The month of November has been full of incredible travels; exploring Bavaria, München, Luxembourg City, Budapest, Disneyland, and Paris. Our one-year wedding anniversary approached - how was I to plan a trip that could (possibly) top any of these? I decided to select a city we've wanted to see for sometime, but haven't had the opportunity to visit - to Brugge (Bruges) or bust. The drive took a little longer than expected - stopping once for gas, dinner, and to break the monotony of traffic. Our impatience was alleviated when my late night meal created quite the confusion. I ordered a "hot sandwich," but it was made with a baguette and cold cuts - a topic that was discussed until our arrival downtown. It was too late to explore the city and the Christmas Markets closed for the evening, therefore; we prepared for (yet) another big day of sightseeing.
Building walking down Breidelstraat
Belfort Courtyard
Bawdy Chocolates
The following morning started with a delicious buffet courtesy of the Hotel du Sablon. After eating, we took a stroll down the street to the Grote Markt and Belfort (Belfry). The Christmas Market kiosks were just opening and the ice rink was preparing for the day's skaters. When approaching the Belfry we stumbled upon the Salvador Dali Museum-Gallery XPO. Being one of my favorite artists (having never seen an original), I requested if there was time see the artwork - of which Julie made an exception given the circumstance. The exhibit is a private collection and patrons can purchase the works directly off the wall. The showroom is relatively small, nonetheless; an impressive arrangement - our transient visit finished our cultural enrichment for the day.
Basilica of the Holy Blood
Altar
Decorated arches
Exiting the gallery, we stopped by the Belfort, passed through the courtyard and headed east - taking a left on Wollestraat to window-shop two chocolatier storefronts. We took a quick right on Breidelstraat and set our course for Burg Square. First, we visited the Basilica of the Holy Blood (Basiliek van het Heilig Bloed), home of the Relic of Precious Blood. There is an admission to view the relic, but we were content to explore the main church. The basilica is beautifully decorated with an abundance of color adorning the walls and structures in an otherwise opaque chapel. We walked next door to Stadhuis (City Hall) which doubles as a museum, but our compressed sightseeing schedule limited our time to observing the exterior.
Stadhuis
Ohhh....pretty
Burg Square
We continued our city-in-a-day tour, taking Blinde-Ezelstraat under the archway of City Hall and encountered our first canal. We took pictures momentarily, but soon became distracted when we saw the weekend market setup across the street. There were vendors with handmade crafts, jewelry, paintings, and fresh fish (seemed like the odd feature, but is the mainstay of Vismarkt which literally translates to fish market). We veered slightly of course and became enamored with the low-cost of everything. At home, our Festivus Tree was sparsely decorated with the few ornaments we own. Having made a few purchases in Bruges, our tree would look decadent upon our return.
Canal Boat Rides
On Sint-Annarei
Jan van Eyckplein Square
Spiegelrei
We redirected our focus to exploring the city - and what better way than take a boat ride through the canals. Conveniently, Canal Boat Rides was located opposite the market. We paid a small fare and boarded the vessel after a short wait. The boat started heading east down Groenerei - giving us a wonderful perspective of the city from the water. The only problem, our tour guide/captain was less coherent than Charlie Brown's teacher and had the delivery of the manically depressed robot from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Marvin). The boat steered down Sint-Annarei and once more on Spiegelrei - ending at Jan van Eyckplein Square. Our water chariot turned around and headed to the other half of the canal- passing by the Church of Our Lady (Onze-Lieve-Vrouw), Old Saint John's Hospital (Sint-Janshospitaal), and Minnewaterpark (similar to an island for waterfowl). We garnered a better understanding of the city's layout and made our way towards Swan Island to get the Terra firma viewpoint.
Church of Our Lady
On the canals
Relais Bourgondisch Cruyce (Hotel) and Belfort
Traveling by boat is more pleasant than walking, but we found our way back to Minnewaterpark to get a closer look of the swans, ducks, and various waterfowls that populate the area. Tourist were taking pictures, others observing, and some feeding the birds - fun to be had by all parties involved. We walked around this area briefly, before heading back towards the city center to catch a free harp concert.
