Karthuizerinnen church (3)
The church, as seen from the corner of the Oude Burg. On the wall are the lists of the war victims, people of Bruges who were killed.The Sacred Blood procession
.The Sacred Blood proession
,Josef and Mary are desperately looking for their son Jesus. Finally, after three days of searching, they find him in the temple with the scribes.Jolly month of May
't Was in the jolly month of May
hey, hey,
't was in jolly May!
And, passing through Bruges while coming
I saw all the litle flowers blooming;
't was in the jolly month of May,
hey, hey,
't was in jolly May.
free interpretation of a poem by
Guido Gezelle
The May Fair
The May Fair. Every morning the city's clean-up teams are quite busy and... the means are equal to the job.The Sacred Blood procession
The Sacred Blood procession (2)
The Three Wise Men. Since there were three of them, you still have two coming. Here is Balthasar.The Sacred Blood procession (3)
The third of the Three Wise Men, Caspar. Caspar, as we can see from the expression on his face, was a bit reluctant to come and see the child Jesus.Hotels Ibis and Novotel
. Alexianan Convent
Tourists expecting to spend the night in an old convent will be lucky, when they enter this inner court of the hotel "Ibis", if they manage to notice anything of the "old" in the actual transformation - please, let's never call it restoration - of what used to be the Alexanian convent. In 1841 the Brothers of Love even built a refuge and hospice for men here, but in 1982, the city fathers had little or no regard for history and had decided that the old had to make way for the new (NOVOTEL). And only for the sake of contrast was some of the original building integrated in the "Ibis" Novotel..Novotel
Were they really happily laughing about it in the eighties, when they shamelessly could demolish historical buildings? Novotel used materials from the small bell-tower of what ised to be the Alexanian convent, to build a bench in its hotel's inner court. The remainder of the convent was rased but they kep the small tower as a joke. Or were their intentions serious, at the time? Utterly bad taste is all that can be said about it.Everything in Bruges
... reflects the grace of the city. Even these posts are decorated with the logo of Bruges : the elegant "B" with the small crown.Even de sewer covers
Guesthouses
More and more tourists choose to stay in guest-gouses, or "Bed and Breakfast" as they are also known. Many inhabitants of Bruges are proud of their city and one way of proving it is to offer tourists a room as well as breakfast. The added benefit for tourists is that they are welcomed by people who will also gladly tell them all they now about Bruges, their city.
Katelijne rampart
The Katelijne rampart as we now know it was developed between 1881 and 1890. But this part of the fortification wall goes back to the year 1662.Swan
This is how one usually sees our swans, in Bruges. Floating on the water, a small tree nearby. Quiet, tranquil, gracious.Swan (2)
... a less familiar sight. Walking along the path, searching for some edible tidbit..The Sacred Blood procession
The shepherders come visiting the newborn child JesusIce cellar
Sans-papiers
Inside the Magdalena church. Action for the "sans-papiers". Notice the broken English used.