Bruges is a Unesco world heritage site, and has a very charming rustic feel to it. This was actually the place that I enjoyed the most; the old medieval architecture had been preserved. There were interesting shops to see (some more touristy than others), and chocolates were everywhere. You could actually travel to Brussels if you wanted, only one hour away, but that wouldn’t be possible for us since our stop here ends at 3:00.
We started off by sharing a booked cab from the company Rony’s Taxi for €90 return (+ tips). There were 7 people in total sharing the cab. We thought this was more convenient because the taxi would come right up to the ship and drop us off in the town center, whereas the shuttle bus for US $15 would only take you to the train station.
We started off here, at the Belfry Tower, Market Square.
Belfry Tower
Some of the scenic spots in Brugge:
Canals of Bruges
We had an 1 hour segway tour, just to see the town and have a little fun! Though the cobblestones made the ride a little bumpy, it was nice to be able to travel the quiet streets pretty early in the morning and enjoy the scenery and architecture in Brugge. (We had done the segway before, on a trip to Bangkok, and thought it was so fun that we had to do it again. It isn’t hard at all, and children can do it too!)
Segway Tour
We had actually booked a tour for 2 hours, but decided that since time was limited we should go explore the town and visit some local shops! We strolled the cobblestone streets from Market Square. There were so many chocolate shops it was chocolate heaven. Near the canal we saw a nice little chocolate shop, and got a Choc-O-Lait hot chocolate, a rice crispies circle, and some caramelized almond dipped in chocolate circles (florentines). Later we got some Choc-O-Lait hot chocolate sticks so we could enjoy the same at home (these can be found in many of the shops at Brugge and we even saw them at Harrods in London later). A chocolate shop that we liked was Chocoholic, with its green sign. They had really nice small crunchy chocolate pearl balls.
Chocolate Dipped Oranges
Choc - O - Lait Hot Chocolate
At that same shop we asked the staff to recommend a place to eat mussels, as Belgium is known for its chocolate, waffles, mussels, and beer. They recommended ‘t Nieuw Walnutje, and so we trekked there in search of a nice lunch. We ordered 2 pots of mussels – one white wine with cream and garlic and the other mussel provencal, with a tomato base sauce. Our lunch was very delicious, and, though in the pictures they both look the same, we liked the mussels in white wine sauce better.
Mussels in Provencal Sauce
I love the medieval buildings in Brugge, and the food and segway tour only made it better. It is a small town but one that is definitely worth seeing.
Canal
Effli 