Bruges was Brief

We got to Bruges late, and we’re still recovering from drinking, eating sweets, and sleeping in a basement (a deadly combination for me). So we almost immediately took a nap. We were woken by our own stomachs, so headed to a traditional restaurant for a bite. I ordered some sort of spicy and cheesy eggplant dish. It definitely hit the spot. By this time we had figured out that water is not a free drink, and water bottles are not acceptable, but it didn’t stop me from sneaking a few swigs from my purse while the waitress’s back was turned. I am not sure if someone saw me or one of the other girls but we were warned on our way out not to drink our own water in a restaurant again. I wouldn’t say this was a culturally shocking experience because I had known about this, but free water at a restaurant is something I really appreciate in the US and will continue to miss while I am here. Anyways, we headed back to our hostel, where we shared a room with 12 other people. There was a bar on the ground floor with cool grungy art on the walls and lots of people so Irene and I hung out and chatted for a bit before going back upstairs to sleep

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In the morning we caught the tail end of the included breakfast and put our bags in storage before heading out to the center of town. With only a short amount of time we simply walked around enjoying the site of canals, the smell of pastries, and the sound of horses and buggies clicking down the road. We did make one special stop at a quart yard and garden formerly owned by the Medici family, now run by nuns. The Medici family started their own bank in the late 1300‘s which fueled and inspired many projects during the Italian Renaissance. I am not sure what they were doing in Bruges, but they left a garden there for people like me to appreciate. I ate at another traditional restaurant, and also went to the grocery store for chocolates and snacks for the road before heading to Paris. Bruges, while brief, was a pleasant experience and seems to have a lot to offer.