BRUGGE, BELGIUM

The city square of Brugge was large and beautiful (also cold and windy) and surrounded by restaurants, city buildings and a large bell tower dating back to 1300AD. We saw it during the day, but the lighting at night was spectacular. Streets and small alleys spidered out in all directions from the square and there were several nearby churches that we found interesting..one reputedly held some of the blood of Christ and another had a Michaelangelo art work, "Madonna and Child". We also got to the fishmarket a little late..most of the fish and fishermen had escaped..but it was in a central part of the city, behind the city hall and on one of the canals. The rooflines were characteristically stepped and many of the buildings had dates on them that were several hundred years old. We stopped in a pub for some "world's best" Belgian beer. (I think I like the German beer better) but the pub was old and quaint..fun and interesting and a little warmth from the outside. We left for home and spent the night in Ramstein (our favorite Air Force base) and enjoyed a dinner and drinks at Chili's, a treat for us in all of this European cuisine. The next morning we left for home by way of Wiesbaden and were treated to a real snowstorm..about 6 inches in an hour...but by the time we got to Wurtzburg, it was clear and dry again..go figure. A great weekend get-away.