After leaving Bruge, a few key stops remain foremost in my mind:

• The Church of our Lady. To stand in the halls is humbling, to say the least.

The Church of Our Lady (Dutch: Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk) in Bruges, Belgium, dates mainly from the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. Its tower, at 122,3 meters in height, remains the tallest structure in the city and the second tallest brickwork tower in the world. In the choir space behind the high altar are the tombs of Charles the Bold, last Valois Duke of Burgundy, and his daughter, the duchess Mary. The gilded bronze effigies of both father and daughter repose at full length on polished slabs of black stone. Both are crowned, and Charles is represented in full armor and wearing the decoration of the Order of the Golden Fleece.

The altarpiece of the large chapel in the southern aisle enshrines the most celebrated art treasure of the church—a white marble sculpture of the Madonna and Child created by Michelangelo around 1504. Probably meant originally for the Siena Cathedral, it was purchased in Italy by two Brugean merchants, the brothers Jan and Alexander Mouscron, and in 1514 donated to its present home. The sculpture was twice recovered after being looted by foreign occupiers—French revolutionaries circa 1794 and Nazi Germans in 1944.

A terrible picture of the central alter … I could not use the flash in such a place and I do not carry a tripod. Although I just bought a Gorilla Pod so it never happens again. Magnificent. We remained very quiet. We also lit candles and took the time to pass on our silent thoughts.

• The Belfry Tower or as we like to call it, the big climb!

The Market square is dominated by the cloth hall and the 83 meter high Belfry tower, one of the symbols of the city. The original cloth hall and tower date from 1240. The first tower, however, was destroyed by fire in 1280. At the time of the fire the four wings of the cloth hall already existed, as well as the two square segments of the belfry. The present octagonal lantern was added to the tower between 1482 en 1486. The wooden spire that crowned the tower was again destroyed by fire in 1493 en 1741.

After the last fire it was never rebuilt. Like in most cities of the Low Countries the belfry tower was the place where the important documents of the city were preserved. At the same time such towers were used as watchtowers. Inside hung bells, each bell having a distinct sound and function (e.g.: bells for danger, bells for important announcements, bells to indicate the time, etc.).

The entire complex still bears witness to the importance of Bruges as a medieval trade center. In the cloth hall, the Flemish cloth which was manufactured in different other cities was sold to the rest of the world. In 1399, for instance, there were 384 sales stands inside the hall.

Nowadays, the belfry tower charms the visitor with the lovely music of a carillion, which consists of 47 bells. Other more recent decorations are the sculpture of the Madonna in renaissance style and the weapon with a Belgian lion.

For our family – the Belfry tower was a huge climb. It is 366 steps up and 366 down. The final stages are in this tiny little stairwell with wooden stairs where people were climbing into alcoves to get by each other. Quite an event and quite a view.

The tower from the bottom. The wooden door that is at the bottom of the picture is half way up (roughly).

   A picture as the evening arrives.

At the top level the ledges are engraved with distances and pointers to other cities. Berlin is below, which I would assume is 700KM.

• City hall was magnificent. The boys enjoyed sitting in the mayors seat and exploring the different rooms. The walls are adorned with paintings and the outside of the building is engraved with statues of the heroes of Bruges.

• As we walked back to the hotel a parade moved down the street. From the dress of the people we surmised that this was a parade to collect money for the poor. Three wise men were riding HUGE horses, which was quite the sight.

• Everyone says you must visit the Groeninge Museum, I would agree. My observation on the museums is this – they are fantastic for an older crowd. The works are very ‘heavy’, laden with religious symbolism. I would wager that we saw 15 depictions of Christ on the cross and more than one beheaded saint at the museum. Candidly, the boys enjoyed the art gallery next to the hotel more as it was full of modern works that were colorful, fun and interesting to the eye. Still, the anatomically correct statues in the garden were very interesting if not a bit disturbing?

Last, if traveling to Bruges make sure you hit the information center and purchase the museum pass. It gets you to 5 or 6 museums at a very low cost. Although, the real must see museum, the chocolate museum, is not covered.