Ceres and Mercurius
On the façade of the Clyncke house, at 33 Oude Burg, which was built in 1571, you can see these two stone medallions depicting the mythological figures Mercurius and Ceres. They were probably commissioned to be installed there around 1577, when Highes, who was a wine merchant succeeded Willem Clynckemaille as occupant of the house.Jerry's Cigar Bar
.pants - shirts - skirts
A last sample of bad taste. I do not want to mention the name and the address of the store any more.graffitti
... with a twist : the owners of the business did them themselves. Well, they did used chal. This is the entrance of the wo_men_at_work store. One can make any number of comments. Their promotional stunt by way of introduction to their business was a poster showing the virgin Maria with a crown of thorns on her head. This poster was to be seen at Flanders Inside "Maria At Work" on July 21, 2006. Inside the store near the display-window there was the same picture with candles all around it. Then they did away with it. (Likely some protest had been voiced). Was this supposed to be an eye-wink for the benefit of Bruges? When I saw the... thing, I was just speechless. Then three words spontaneously came to mind : kitsch, bad taste, stupidity.Example of bad taste
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Not so long ago, after a Dutch chain of clothing-stores had opened a branch in Antwerp, they opened one in Bruges (wo-)men at work. Their manner of promoting their stores is head and shoulders superior to all other possible forms of bad taste.Phooey, if that is all the Dutch have to offer by way of knock-dead words, unsignificant symbols and willfull provocation... There used to be a bookstore here, with an antiques shop in its annex. Which is why you can still see the word "Antiquariaat" at the right top of the sign.
antiquariaat
Foto genomen gisterenmorgen om 10 uur in de Mariastraat. Mariastraat 10, meer bepaald. Vanavond meer hierover.korenslang
Quite recently the area was in a bit of upheaval because suddenly, there had been several and repeated sightings here and there of... snakes. The latest news is that all but one of the snakes were caught and that the one who is still enjoying its freedom might have elected, for the last two weeks, to hide somewhere in the cellars of the four-star hotel "Hans Memling" in the Kuiperstreet. Apparently, they are of the harmless cereal-snake variety. Snakes probably feel in their element in this warm weather and these particular ones decided to go and have a look outside. It is suspected that a local snake-collector might be missing a few of his pets...For sale
On the corner of the Philipstock- and the Gunsmiths streets there is a business for sale. Until recently it was the Vanbelle Bakery. The chances that this business might be a bakery again are very slim. There is another bakery in the street and, moreover, slowly but surely the trend is towards buying bread in the big chain-groceries. And this, of course, means the loss of the independent baker.The Vanbelle bakery
At the beginning of the 17th century, there was already a bakery here. The first baker's name was Adriaan Wouters. Four hundred years later, Christiaan Vanbelle puts an end to it. During all these years, here the people of Bruges came to buy their farmers' bread, as well as many other specialties, of course. The interior of the bakery was very old-fashioned, and it was one of it's charms. We are curious to see what shall become of this store. It is in a quite good tourist spot. Lace-shops are no longer "in". I am hoping for an "all-night" store, or a chocolate boutique. However, rumour seems to make it likely to become a souvenir and notions shop. Bundles of rays...
The 'Divina Commedia'
.Simon Stevin
That's him, Simon Stevin. The square, where some are sleeping ( see previous photo), is named after him. Everybody takes a picture of Simon from the front. Yet, there are also a back and two sides to him. And seen from the side it is quite noticeable that the famed mathematician is the victim of quite a bird-poop problem.Morning nap
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Simon Stevin Square. Around 10:oo a.m. These tourists are sitiing on a bench, their luggage about them. Let me guess : this morning, around half past nine, they got up, had breakfast and left their hotel because their reservation had run out. There was no air-conditioning in their room and thus, it was too uncomfortable to enjoiy a god night's sleep. Exhausted and overwhelmed by the glaring sunshine warming the Simon Stevin Square, the lady just dozed off again.
Vlamingstraat 40
Bruges still has two houses with authentic wooden façades. Sorry to disappoint you, this is not one of them. This one can be seen when looking diagonally from across the theatre building, in the Vlamingstreet, on the corner of the Kraan square. This façade was re-done in 1963 and is the work of architect Antoine Dugardyn. He used iconographic sources as basis for his interpretation of how the house actually looked like in the year 1542. What is missing are the painted motifs at the top of the façade, who earlier illlustrated the name of the house "De Haan" = The Rooster.Wollestraat - Eeckhoutstraat
Those street names would translate as "Woolstreet" and "Oakwood street". One more view of Bruges from the Halltower.Leaving a business-card
Those Spaniards seem to have gone to quite some length to leave their business card on this bell in the Bruges bell-tower. All those who came here, high up in the Halltower, know what I mean. Did these Spaniards bring a ladder with them? If not, then they certainly were very acrobatic people.The Sacres Blood procession
Four more days. Bruges' most celebrated day is almost upon us. This scene depicts the Resurrection of Christ. We have here two Roman soldiers fast asleep next to the burial grotto. The rock that closed theburial site off has been dragged aside and the grotto looks empty.New museum (2)
.New museum
According to recent news reports, a new museum should soon rise up on this section of the parking lot of the Old Sint-Jan. Although press releases are numerous, their terms remain extraordinarily vague. But, whatever the case, I can only applaud the decision to finally do something about this cancer-spot in Bruges. This sight is an atrocity.Spook Castle (2)
