| 1. Mariastraat |
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An incredible church with a confusing heritage, the Mariastraat took over three hundred years to build and this time period crossed different architectural styles meaning that it ended up with a confused identity. It has a gigantic tower reaching nearly 400ft up into the Bruges sky and is famous as the repository of Michelangelo’s masterpiece Madonna and Child. Renovation work has begun on the church and after some debate as to which style it should be restored to, the medieval version won. Look out for the incredibly ornate tombs in the nave. |
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| 2. Minnewater Park |
If you’re feeling romantic then this is the place to visit. Its other name is The Lake of Love and you can’t help just wanting to take the hand of a loved one and wander through the beautifully tended grounds and down to the lake which used to be a dock for the barges of the canal between Bruges and Ghent. Best time for this is in springtime as the snowdrops open or kick through fallen leaves in the autumn before heading off for a hot chocolate somewhere warm!
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| 3. The Lace Centre |
Belgium, and Bruges in particular, is renowned for its lace which has been a craft tradition here for centuries. At the Lace Centre in Peperstraat, you’ll find both a museum and a workshop still producing the beautiful pieces by hand which can be bought at the museum shop. The museum is fascinating, showing how lace first came to Belgium and the influences on the styles over the years.
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| 4. Breweries |
There are many things that Belgium is famous for and beer is definitely one of them. Leave aside the traditional beers for now, they are ten a penny, and seek out the unusual fruit beers of the country. My favourites are the raspberry and cherry beers which have an unusual and complex taste. They have been in production for centuries and to understand the thinking behind the unusual concept, take a brewery tour in any of the main Belgian cities.
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| 5. Royal Museum of Fine Art, Antwerp |
Belgium had its fair share of great painters too and the Royal Museum of Fine Art in Antwerp has an extensive collection by masters such as Van Dyck and Rubens. The building is a work of art in itself designed in the neo-classical style. It was built in 1894 as part of the Antwerp World Expo as a ‘temple of fine art’ and has retained its importance and significance ever since.
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| 6. Waterloo |
One of the most significant battles of European history took place in 1815 with the Battle of Waterloo. It made a hero of the Duke of Wellington and ended the reign of Napoleon over Europe. The site of the battle is very popular with tourists and unlike many battlefields, where there’s nothing to see, Waterloo has all kinds of monuments and in particular the Lion of Waterloo statue atop a hill with 200 steps to the summit. Various other centres and museums dot the area and it is a very interesting and atmospheric place to visit.
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| 7. Ypres and Flanders |
No trip to Belgium would be complete without a visit to the battlefields of the Great War. Ypres and Flanders are two of the most significant and widely visited in the country. Much of the history has now been covered by the passage of time but in Sanctuary Wood, authentic trenches can be visited. The cemeteries themselves are very moving, seeing the rows of crosses in the ground gives you a pathetic reminder of how many died in the battles, 12,000 bodies lay in Tyne Cot alone. Far more moving is to stand on the battlefields and listen for the echoes of those days. I defy you not to shed tears here.
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| 8. Tongeren |
Belgium was a cold and miserable outpost of the Roman Empire and a difficult posting for a soldier with the threat of regular attacks from the tribes of Scandinavia. The Romans built what is now the oldest town in Belgium, Tongeren, which was destroyed twice by invaders. Today, much of the Roman town survives and is displayed at the Gallo Roman Museum which stands on the site of a Roman villa. Within the town can be found other ancient sights such as the 800 year old Our Lady’s Basilica
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| 9. Belgian Chocolate |
Bruges is famed throughout the world for its chocolate shops and I was unable to prise my wife from several of them on a recent visit. Many of the shops make the chocolates on the premises and others blend their own chocolate from roasted cocoa beans. At certain times of day some streets are absolutely intoxicating with the smell of the delicious treat. The current desire for exotic flavours has led to much experimentation in production and you may be asked to try a sample of a strange new flavour!
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| 10. Gravensteen Castle, Ghent |
I’ve visited many castles in my life and most of them are really dull! Belgium has 3,000 or more and the best of the pick has got to be Gravensteen Castle. Here, in a beautiful location on the River Lieve, one of the strongest fortified castles in Europe was built. It was a military base for years because of its secure nature and was once known as the Castle of the Counts as the area’s nobility met here regularly. Far from just being a big stone building in a beautiful setting, Gravensteen has an interesting but scary exhibition of torture equipment in its dungeons!
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