September 04, 2015

Bruges, Belgium

A street in Bruges.
A street in Bruges.
The Basilica of the Holy Blood, built in the 12th-century AD as the chapel of the residence of the Count of Flanders, the church houses a venerated relic of the Holy Blood allegedly collected by Joseph of Arimathea and brought from the Holy Land by Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders.
The Basilica of the Holy Blood, built in the 12th-century AD as the chapel of the residence of the Count of Flanders, the church houses a venerated relic of the Holy Blood allegedly collected by Joseph of Arimathea and brought from the Holy Land by Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders.
The Romanesque Chapel of Saint Basil.
The Romanesque Chapel of Saint Basil.
Various stained glasses from the 16th- to the 18th-centuries AD.
Various stained glasses from the 16th- to the 18th-centuries AD.
Great Reliquary of the Holy Blood (1617 AD).
Great Reliquary of the Holy Blood (1617 AD).
Tapestry of the 'Removal of St. Augustine's Body from Sardinia to Pavia in the 8th-century AD, with View on Bruges' by Jan de Ruddere (1637 AD).
Tapestry of the ‘Removal of St. Augustine’s Body from Sardinia to Pavia in the 8th-century AD, with View on Bruges’ by Jan de Ruddere (1637 AD).
Inside the Chapel of the Holy Blood.
Inside the Chapel of the Holy Blood.
Altar with the Relic of the Holy Blood, a phial that contains a cloth with the blood of Jesus Christ, brought to the city by Thierry of Alsace after the 12th-century Second Crusade.
Altar with the Relic of the Holy Blood, a phial that contains a cloth with the blood of Jesus Christ, brought to the city by Thierry of Alsace after the 12th-century Second Crusade.
Looking at the Belfry of Bruges from inside the former Market Hall.
Looking at the Belfry of Bruges from inside the former Market Hall.
The Great Bell inside the Belfry.
The Great Bell inside the Belfry.
The carillon control drum inside the Belfry.
The carillon control drum inside the Belfry.
View of Bruges with the Church of Our Lady and the Sint-Salvator Cathedral, seen from the top of the Belfry of Bruges.
View of Bruges with the Church of Our Lady and the Sint-Salvator Cathedral, seen from the top of the Belfry of Bruges.
Market Square, seen from the Belfry.
Market Square, seen from the Belfry.
City Hall and Burg Square, seen from the Belfry.
City Hall and Burg Square, seen from the Belfry.
Chocolate high-heeled shoes and clam shells in a Belgian Chocolate Shop.
Chocolate high-heeled shoes and clam shells in a Belgian Chocolate Shop.
Bridge over a canal in Bruges.
Bridge over a canal in Bruges.
Yet another canal in Bruges.
Yet another canal in Bruges.
The Jerusalem Church, built in 1428 AD upon the return of Anselm Adornes (a wealthy and prominent Bruges merchant family man of Genovese origin) from his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
The Jerusalem Church, built in 1428 AD upon the return of Anselm Adornes (a wealthy and prominent Bruges merchant family man of Genovese origin) from his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
Inside the Jerusalem Church.
Inside the Jerusalem Church.
Altar on the upper level inside the Jerusalem Church.
Altar on the upper level inside the Jerusalem Church.
Crypt area behind the main altar inside the Jerusalem Church.
Crypt area behind the main altar inside the Jerusalem Church.
Kruispoort city gate.
Kruispoort city gate.
Windmill in Bruges.
Windmill in Bruges.
Street at the northern end of Bruges, alongside Langerei Canal.
Street at the northern end of Bruges, alongside Langerei Canal.
Langerei Canal at the northern end of Bruges.
Langerei Canal at the northern end of Bruges.
Little Bascule Bridge.
Little Bascule Bridge.
Langerei Canal, seen from Little Bascule Bridge.
Langerei Canal, seen from Little Bascule Bridge.
Houses and their reflections along the canal.
Houses and their reflections along the canal.
Corner street in Bruges.
Corner street in Bruges.
More reflections in the canal.
More reflections in the canal.
Looking at Jan van Eyck Square (in the distance) at the end of the canal.
Looking at Jan van Eyck Square (in the distance) at the end of the canal.
Statue of Jan van Eyck in Jan van Eyck Square.
Statue of Jan van Eyck in Jan van Eyck Square.
Buildings on the north side of Jan van Eyck Square.
Buildings on the north side of Jan van Eyck Square.
Academiestraat.
Academiestraat.
Canal with St. John's Hospital on the right, seen from Mariastraat.
Canal with St. John’s Hospital on the right, seen from Mariastraat.
Horse head water fountain.
Horse head water fountain.
Bridge leading to the entrance of the Bruges Béguinage.
Bridge leading to the entrance of the Bruges Béguinage.
Swan in the canal outside the Béguinage.
Swan in the canal outside the Béguinage.
Buildings along Professor Dokter J. Sebrechtsstraat.
Buildings along Professor Dokter J. Sebrechtsstraat.
Bridge over Minnewater Lake.
Bridge over Minnewater Lake.
Luxembourg white wine.
Luxembourg white wine.

