A (photo-) blog about the beautiful Belgian town Bruges as seen through the very two eyes of an inhabitant. Sharp, witty, and... always admiring.
20-04-2006
Water-mill
A water-mill is milling water Water mills the mill-water Milling water in the water-mill What is milling waters the mill A water-mill is milling water
It might make no sense to you and me, but the miller sings it anyway.
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Peripheral canal
... all around Bruges. We see the tower of the Sint-Sebastiaan's guild, an archery guild, in the Carmerstreet.
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
New part of town
When looking at a plan of Bruges, it would be quite logical to think that in this egg-shaped city, covering an area of barely 3,5 by 2,5 kilometers, there isn't a square foot left to be found anywhere to add another building. Not so. Here and there, some parcels of land are still lying empty. The one here, between the Vlamingendam, the Sint-Clarastreet and the Sint-Claralane, is now assiduously being...built up. That, too, is Bruges.
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
God's house De Vos
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"God's Houses". This is one of the many aspects so typically proper to Bruges. Affluent burghers of Bruges might have something bothering their conscience. Did they game excessively, did they murder somebody...? In order to maintain their good standing with their Church and affirm their religious belief, they would finance the building of a God's House for the benefit, mostly, of widows. Whatever the reasons of Christiaan De Vos, in 1713 he had these six godshouses built, flanked by the inevitable chapel. It has become one of the great tourist attractions. Every day, without fail, groups of visitors come and take a look at these houses, from across the street. Which is why I find it strange that, during the winter of 2004/2005, one of the inhabitants had been lying dead for several months inside one of these houses before the fact being discovered (to the right of the photo, there are several more such dwellings). It was only when the policeman who was usually in charge of this area, became suspicious. Bizarre.
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Kruisgate at dusk
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
The "Bonne Chiere" Mill
"Bonne Chiere" comes from the French expression "Bonne chère" - good fare, good cheer, to be fond of good living). This mill is not originally from Bruges either. The mill was installed here in 1911, and replaced a mill known by the same name but which was destroyed by fierce winds. Two days after the mishap, the Gazette van Brugge (The Gazette of Bruges) related the incident as follows :
"Saturday afternoon, a sad accident happened, which, by a miracle, did not cause any human loss. One of the two century-old windmills on the Sinte-Kruis rampart, well-known and much visited by numerous strangers visiting our city, for their picturesque beauty, has been blown to smithereens by the fierce winds.
This happened around 3: oclock, while a fierce western wind was blowing. Because he had still a great quantity of grain to mill, the sails of the mill were in position, but the miller of the mill nearest to the Kruisgate, being prudent, had not unfurled them completely. Suddenly, a fierce burst of wind grabbed the mill and the wife of a neighbouring horticulturist saw the mill swaying and tottering on its axis, much as would a drunkard, and then the mill turned sideways and fell. The axis on which the whole mill rested, was sheared off just above the floor of the mill. The cap of the mill flew in the Ghent canal. The sail-whips flew the same way and smashed to pieces on the canal-bank and the mills retaining wall. The fall was so heavy that one of the mortars, which was quite new, and completely made from iron, broke like a straw. The upper structure of the mill, the wooden wheels, landed on the road alongside the mill, as did a huge part of the body proper. What remained on the floor of the mill, the sacks of grain, flour, and even the grinding-stones, was totally destroyed.
And that is where the people, who had come running, heard cries for help and found a man lying there. It was the old miller, Jan Clicteur, 71 years old. He was lying on a heap of sacks, under a beam who had somewhat protected him. Once was freed from his distressing situation, he appeared, fortunately, to suffer only from several bruises and sone slight head and face wounds. It is as if a miracle saved Jan Clicteur from certain death.Remarkable fact : the cross that had been hanging on the wall of the mill was lying, broken in two pieces, next to the man.
The old miller Jan Clicteur recovered quite promptly from his misadventure and lamented his destroyed mill. He said that when the mill fell down, he was enveloped in a cloud of flour and did not know what was happening to him."
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Mills
No, this is not an old mill surviving Bruges' past. Granted, it is an old mill. It goes back to 1765-1766 but... stood in Meulebeke. De city of Bruges acquired the mill and rebuilt it, at the end of the last century, on the exact spot where, until 1822, the "Coelen Wint" mill (cool wind) was to be found. Which probably goes some way to explain why the surrounding area is now called the Nieuwe Koelewey (the New Cool Meadow).
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Canal boat
Good morning to all of you. Here, are a few photos I took along the canal circling Bruges. This is a barge that has been appointed as a fixed dwelling. And, in case you might consider adopting this quite different lifestyle yourself, in Bruges this is impossible. Only those people who were already living on a house-barge before the new ruling was adopted, are allowed to stay.
20-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
19-04-2006
Straight through Bruges
... zo noemt die loopwedstrijd van ongeveer 15 kilometer die zoals hij noemt echt 'Dwars door Brugge' gaat. Nu het weer zachter geworden is verschijnen vele lopers langs de vesten die zich tot doel gesteld hebben om volgende maand deze loopklassieker waar elk jaar zo'n drie- tot vijfduizend enthousiastelingen aan deelnemen volgende maand zelf ook te volbrengen. Hier is er eentje van die het klimmetje waagt naar de top van de Kazernevest.
