Postcards from Bruges - Part 1

Although it goes without saying that we were impatiently looking forward to our little getaway, the week preceding it was filled with hurdles.

The usual pre-holiday pressure at work was made even worse by a host of unexpected problems which yours truly was expected to deal with. On top of that, I was working my first 5-day week in months in order to get on top of everything, so needless to say I was quite exhausted by the end of it.

As if that wasn't enough, Jos had developed a case of the sniffles earlier that week, which we fervently hoped would be better - or at least not any worse - by the time we were to leave. Much to our relief, it all worked out just fine, but we definitely could have done without the added stress.

We'd booked our B&B for three nights, from Tuesday to Friday, which left us with three days in which to catch our breaths, make plans and - most importantly - decide what to pack.

The weather forecast for the week ahead was looking pretty dire, with a major drop in temperature and even the possibility of snow on the horizon. And although we refused to let this turn of events put a damper on things, we would still have preferred not to have to pack our Winter woollies!

As if to taunt us, the weather gods gleefully presented us with Springlike temperatures between 15 and 18°C all weekend but it was clear that Saturday's light layers wouldn't have done for what they had in store for us!

Both the bird patterned blouse and the flower scattered skirt were charity shop finds, albeit with several years between them. I picked up the touches of orange in both patterns by wearing a pair of bright orange opaques and an orange plastic ring. One of my stretchy belts and my favourite pair of ankle boots completed my outfit.

We walked into town for some last-minute essentials, drove down to the charity shop in the next village, which unfortunately we left empty handed, and lazily pottered around house and garden.

The plants on the table outside our back door were all in fine fettle, with both the Bridal Crown and Tête-à-Tête daffs bursting into bloom. 

Our faithful Spirea bush at the end of the garden was providing its annual fireworks of tiny white flowers, while both the Red Valerian (Centranthus ruber, top right) and the Honesty (Lunaria, bottom left) were champing at the bit to get going! We're going to have a veritable glut of Honesty, by the looks of it, as it has self-seeded profusely all over the garden.

We managed one more set of outfit photos on Sunday, when I was wearing a vintage handmade Millefiori patterned dress, paired with a tan leather and cream lace belt, green opaques and my ancient long-line pink cardi. Oh, and one of the necklaces I charity shopped the other week.

No outfit photos were taken on Monday as our heads were already elsewhere. We did, however, take the opportunity to visit two of our regular charity shops, and even made a couple of purchases. These, though, will have to wait for a later post. 

Back at home, we were contacted by Veronique, the B&B's owner, asking if we were prepared to arrive earlier than the regular check-in time of 3 pm, as she would be out in the afternoon. Obviously, this was more than fine by us, as it meant we could start our adventures earlier!

And so, on Tuesday just after 11 am, we loaded our bags into the boot of our car and, after giving an unsuspecting Bess a final cuddle, we were off. 

Those of you who have been following my blog for a while might very well recognize our destination as this was already our 5th stay at Het Soetewater, a delightful B&B in a rural setting only a stone's throw from Bruges. Being just over an hour's drive from Dove Cottage, it wasn't even 12.30 when we parked our car and were made welcome by Veronique.

Same as during our last visit back in August, our room was the newly created spacious luxury suite which is situated on its own in an annex. All 4 of the B&B's rooms are called after sweets, ours being Chocola, which obviously means chocolate! 

As already hinted at in my last post, the en-suite bathroom contains a whirlpool bath, which we gladly made use of on all three nights, this time without flooding the bathroom like we did in August!

There's also a huge walk-in rain shower tucked away behind the wall with the make-up mirror in the photo on the bottom right. Veronique's attention to detail is phenomenal, as everything you can think of, including bath and shower products, fluffy towelling bathrobes and bath slippers, has been provided for.

We made ourselves comfortable, unpacking some of our things and reacquainting ourselves with our room. Then we made ourselves cups of coffee (Jos) and ginger and lemon tea (me) and ate the sandwiches we'd brought from home, looking out over the field behind the annex, where a couple of horses were watching us suspiciously.

About an hour later, we were ready for our first visit to Bruges since we celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary back in February 2020. We all know what happened shortly afterwards, and although we'd since been back to the B&B, we'd been more than just a bit reluctant to visit a tourist honey pot like Bruges in the height of Summer!

Before we go, let's have a look at my outfit, which would be hidden underneath my coat for the rest of the day. This green 1970s does 1940s dress with its blowsy flower pattern hadn't yet made it out of my wardrobe this season. As it's unlined, I wore a full slip underneath. With the temperature having made a nosedive to just 12°C, I added an additional layer in the form of a blue tee-shirt, and wore a chunky knit cardi in the same colour on top. My outfit was completed with a half-elasticated orange belt, an orange beaded necklace and a cameo brooch with an orangey background.

