Tag Archives: Brugge

Bruges: the Gruuthuse Museum and the Church of Our Lady

October 21, 2023Belgium, TravelBelgian waffle, Bruges, Brugge, Church of Our Lady, Gruuthuse Museum, Michelangelo Madonna and Childkarenfranza

Oct 17 – This is our last full day in Bruges. Every morning we see something new.

We visited the Gruuthuse Museum, which shows what an upper class home from the 15th century looked like, and houses a diverse collection of this and that.

Some of the illustrated manuscripts were quite gruesome

Belgian lace was incorporated into ladies bonnets

In one room, you could look through a window to see the inside of the church next door – it looked beautiful!

So, we went next door to visit the Church of Our Lady.

This church had Gregorian chants playing throughout, which made it sound like monks were working hard nearby, and made everything feel peaceful and holy.

The sanctuary looks much like it did in the 1500s

Here is the window we saw in the museum, that enabled the rich family to observe what was going on in the church

There were some things we hadn’t seen before.

Tombs with decorations on the inside – images of heaven to help the deceased get where they were going

A painting of the Last Supper where they served bread, wine and… chicken?

Now, you know I’ve saved the best for last. This church holds the Madonna of Bruges, the only statue by Michelangelo that left Italy during his lifetime. It depicts Jesus not as an infant, but a toddler standing on his own, and Mary looking down sadly.

The piece is not life size, and small enough to transport. It was taken by Napoleon to Paris, returned after his defeat, then taken by Hitler‘s men to Germany, where it was recovered and returned by the Monuments Men.

The Madonna of Bruges just above the altar, with larger statues on either side

Our trip to Bruges would not be complete without one final thing – a Belgian waffle dripping with chocolate. It was messy, but we enjoyed every bite!

Oct 18 – Got up early for the five hour bus ride back to Amsterdam via Ghent, Brussels and Rotterdam.

We got to see the sunrise through the bus window

We caught a glimpse of the Norte Dame Cathedral in Brussels when the bus stopped at a light.

One night at an airport hotel, then it was back to Schiphol Airport for the flight to JFK and then home.

Thanks for the memories, Holland and Belgium – we will miss you!

Bruges: The Belfort and the City Hall

October 20, 2023Belgium, TravelBelfort, Bell Tower, Bruges, Brugge, City Hall, Stadhuiskarenfranza

Oct 16 – We are back on the beautiful main square.

The must-do thing for every tourist in Bruges is to climb the 366 steps to the top of the Belfort, or carillon bell tower. In addition to the entrance ticket, you also have to reserve a time to climb, and the automated response is, “we hope you are fit!”

The displays inside are all about bells. The carillon has 47

The carillon has been a Bruges attraction for hundreds of years

In the Drum Room, we saw the rotating drums that determine the order in which each bell is rung.

The bells ring every quarter hour. The noise is incredible!

Then it was on to the Stathuis, or City Hall, built in the 1300s, and still in use today.

Beautiful painted wood interior with murals all around

This mural depicts the Holy Blood being delivered to the Church, during the Crusades. We visited that church the other day.

Another lovely day.

Bruges: the Marathon and the Groeninge Museum

October 18, 2023Belgium, TravelBruges, Brugge, Groeninge Museum, marathonkarenfranza

Oct 15 – Today is Sunday, the day of the Brugge Marathon. We saw all the white tents and signs with instructions for the runners being assembled yesterday. Our plan was to go to the go to the art museum this morning to avoid the crowds.

Little did we know, but the marathon runners came right down our street! We weren’t permitted to cross the road, and ended up taking a detour of back streets, trying to get closer to the museum.

Finally, the runner thinned so we could jog across the road

The Groeninge Museum has ten rooms, with the works grouped by time. The first, medieval room was full of Madonnas and funny looking babies that I feel compelled to share.

Another depiction of St. Luke painting Mary and Jesus – no haloes in this one

Here is St. Catherine getting her head chopped off. She looks serene, but the horse seems very upset

…but he was flayed alive right in his office

This is Mars defeating Ignorance as the Arts and Sciences look on

In the more contemporary rooms, these were my favorites

This family portrait almost looks photographic

The personification of Legend, who keeps stories alive

Inspired by 1001 Arabian Nights, this looks like quite the story!

This one is called Domestic Difficulties

Back out on the street, there was a Sunday flea market. We scored a very nice, slightly used, plate for our wall.

Swans looking for tidbits from the restaurant guests

Another glorious day!

In Bruges

October 16, 2023Belgium, TravelBasilica of the Holy Blood, Bruges, Brugge, Cathedral of Sint Salvatore, Tintinkarenfranza

Oct 14 – Back in 2008, Jim and I watched a movie called “In Bruges”. Since that time, I have wanted to visit this medieval city filled with history and gingerbread architecture. Now we are here!

As Bruges is in Flanders, where people speak Dutch, the name of this city is Brugge, pronounced sort of like BRUH-heh. The rest of the world uses the French Bruges, pronounced BREWJ, and so will I.

Our apartment is right on a canal, and we can watch the houseboats out our window as the bicyclists ride by.