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Without love, warm love

The light, the dark light reigns

And the sand scours my land

My flat land, My Flandersland

Ay, Marieke, Marieke

I loved you so much

Between the towers

Of Bruges and Ghent

Ay, Marieke, Marieke

So long ago

Between the towers

Of Bruges and Ghent

In 1988, between the towers of Bruges and Ghent, but really quite near the towers of Bruges (namely near the Coupure) a statue of Marieke was unveiled. The Brel fan and expert Johan Antierens who was then still among the living, gave a speech at the ceremony. Jacques Brel wil eternally be linked with Belgium, and even with his "flatland", even though he spit on Flanders and the Flemish now and again, the Flemish being - in his opinion - a rather narrowminded lot. This mitigated love was - and still is - quite reciprocal.. Last year, while the Walloons elected Brel as the all-time great Belgian personality, the Flemish left him in 7th position. The girl Marieke of the song really did exist. It seems he knew her, somewhere in West-Flanders, when he was still a young boy. "Marieke" is probably still around, a glorious unknown, living in a small appartment in Knokke.

The bearing of the Cross.
The Cross... symbol of the suffering and of the eternal life Jesus brought his followers.
During his symbolic calvary-walk through Bruges, Jesus receives some help from Simon of Cyrene. A bit further up (but outside the scope of this picture)   Veronica, will wipe the sweat and blood from the face of Jesus, and there is also the mother of Jesus, leaning on John the Apostle.

All who know about Bruges, do, of course, know the hotel Duc de Bourgogne. Sitting right in the fold between the Rozenhoedkaai and the Groenerei, the hotel is reached by way of the Huidevettersplein (the Tanners square) and this photo has been taken from the Wollestraat (the Wool street). What most people do not know is that, between 1799 and 1800, during the French Régime, a great many church possessions were seized, some churches were demolished, and even parts of them sold and transported to France and elsewhere. The most flagrant example was the demolition of the gigantic Sint-Donaat Cathedral, which used to stand on the Burg. The small marble columns you see here (the restaurant of the hotel Duc de Bourgogne) are from this famous Sint-Donaat cathedral..

Contemporary art, alongside the Dijver.

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.