City Guide | Ghent, Belgium

Ghent: A city that started to grow in the late middle ages, around the two rivers of Leie and Scheldt. It is now the second largest municipality in Belgium, and is the capital of East Flanders, the Flemish speaking part of the country. 

Known for it's beautiful architecture and multiple churches, we visited for the day and took a boat trip to get an idea of the city. We also visited some pretty over the top pubs, notably one called Trollekelder, a three storied tavern dedicated to troll and gnome memorabilia, where I had my first Pauwel Kwak, and where we saw a parade of crazily dressed men doing some sort of beer and oranges traditional street performance.

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After booking our boat tickets we had a drink at the pub next door, called Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant, or the Waterhouse on the Beer Side, where I had a Kriek Boon (sour beer with cherries).

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The Rivers sort of divide Ghent into two separate cities; on the one side there are the churches and more touristy centre, and the other is the arts and restaurants district. After we were amazed by the churches we decided to cross one of the many bridges and look for our dinner away from the crowds.

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After viewing the churches (the interior and crypt of the larger church with the mighty bell tower were incredibly ornate and wonderful), we went to a bar that is owned by a man who I can only describe as a hoarder. We had to go outside to find a seat and have enough light to see our pints by. He was a character, but seemed like a nice man full of interesting stories, which he told in broken English to us and the American couple who were sitting with us. Surprisingly, his bathroom was cleaner than most! 

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The grown men in bonnets and santa suits are revellers, from a town called Binche in a part of Belgium called Wallonia. It is said that we get the English word 'binge' from these fellows, who are known for their excessive celebration of beer and jolly good times. After the Trollekelder, and feeling a little tipsy from the strong beer, we wandered down cobbled back alleys to a restaurant that looked like it was straight out of a 1920's movie that was made in the 1970's. It was called Amadeus and it was known for its all you can eat ribs and delicious local food. 

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And that concludes our fairytale day in Ghent!

We were actually staying in Kortrijk that night, so we caught tram back to the train station and jumped on the train back home.