I woke up around 11:00 today, showered, and dressed. I then exited the hotel at 14:00 and walked in to the center of Bruges. When I left the hotel, it was cloudy, but not raining; later on, it would rain on and off and I was glad I had brought my umbrella with me. I first walked to the Basilica of the Holy Blood, which was originally built as a chapel of the residence of the Count of Flanders in the twelfth-century AD; it was promoted to a minor basilica in 1923 AD. I reached the outside of the basilica in the Burg Square and I first visited the lower chapel (the St. Basil Chapel), which was built in the Romanesque style. Next, I walked upstairs and visited the upper chapel, which is the minor basilica. The basilica was rebuilt in the sixteenth-century AD in the Gothic style and later renovated in the Gothic Revival style; it was a very colorful and ornate basilica and I like the interior design very much. On the right-hand side of the basilica is an altar with the venerated relic of the Holy Blood, which was allegedly collected by Joseph of Arimathea and brought from the Holy Land by Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders, in the twelfth-century AD. After walking upstairs to the basilica, I first visited the treasury and looked at the medieval books, paintings, and other goods inside. Next, I entered inside the actual basilica and lined up to visit the vial of Holy Blood. I then took many photographs of the interior before walking back downstairs and exiting the building. Then, I walked to the Belfry of Bruges, located at the Market Square. The Belfry is 83 meters high and was built in the thirteenth-century AD with the octagonal upper stage of the belfry was added between 1483 and 1487 AD. I reached the Belfry, bought my entrance ticket, and waited to climb upstairs to the top (only 70 people are allowed in at a time). Once I was able to proceed, I climbed the 366 narrow steps to the top level, where the bells are located and looked out at the city of Bruges. After getting my fill of the view, I descended the steps, checking out the different accessible levels as I proceeded downward (like the room with the large cylinder and machinery used to play automated music on the carillon). Finally, I exited the Belfry and walked outside. I then walked to the Jerusalem Church. On the way to the Jerusalem Church I passed by a number of chocolate shops and admired the different chocolate molds at the display windows (e.g. shoes, bears, breasts, etc.). I then reached the church just as it began to rain and entered inside. The Jerusalem Church was began construction in the fifteenth-century AD upon the return of Anselm Adornes (a wealthy and prominent Bruges merchant family man of Genovese origin) from his pilgrimage to the Holy Land; Anselm Adornes wanted to build a copy of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Jerusalem Church is the result of that effort (it is really only similar to that part of the Church that contains the upper level above Calvary and the Stone of Anointing; otherwise, it is not similar at all to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre). Before actually entering inside the Jerusalem Church, I walked to the museum in the compound and watched part of the informative video about the church; then, after looking around the museum, I entered inside the church and explored the upper and lower levels before exiting back outside. Next, I walked to the eastern gate of the historic city of Bruges and the outer canal. I followed the canal to the north end of the city and passed by four windmills along the way. Then, at the northern end, I walked south, back to the center of Bruges, following a canal to Jan van Eyck Square. Next, I headed back toward the hotel. On my way back, I bought a large brick of Belgian chocolate at one of the many chocolate shops. I then passed by a canal on the southern side of the city with a number of swans floating inside. Before returning to the hotel, I stopped at the Subway, bought a tuna sub, and then stopped at the Carrefour to buy some drinks and chips and salsa. I then returned to my hotel room and ate my dinner. After dinner, I shaved and took a shower. Later on (after midnight) I opened the bottle of Luxembourg white wine I had bought a couple days ago and drank that (it tasted of lemons, melons, and hay). I eventually fell asleep around 04:00 after staying up late watching videos on YouTube.

An open journal or an exercise in narcissism.