Thursday, September 26, 2019: Antwerp, Bruges

We got up this morning in Antwerp and had a hardy breakfast at the hotel. Then we struck out to wander aimlessly around Old Town Antwerp. It was a chilly morning with light rain off and on.

We decided to first head for the Central Train Station. Normally, an impressive building. Using Google Maps, we made only a few wrong turns. I have been impressed with Google Maps for navigation and have decided to drop my Verizon Navigator subscription.

Lots of construction taking place around the city.

Five Guys Burger joint in Antwerp

We made it to the Central Station and, as expected, it was very impressive.

Camel Statue on top of the Institute of Zoology

China Town, Antwerp

On the way to the Central Station, there was the "diamond" street. Shop after shop after shop of jewelers. Very sparkly.

Stephen made friends with a street violinist. Probably because he gave him money!

Our next stop of the Ruben House.

Self Portrait of Ruben

We headed back to the Hilton to check out and start our drive to Bruges.

Hilton Old Town Antwerp, where we stayed

I lost the parking garage ticket so we had to pay an additional fine to get out.

It was a 90 minute drive from Antwerp to Bruges. Actually, it took 120 minutes because I took a couple of wrong turns.

Our hotel in Bruges

Very small room. Large enough for a bed and desk

We set off to the Bruges central plaza which was only about 100 meters from the hotel. The hotel receptionist warned us not to eat or drink in the plaza because it was far too expensive,

We took the advice of the hotel receptionist and wandered away from the plaza in search of food and drink. Stephen found the Ellis Gourmet Burger joint. It name was derived from Ellis Island, NY.

Stephen decided he wanted to climb to the top of the Belfort and he was willing to pay to do it! I opted to wait for him a ground level. 366 steps up and 366 steps down. He made it and lived to regret it.

Once back at the hotel, it was 3:30 pm and the bar was open. We spent the next several hours relaxing. I noticed a beautiful "old fashion" glass on the shelf behind the bar. There was only one and I asked the bartender if I could buy it. He was very hesitant, but when I offered him 20 Euros, he agreed. It is a very heavy (leaded) crystal glass.

Once it got dark, we decided to go back to the plaza to see how it looked. Nothing spectacular, but interesting.

Tomorrow, we leave Bruges and head back over to Brussels by a route yet to be determined. We will stay the night at the Crown Plaza Brussels Airport hotel, where the tour will begin on Saturday.