Bruges

There are times as an expat, when you forget that you are living in a foreign country. This weekend was not one of those times.

With the weather reported to be beautiful, we decided to venture out to Bruges (Or Brugge in Flemish). Everyone always asks us if we have been there, so we decided to check that box and spend the weekend. The weather was as reported and the weekend started out just fine. A nice hour and a half from home and we were entering the medieval town. This is when the illusion that you are home begins to unravel. Bruges is an old city. A very old city. A city that predates any form of modern transportation. Consequently the streets are very narrow. That's not too bad though. We have lived here long enough to know how to cope with the traffic patterns that this situation creates. What is different is the number of completely oblivious tourists flooding the streets. They are everywhere, most with an apparent death wish as they back into traffic whilst trying to take a particularly artistic photo of their unfortunate looking spouse.

She who must be obeyed had planned ahead however, and booked parking with the hotel in the center of the city. As we approached the hotel however, we could see no evidence of parking. Just a very narrow gate through a wall leading to the front desk. She hopped out and I took a drive down the block to wait for her to tell me where to park. I should have known however, it was through the narrow gate. To say I circled the block to get back does not really do justice to the meandering trip I took to get back to the hotel. A trip that included me squeezing down a narrow alley where I needed to get out of the car and move a bike before being able to make it through. It was so tight, that three tourists took photos of me emerging from the alley. Presumably to show the police how this American moron got stuck in the alley. Having cleared that obstacle, I found myself back at the gate of doom. As I began to squeeze in, I heard the unmistakable sound of gate on front bumper. Just a scratch, but enough to put me in a mood for much of the day. In retrospect, I think it is pretty safe to say that the purchase of a 520 sedan was not the best idea for Belgium. If it is not too wide, as in this instance; it is too long, as can be seen by my garage.

Bruges is a very pretty city. The canals are scenic, there are many pubs and restaurants. It is a really nice place to wander. The downside are the sheer quantities of people. This was a sunny weekend in March and the place was mobbed. I would hate to see what it is like during the summer months. It must be bedlam. I am not a person who gets energized by being in big crowds. I have come to accept a certain amount of jostling and lack of personal space because you can't get away from it here. What really drives me nuts however, is the abrupt stopping to take a photo or look in a shop window. Is it so hard to step to the side before you bring the line of people behind you to a screeching halt? Which brings me to another pet peeve, cameras where the viewfinder is the screen on the back. These cameras have turned everyone into snapshot zombies. Arms outstretched, peering into their camera and oblivious to the world around them. A world that includes automobiles, bicycles, horse drawn carriages and other pedestrians. Glad to have that off my chest.

Today we were up early. My theory is that the churchbells ring to ensure all the tourists are up in time to maximize their commercial activities. So in that spirit, we wandered around the city for the morning, enjoying the relatively open sidewalks. Around lunch we decided to flirt with the gate of doom and leave Bruges to head to Oostende on the North Sea. It is about 30 minutes away from Bruges, so we thought we would check it out to see if we should bother with it for next summer. It reminded me of the Eastern Shore of Maryland with better restaurants. I think I can pass.

As far as a food and beverage weekend, it was a bit of a mixed bag. Food was generally quite good. I had an excellent Coq au Vin in Brugge at Oude Burg 22. Unfortunately, we also had a not so great experience at a restaurant in Oostende. The beers however, did not dissappoint. We started out with the Brugge Tripel which I have had before.

We Then moved on a Brugse Zot Bruin at the De Torre restaurant where we also had some Belgian cheese (Essentially like Gouda) sprinkled with celery salt. This bruin is very light and clean. She who must be obeyed said it was "fizzy". There is a little sweetness and a dried fruit flavor on the palate. At little raisin and plum. Definitely a refreshing beer after a couple of hours walking. Three and a Half Drunk Monks!

The next up was an Omer from Brouwerj Bockor. The Omer is very crisp with a strong alcohol bite. It is an 8% blonde ale with some hop backbone and residual sweetness. I like this one a lot. It has a few levels of flavor to it while at the same time staying crisp and refreshing. Four Drunk Monks!!

I feel almost bad reviewing this beer, because I know most people will never find it. While we were enjoying the Omer, I noticed this beer on their menu and it was one I had never heard of. They only had it in a 750ml bottle however, so I had to talk She Who Must Be Obeyed into sharing it with me. Being the trooper that she is, she agreed and we ordered it and I have to say I am glad we did. The Jessenhofke is an organic unfiltered wheat beer. I was a little worried that it would be a hippee beer with pachouli overtones, but oh was I worng. There is a lot going on in this glass. toffee, caramel, hops, a creamy mouthfeel. The Jessenhofke is serious stuff. Their label says "drink matig, doch regelmatig" which means drink moderately but regularly. Seems like a good idea to me. Four and a Half Drunk Monks!!!!