the Benijnhof

Silly with Daddy

Love my family!

Euphoria!

Choco-Story- We were up early the next morning and plotted our day at breakfast.  I was super excited to go to the Chocolate Museum (as was Bella) so that is where we started! This was a really reasonably priced place (10 Euro for adults and the kids were free!) that was really cool to visit. It started with the history of chocolate dating back to Aztecs in South America. Unfortunately the kids really wanted chocolate that was at the end and kinda when through this part quickly. But, it was really interested of what we did see and all in English which was helpful.  There were some really cool video's and beautiful displays throughout.  They had a whole room dedicated to hot chocolate! There was a little demo at the end which showed how they make all the little chocolates in the shops with the molds that had free samples at the end.

Sean loved this part!

Solid chocolate egg

Some of the molds

All made of chocolate

Hot chocolate servers

Friet Museum (French Fry Museum) - Once I saw that they had a museum dedicated to fries, we had to check it out and it just so happens you can get entrance to this and the Choco-Story for 20 Euro with the kids being free. Wasn't sure what to expect but it was a really cool little museum! It started with the history of the potato which was imported into Europe from the Inca's.  I had no idea there were so many types of potatoes and it was interesting to see what grows where.  I now know that all the fields by our house are actually potato fields! The next part of the exhibit was all about the fries, which were created in Belgium (had no idea).  There was a nice little video that showed the process from seeds to cultivation to the friets being eaten. There was an awesome display of vintage potato cutters and friers. In the basement of the museum was a fry stand that probably had the best fries I have ever had (which means they are super unhealthy)!

Bella loves these things!

Lunch! Yummy Friets!

No words for this one!

Daddy and Zerek enjoying them as well!

Canal Ride -  Zerek needed a nap at this point so Sean took him back to the room and Bella and I decided to go on a canal ride! It was really cool to see the city from this view! I was surprised at how cheap it was (11 Euro for both of us for about a 30 min ride)!  Although we felt a little crammed on the boat, it was a beautiful afternoon and the breeze on the water was awesome! If anyone ever goes there, this is a must!

The nice French people next to us too this one! 

The Benijnhof from another perspective

Afterwards we did a little chocolate shopping (and eating)! There are so many different shops. Belgium is also known for its lace and tapestries so there are tons of these shops too.  

Historium - After Bella's and I's girls afternoon, we picked up the boys and headed to this really cool museum that is right on the Markt (center of town).  Everyone gets an audioguide in the language that you prefer and you are off as a group to discover Bruges and the story of the famous painting of Madonna and Child by Jan Van Eckye. Each room was intricately put together that had a video story to go along with it.  The room made you feel like you were really there in 1435 with temperature differences, smells and fog at times!  There were 9 rooms I think and it was really cool how they put this exhibit together.   The end was at the top of the building which gave you an amazing panoramic view of the Markt square.  There were a lot of extra things to read up here but Bella was done so we headed down stairs through the Duvel beer room (which we will stop at next time) and off to dinner!

The Flemish Pot - I deferred to one of my travel books (Rick Steves' "Best of Europe 2013") for dinner and so glad I did.  This little restaurant was so good that I can't wait to come back.  It is a little cramped but we go there before the peak dinner time so it wasn't so bad.  It was a little expensive but so worth it.  I cannot describe how good Sean's Flemish beef stew was.  I could only hope to replicate that one day.  Bella and I shared steamed mussels in wine which was equally amazing! The broth was so good to dip the bread in I couldn't stop myself.  I cannot wait to come back here and want to try it for lunch too where it serves up so many types of waffles!

We finally found it!

Mmmm...mussles!

The Flemish Beef Stew

I can't believe she likes mussles!

So full!!!

A couple other highlights from our trip:

    Belfort - AKA, Bella's tower (which is how she referred to it the whole time)! A really cool tower that you can climb up (366 steps, although Bella begged we fought her off) that was featured in "In Bruges" the movie.  It rings every 15 minutes and is a beautiful building right on the Markt. 

    Jan Van Eycky Statue - He is the famous painter from Bruges.  The kids ran around him for about 30 minutes while we waited for things to open. 

   The amazing architecture!!!

Another side of the Markt.  The Hisorium is on the left side of the building! 

Needless to say, this was a great weekend and I can't wait to come back and explore the parts we didn't get too!!!

Hotel we stayed at: Hotel Cordooeanier http://www.cordoeanier.be/en/index.php.  It was right off the Markt at a great value for a quad room! Breakfast is included and the Cafe Red Rose bar attached to the hotel had so many different types of beer it was hard to choose!!!