Look up

Let's have a peek over this gentleman"s shoulder, to see what he makes of it.

The small square that made - and still does - Bruges famous. The cobblestones of the Rozenhoedkaai are worn by the hundred of tourists who come here daily, camera at the ready. And some do bring their sketchbook, too.

... was the name of the brewery. The "Gouden Boom" lies between the Lange street and the Nieuw Verband Land (New Burnt Land). This building and its installations were under provisional protection from demolition, under an ordinance signed by the Flemish Minister of Culture Dirk Vanmechelen (VLD) This protective measure ended last May 6th, then was prolonged for another six months, but now... the gloves are off and the demise of this piece of Bruges' heritage has been signed. A real estate company from Vilvoorde, operating under the ludicrous name of "NV Caesar Real Estate" is the new owner and all they have to do before going in for the kill is... wait a mere six months.
 

Hey, it was just yesterday that we saw this statue being loaded and brought to the starting locale of the procession. From there, surrounded by a troop of Roman soldiers, it will be part of the procession's itinerary, through the streets of Bruges. It symbolizes the torturing and suffering of Christ.

A last picture of the Burg for today.  It is not immediately obvious that this is in the centre of the city and yet, there it is.  Our city administration recently started promoting the "petanque" game, as a means to strengthen companionship and fraternity amongst the population of Bruges. Thus, suddenly, last year, new "pétanque" lanes (the French game of bowling, if you prefer) were installed here and there, as, for example, in the Minnewater Park, near the small castle. But, for now, besides those who were already practitioners of this particular sport, merely onlookers seem to be attracted to the game.

Detail of the pedestal upon which rests the sculpture "The lovers" by the artists-duo Depuydt-Canestraro, who like to leave their signature on their work. Notice the frog : Kikker is a synonym for Depuydt, and a kikker is a frog, of course. Yes, you got it.

While I was on the Burg this afternoon, I took the opportunity to show you a view of Bruges as Japanese artist Toyo Ito tried to show us how to look at it. That is, through the honeycomb-glass windows of his carwash business.

"Sybilla of Anjou?" I hear you wonder over this worldwide web. Yes, Sybilla of Anjou. She was the spouse of Diederik van den Elzes (Diederik of Alsatia) and together, sometime after 1134, they had a most remarkable chapel built, in Bruges, to honour Maria and Saint Baselius. This chapel we know know as The Sacred Blood Chapel and Sybilla of Anjou is represented here, among the other personalities depicted in the upper right of the façade of the chapel. It is a rare instance to see her in close proximity with Jesus "on the cold stone" by the hands of Michiel D'Hondt, a work he did in 1900, as well as with the Mary of the pieta. Under normal circumstances these sculptures are inside the Sacred Blood Chapel and their closeness as seen here was not brought about by hours of Photoshop trickery. It was really a chance happening, as you see it here, around half past three this afternoon.

... and leaving. No, this is not a bold daytime artwork robbery and neither is it a filming session for a new television detective series. These statues will be promenaded in the Sacred Blood procession ten days from now, and were taken from their assigned spot in the Sacred Blood Chapel this afternoon, around half past three. So, cautiously loading, safely securing and then... driving towards - I think - the Beurshalle, from where the procession is to start its walk through the city.

.
This is actually the only house in the Oude Zomer street. What you see in the rest of the street are the backsides of the houses in the Oude Burg street and garage doors. The name of this house is "De Zomere" (The Summer) and I surmise that it is also the name of a previous owner. In any event, there were families in Bruges bearing the name De Zomere. This was built in the late-gothic style in 1479. With the exception of the groundfloor, this is still the authentic old façade. I was lucky enough to visit the house a few years ago, during an "Open House" day. (But, I did not have a camera with me.)

The city's administration has decided to install 300 additional streetname panels in the surrounding municipalities so that, at whatever corner where two streets are meeting you might find yourself, you will always know exactly where you are. The new panels will be in the familiar green background with white lettering format. Here, in the inner city, we are at a small, dead-end street, the "Oude Zomerstraat", where such a name-panel is hanging. But the inhabitants of the street did not find that one sufficient and placed another one, right across from it. And theirs is ... calligraphy, beautifully cut in stone.