As a nod to the deteriorating weather, a pair of tan high boots replaced the ankle boots I'd been wearing for the last two weeks.

Bruges is a 20-minute or so drive from here along secondary roads and before we knew it we'd parked our car in the large multi-storey inner city car park situated below the concert building on the 't Zand square. Before emerging onto the square, I'd had a perfunctory look at the map, but apparently my feet

instinctively lead us into the direction of our chosen destination, the city's tranquil and picturesque beguinage.

Intent on avoiding the crowds, which we weren't sure we were ready for yet, we opted for quiet back streets, having to backtrack a couple of times after taking a wrong turning.

Soon we passed one of the entrances to the Old St. John site (Oud Sint-Jan), a former hospital whose origins date back to the 12th Century. This is the spot where one of the earliest infirmaries in medieval Europe once stood. When the hospital finally closed down in the 1970s, its spacious wards were restored and turned into a unique cultural site. Since 1989 the site also comprises a congress and events centre.

Surprisingly, the site with its weathered Medieval buildings and little hidden courtyards remains one of Bruges' best kept secrets, and generally only a handful of tourists can be found roaming here. This time, however, we were temporarily joined by a small group of school children who fortunately beat a retreat after a couple of minutes, leaving us to wander around and photograph undisturbed.

One of the site's exits emerges onto the busy Mariastraat which, with its cheek-by-jowl chocolate, waffle, lace and souvenir shops is the inner sanctum of tourist-land.

We took a deep breath, only to be met, if not exactly by peace and quiet, then certainly by a scene relatively empty of the usual crowds. Knowing how busy it can be here at the height of season, we breathed huge sighs of relief!

Turning into a side street, we were now on the final stretch of our journey for now, as soon the beguinage's main entrance (above, bottom left) came in sight.

Although a major tourist attraction all year around, the best time to visit the beguinage is in March and April, when the central courtyard garden is awash with thousands of blooming daffodils.

The bulbs, a total of 8000, were presented to the beguinage by a Mrs. Nelly Sander in 1936 to brighten up the beguinage garden. When Nelly visited the beguinage the following Spring, she was quite dismayed to see that the daffodils had been neatly planted in two long flowerbeds. Nelly, who'd had the  image of English gardens with wildly flowering daffodils in mind, was so disappointed at the unimaginative way her bulbs had been used that she demanded that they be removed immediately after flowering and replanted all over the lawns.

It was the first time we'd seen the daffodils at the height of flowering and they were a true sight to behold. 

The beguinage itself, with its white-coloured house fronts, was founded in 1245. Once the home of the beguines, emancipated lay-women who nevertheless led a pious and celibate life, today the beguinage is mostly inhabited by nuns of the Order of St. Benedict.

Next on our itinerary was a walk around the famous Minnewater a.k.a. the Lake of Love. 

We were gasping for a cup of coffee by now, but rather than return to tourist-land, we walked into the direction of a turreted mansion, where we'd spotted people sitting out on a lake-side terrace. 

Looking quite posh from afar, in reality it turned out to be a case of faded glory. This wouldn't have bothered us much if at least my visit to the Ladies had been a bit more fragrant, the toilets in both cubicles stubbornly refusing to flush! But the waitress was friendly, and our cappuccinos - mine

the Belgian version with whipped cream instead of steamed milk - were delicious! 

Then we continued through the Minnewaterpark towards the bridge at the far end, where the imposing Poertoren (Gunpowder Tower) is standing guard.  The defensive tower, which was built in 1397 and stands 18 metres tall, was originally part of one of the city gates and was later converted into a gunpowder store. 

A metal staircase next to the tower leads down to a hidden garden, which unfortunately looked rather neglected at the time of our visit, its beds and borders sadly full of weeds. We'll have to visit again in Summer to see if there's any improvement.

Having circuited the lake, we retraced our steps, past the beguinage and into tourist-land, and made a short detour past one of the city's most popular spots: the courtyard at the back of the Church of Our Lady and the Gruuthusemuseum. It might look as if we had the place to ourselves, but don't be fooled: as always there were selfie-stick wielding tourists blocking the tiny, humpbacked St. Bonifacius bridge, which in all the years we've been visiting I've only managed to photograph once without any people on it.

Then it was time to call it a day and return to our B&B where our evening meal was waiting in the form of one of Veronique's delicious tapas boards. Followed by a handful of mini chocolate eggs!

I'll be back with part 2 of my mini travelogue in a couple of days. Will you join me again then?