...And. true to its name, this 15 kilometer running competition goes "Straight through Bruges". Now that the weather is balmier, many joggers have made their apparition on the ramparts. Most are training for next month's running classic which, from year to year, boasts anywhere from three- to five thousand participants. The one we see here is bravely attempting the climb up to the Barracks Rampart.
19-04-2006, 19:07 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Prinsenhof
Steen des aanstoots voor de bewoners van de Moerstraat is het complex dat men hier op het domein van het Prinsenhof volop aan het bouwen is.
The stumbling block for the inhabitants of the Moer street is the complex being built here, on the Prinsenhof domain.
19-04-2006, 18:57 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Evening
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Empty periphery road (2)
The same spot. Buiten Kruis rampart, but now, looking towards the Dam gate and the setting sun. Nothing, not a soul in sight. I do admit that I took these photos while the traffic lights were red, which would have stopped access to the periphery road in any event, but still, you would have seen some cars... Bruges is a very calm and quiet city in the evening. Take it from me.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Emty periphery road...
Visual proof that after 7:00 p.m., Bruges can indeed be dead and abandoned. It was 8:30 p.m when I took this photo of the road that circles Bruges, without a doubt the busiest road in the whole area. I took the photo from the Buiten Kruis rampart, direction Kruis gate. What do we see? An empty, abandoned route.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Blind Donkey Street
And here is another Bruges classic : the Blinde Ezelstraatje (Blind Donkey street) where you can admire the magnificently decorated back-façade of the house where the civil registry used to have its seat. This façade was beautifully restored for the "Bruges 2002, cultural capital of Europe" event.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
W.C.
In bygone times, these outside toilets could be found everywhere. A few are still to be found here and there near the "godshuizen" (literally "God's houses", that is, houses for the poor), but with each restoration, they are just torn down since, evidently, people now have comfortable toilets inside their houses. I saw several of those w.c.'s disappear, last year, near the godshuisjes numbers 46-58 in the Visspaan street. The oldest café in Bruges, café Vlissinghe, still has one. And this one here is right outside the Lace Museum.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
The new world
That's the name of this work of art by Leona Sels. She gave it the subtitle "between people, no borders". It can be admired near the parking site of the old Sint-Jan.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Saint-John's Hospice
Bruges biggest hospital, namely the Saint-John (Sint-Jan) lies, since 1977, outside the Bruges city gates. You can see more photos of this imposing building by looking up their site : http://www.azbrugge.be/ . The first, truly original Sint-Jan is right next to it and some parts were built as long ago as the beginning of the 13th Century. Then, between 1856 and 1858, building of this huge structure was started. There were eight large wards were the sick were bedded. It became quite unfeasable to continue using those ancient buildings for the exercise of medicine and healthcare, and thus, the practise was abandoned in 1976. Extensive restoration work was undertaken and the old complex is now used as a community centre, which boasts an internet-café as well.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Interior garden
The centre of Bruges boasts untold numbers of enclosed gardens. Most are hidden behind walls and it is quite impossible to see what they look like. However, the gardens along these rowhouses give us a chance to have a peek. The gardens here are at the back of the houses on the Katelijnen street.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
Smakelijk eten!
Lunch time - Bon appétit.
It is noon. Maybe you had lunch, or maybe you're looking around where to have it? Bon appétit! Here, behind the Saint-Salvator cathedral, an Italian snackbar recently opened its doors and, look, they can't be closed any more. If I remember right, there was an antiques shop here, and next to it a small bookstore. Both were mostly deserted ... even a cat was rarely to be seen there.
The saint in the nook will have to remain nameless. Usually, one or two attributes specific to a particular saint help in identifying her or him, but here, there are none. Let's assume that it is a statue of the Virgin Mary.
19-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
18-04-2006
Moerstraat in de rouw
Al geruime tijd is de Moerstraat in de rouw. Aan het Prinsenhof wordt volop gewerkt. Een groot gebouw wordt bijgebouwd. Het zal een hotelfunctie krijgen. Wat de bewoners van de Moerstraat het meest steekt is dat er ook een ondergrondse parking voor meer dan 100 auto's komt en dat die, eenmaal de werken af zijn, allemaal hun straatje door moeten. Toppunt van al is dat totnogtoe het grootste deel van de straat als "woonerf" aangeduid werd. De werken zijn ondertussen al van in oktober aan de gang. Alles zal doorgaan zoals gepland. De garages komen er. Zelfs het stil protest van alle heiligen uit de Moerstraat zal daar niks maar ook niks aan veranderen.
For quite some time now, the Moer street is in mourning. De Prinsenhof (Princes' Court) is undergoing extensive works. A huge building was added, destined to become a hotel. What really bothers the people who live on the Moer street, though, is the underground parking, spacious enough for more than a hundred cars. And all these cars will have to access - and exit - this parking by way of their small street. And all this while the site is officially still a "private dwelling" zone. The building was started in October. The work will proceed as planned. The big parking garage will be built. Even the protest of all the saints of the Moer street won't in the slightest way affect those plans.And that's that!
18-04-2006, 00:00 geschreven door Blog from Bruges
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