Back to the small store in the Peper street, and its owner, the courageous Angela Puype. I am not the first one to take photos here. Angèle and her small store are to be found in several books about the city of Bruges. Here, during a short respite between serving customers, she is sunning herself in her small courtyard.

The Last Supper. This scene shows Jesus and his twelve disciples sitting at the table. An evening meal filled with symbolism. "Take this cup and drink because this is my blood..."

This small neighbourhood store and the lady who owns it are something to be prized. This courageous woman has been keeping her small store ever since 1950. She started it with her husband but now that he is deceased, she is running it all on her own. I went in there this afternoon. Yes, although it is Sunday, she was open for business. It is her whole life, her only livelihood and the whole neighbourhood has a special fondness for this woman and her small store.

In a covered lane between the Burg and the Wollestreet, named Ter Steeghere, there is, about halfway in the lane, a restaurant-tearoom. You can only reach it by walking down the stairs. Here, seen from Ter Steeghere, is the terrace of the restaurant, which operates under the name "Opus Latino". In the background you can see the street coming left from the Rozenhoedkaai (Rose Hat Quai) and which used to veer right beneath the Waterhalls, along the Market and towards the Kraanrei and the Spinolarei.

Where the accordeon player of day before yesterday was doing what he does normally, that is play his instrument, these two gentlemen are participants in the "Airbag" festival. And, in contrast to the first player, who knew the music he was playing, these two are having a constant look at their music sheets.

.
Not "Matten Pie" (a specialty of the Geeraardsbergen area, as all pastry lovers know), but the original Bruges Metten Pie can be savoured here, on this "Bruges Metten Walk" commemoration day. Yes, French-speaking people can have a bite too, since we are all a lot less violent than we were 704 years ago. It is no longer necessary to be so : the French have stopp4ed bothering us and our Lion of Flanders is now as tame as a lamb. 

This if the fifth edition of the "Mettenwalk" organized by the July 11th Committee of Bruges City. Actually, you can do the walk on foot or you can use your bicycle, as the length of the walk varies between 6 and 42 kilometers. You can even choose at what time you want to start your walk as departures are scheduled anywhere from 8 in the morning till 3 in the afternoon. The walk is a commemoration of the famous "Brugse Metten" a rebellion which started in the morning of May 18, 1302. On that day, under the commandment of Jacques de Chatillon, the French were set to invade Bruges. However, rebels who, very early that same morning,  had managed to slip out of the city, paid the French army a surprise visit and got them out of their beds in a most disagreeable manner (at the precise hour of the "Metten", that is, the first part of the daily breviary prayer, which was divided into three nocturnes, being mostly psalms and lessons, and the first past of the night office.) All who failed to pronounce "Schild en Vriend" properly - and this, the French could not - was sure to find no pity and was massacred. The "Brugse Metten" rang, in fact, the beginning of the "Guldensporenslag" (The Battle of the Golden Spurs). Which is why it is so fitting that the start- and arrival points of the walk should be here, at the city halls in the centre of  Old Bruges.

Yesterday, I went to the "New Territories" exhibition, in the upper halls of the Belfort. I had no idea what the exhibition realy was about.  I saw the entrance was free and the exhibition would be open till May 29th. I discovered the exhibition was the work of video-artists who tackled the Palestine-Israel question and learned that right at the opening ceremony there was an incident because, in  the printed program, there was an Israeli logo to be seen (the Israeli administration had given two air-travel tickets) and several Palestinian participants wanted to take their work away from the exhibition.  In any event, the exhibition is going on and it is well worth a visit. Most of the videos, I find, might be compared to the movie Powaqqatsi and its two sequels, the difference being that while Powaqqatsi did not really have a message to convey, these videos did. In one instance, for example, Donna Conlon from Panama shows a movie showing ants busily dragging tree-leaves over the ground but here and there, those leaves are really leaf-sized pieces of cardboard depicting the flag of several countries and of the peace logo. In another instance, Lisa Abdul from Afghanistan shows a video wherein people are painting what remains standing of their destroyed houses, just so to put a bit of colour in their lives.  In the last one of the exhibition halls I found photos such as those we get to see in the newspapers and on television : heart-rending scenes in war-torn areas, photos which are usually found on the "Photo of the Year" lists.