Lovely Bruges...

Hello all!

Writing this from Rome, but about Bruges. We have not had much internet time as of late, so it is my task to blog about the Bruges portion of our trip. Get excited!!!

So pretty much, Bruges is a must see if you take a Europe trip. It felt so safe, and is such an idyllic, beautiful city.

Upon arrival at the train station, we took about a ten minute hike through a lovely park and found our hostel. The entrance was down this super cute alleyway, lined with topiaries and brick cobblestone. So cute! The rooms were a bit cramped, but unique, and the food at the restaurant downstairs, where we had dinner, was fantastic. Best food since Scotland, for sure!

We then went on a night stroll through town and all got some awesome photos. Bruges is all lit up by night and so the architecture of the buildings, reflected in the canals is breathtaking!

In addition, we found a Belgian Waffle stand that was still open, as it was getting late. I had a waffle covered with powdered sugar and chocolate, Jen had one with Nutella, and Steph tried the ice cream. I was in absolute heaven. Dear Belgian chocolate, can we be best friends forever??

After a decent night's sleep (for some), we took Bruges by storm the next day. We first rented bicycles for five euro, and had them for the whole day. It was so awesome to not have to walk everywhere for once, instead we rode our cute little lime green bikes. Because Bruges is not too big, this wasn't too scary or dangerous, thankfully. We biked to a fruit stand to buy fresh strawberries, then a bakery for a loaf of bread, then found a small grocery store where we bought some gouda cheese and doritos, packed all this up in our little bicycle pouches, and headed to the windmills, which are on the edge of town. We ate our little lunch in this very pretty setting, then headed back into town for shopping, bell tower climbing, Michaelangelo artwork viewing, and chocolate eating.

Overall, a good time. We also found a pub that had over 300 kinds of beer. Tried some unique Belgian beers (I am a fan of the Trappist brews myself) and enjoyed each others company.

Bruges was similar to Galway in the fact that prior to visiting there we were in a larger, more touristy and crazy city. We have spaced out our big cities well enough, I think, so that we have some breaks in these nice slightly-off-the-beaten-path kind of places. Essentially, a vacation from our vacation. We do this again tomorrow, when we leave Rome for the Amalfi Coast, which we have no doubt will be beautiful.

I will let one of my esteemed travelling comrades blog about some of our adventures in Rome...they truly have been adventures, indeed!

Ciao!