Venturing back to Minnewaterpark
Sashuis
Another canal...weird
Luc Vanlaere is a harpist that has daily concerts (15:00, 17:00, 16:30) for free at Site Oud St Jan, a venue across from the Church of Our Lady. The show lasts around forty minutes and is a great way to relax and rest your legs. There is no obligation for a donation or burden to purchase his albums, but surely; a nominal contribution is always appreciated. Both of us enjoyed the concert and left what we felt was appropriate for sharing his talents (as did several others). By the time we left the recital, it was dark out - finally, the decorated Christmas markets would be illuminated.
Handen hebben elkaar nodig (The hands that need each other) by Johnny Webrouck
View from Begijnhof Bridge
Swan Island (Minnewaterpark)
We came across two Weihnachtsmarkts, both of which had multiple vendors and Glüwein everywhere. Julie and I enjoyed the German markets, but our favorite of all the festivities is easily Bruges - affordable souvenirs and cheaper drinks (five ornaments for €10, handmade pottery for €6, Glüwein with a shot for €4). Following some libations, some additional purchases were made before going back to the hotel to get ready for our anniversary dinner.
Small Weihnachtsmarkt
Grote Market
To close out our evening, we had a reservation at Cafedraal, a fancy-pants restaurant down the street from the hotel. They asked if the two of us wanted to celebrate with wine or champagne, however; we are beer-lovers - and we were in the land of the world's best beer. It would have been an egregious offense had we not consumed the local barley and hops specialty. Both dinner and the city were unassumingly delightful, Julie loved our anniversary weekend in Bruges - so much so, that we plan to return when the weather is warmer and can enjoy the city at a more leisurely pace.
In the morning. we tended to our frostbite and second-degree burns from our shower at the Hotel Sante Fe. Then, Julie decided to brave the breakfast buffet a second time. Based on her description of the experience, the dinning hall would be better named, "The Petri Dish" - a cesspool of rudeness, germs, and chaotic children acting as vectors. She acquired some pastries on her mission and returned unscathed, a feat that shouldn't go overlooked. After listening to her heroic tale of securing the Pan au chocolat from the beastly brigade of bacteria, we shifted our focus to Paris.
Seine River
View opposite previous picture
We planned a full day of sightseeing in the City of Light - a "full day" is an overstated understatement, but we managed to survive. We walked to the train station and boarded the RER to Paris. The ride takes about forty-five minutes and we even had some (unwanted) entertainment. Ironically, at the Noisy-champs station, a middle-aged man boarded the train with an accordion, a speaker on a dolly, and his tambourine-wielding son. The street-rat peddling was imminent - the doors closed and we were burdened with amateurish accordion music accompanied by the jangle of an unenthusiastic tambourine. The father and son finished their set in three stops and the boy went through the train with a cup looking for compensation. At the fourth stop, Val de Fontenay, both vacated our car and high-tailed it to the next one. We heard echos of the same songs for the next few stations.
Building in Montmarte
Street in Montmarte
Arriving at Les Halles, we switched Metro lines and proceeded to our first attraction of the day, the Louvre Museum. To our delight, the line was minimal - providing us ample time to take pictures outside before joining the cattle call. A half-hour later - we were through security, had our tickets, and each a Nintendo 3DS with a headset. The Louvre is massive, even the museum map is mammoth, therefore; we spent a few extra Euro for the little gaming device. Each Nintendo is loaded with gallery maps and myriad interactive features. We selected the "Masterpiece Tour," a great way to find the works everyone else is there to see.
The Louvre
Alexandros of Antioch - Venus de Milo
Michelangelo - Rebellious Slave
Michelangelo - Dying Slave
I would hate to see the museum during the height of tourist season, it was bad enough plodding my way through the sixty tourist to wait for the front-row view of the Mona Lisa. As expected, the 3DS came in very handy, finishing our "guided" tour in less than two hours. For the remainder of our visit, we switched the Nintendos to identify works of art that were in our proximate area. We were at the Louvre for three hours and I don't think we saw half of the exhibits, but we needed to get outside and experience the rest of Paris.
