Bruges

Those who have seen In Bruges may have an impression of Bruges as a
quaint old town, insulated from the incursions of anything later than
the 18th century and devoid of attractions for anyone under the age of
seventy. In some measure this is true.

In others, this is a superficial description that fails to express the
calm and charm of the old town. Some of what we found:

• Majestic swans maternally building the nests around them alongside their mate, who assists with nest-matter gathering (and also seeing off the occasional opportunistic smaller critter)
• Winding mazes of cobbled streets which lead you away from your intended destination....and then reveal new charms
• Cruising the canals to see venerable buildings and charming overhanging bay windows
• Thanks to sustained sandblasting of old buildings, an occasional Disneyesque sense of being in a reconstruction rather than an original town
• Lounging under the warm spring sun and playing petanque in the courtyard garden of Bruge's oldest pub (circa 1515)
• Cycling alongside the canals, taking in sights as diverse as ducklings and windmills
• Dining at an excellent restaurant Pro Deo (sadly for them, but good for us, we were the only ones there) in the quiet side of town, where they serve farmed eel that trounces all prior eels in the flavour stakes (far less bitter and oily)
• Sampling the national speciality - beer - in locations that offer 300 (place name to come) or 600 (place name to come) varieties
• Tasting a selection of Belgium chocolate (which, despite them all looking varied, tasted exactly the same).