Leonardo da Vinci - Mona Lisa
Coronation of Napoleon (at Notre-Dame)....the art of the segue
We got back on the Metro and headed towards Cité, changing trains at Châtelet. Exiting the station, we arrived at our destination, Catédrale Notre-Dame. Similar to the cathedral in Luxembourg City of the same name, both share Gothic design - but Notre-Dame de Paris features flying buttress supports and is much larger. We exited the church and walked east - taking a few more pictures before making our way across Pont de l'Archevêché (Archbishop's Bridge). We didn't have a "love padlock" with us, but I think the bridge has plenty.
Catédrale Notre-Dame
High altar
Archbishop's Bridge
We crossed the Seine River and continued to the Panthéon, burial site of famous French figures: Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Voltaire, and Marie Curie (only female in necropolis) - to name a few. Unfortunately, the Panthéon has an admission - one we weren't willing to pay given the Foucault pendulum was undergoing major repair (and won't be re-installed until 2017, a most complex restoration for a simple device). Instead, Julie and I walked down Rue Soufflot towards the Jardin du Luxembourg (Luxembourg Gardens). Generally, one has a slim chance to find a seat by the fountain in front of Palais du Luxembourg, but it was nearly December - there was chairs sitting in chairs to stay warm (well, they were stacked). The weather was tolerable - allowing us to enjoy the view of the palace, the fountain, and the top of the Eiffel Tower in the distance. We left the garden and got back on the Metro and headed towards the Catacombs, but we were greeted with disappointment. Upon exiting the station and crossing the street, the line was wrapped around the block. We were informed that it would take approximately two hours to get to the entrance - news that had us turn around immediately.
Locks of Love
Panthéon
Jardin du Luxembourg with Eiffel Tower
Palais du Luxembourg
We changed our course for the next attraction on our list, Sacré-Cœur (Basilica of the Sacred Heart). Our legs were already feeling the burn after several hours of walking and the sight of the stairs at Sacré-Cœur added to the lactic acid buildup. Fortunately, we had a 24-hour public transportation ticket - including access to the cable car to the top of Montmarte. Our legs rejoiced for the advancement of hill-climbing technology - as a added bonus, we got sit down for a brief two minutes. The view from Montmarte (highest elevation in Paris) was magnificent, even on a meh-weather day (like we had).
Street in Montmarte with Basilica
Basilica of the Sacred Heart
Highest point of Paris
Moulin Rouge
Moulin de la Galette
While in Montmarte, we strolled over towards Place du tetre, an area teaming with painters and caricaturist. We would have loved to purchase a painting, but the ends didn't justify the means - nor did bartering facilitate a more appropriate price. To finish our circuit of Montemarte, we did our best impressions of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza - searching for giants. Instead, we found the Moulin Radet (a windmill) at the Moulin de la Galette, a place that served as inspiration for many artists (Renoir, Van Gough, and Picaso). Our last stop, the Moulin Rouge - birthplace of the can-can among other things. We didn't spend much time here, enough to take some photographs and marvel at the price for entertainment (€200 a seat).
Arc de Triomphe
Champs-Élysées
Under the Arc de Triomphe
After feigning interest in a show at the Moulin Rogue, we came back to reality and boarded the Metro at Blanche. We made our way to the most confusing traffic circle I have ever seen - the twelve spokes surrounding the Arc de Triomphe. The monument appears to be surround by a moat of automobiles - either a civil engineering masterpiece or nightmare. We continued down the Champs-Élysées and walked around the Parisian Christmas Market. From here, we boarded the Metro and went to our last stop, the Eiffel Tower. We got off at Trocadéro and proceeded to the Palais de Chaillot overlooking the tower. The top of the hour approached and we found an area on the stairs to sit and wait for the light show. The illumination was a great way to end our exhausting day in Paris. We took the Metro one last time, changing over to the RER, and returned to our less than humble abode at Disney.
View from Trocadéro
Time for the illumination
Champs-Élysées (Arc de Triomphe) near Christmas Market
Boarding Metro, destination seen in the background
Video was filmed vertically, but for some reason, Youtube insists on careening necks for this one. Apologies.
