Wet, in Bruges

The next morning the heavens opened. We had come prepared as we had checked the weather before we left home. Never mind, first stop The Historium .  It was a little creepy I thought. The sleeping animatronic bishop certainly frightened a small child in the group. It was an interesting snapshot of medieval Bruges and you could get a wonderful panoramic view of the Grote Markt

 Next stop was Choco Story. It was actually an interesting museum with free samples and a demonstration on how to make pralines. Did you know that it is OK to store your chocolate in the fridge, in an air tight box. But when you want to eat it, leave it in the box for an hour before you tuck in...some chance! I also liked the story of the Spanish ladies who were stopped from drinking their cacoa during mass by the bishop. He was poisoned! 

After lunch we joined a free walking tour. I love these tours. Simon is a local with excellent English  ( everyone we met spoke about 4 languages ) We spent 2 hours dodging rain showers and learning about this beautiful city, from a little village besieged regularly by Vikings, to a very rich medieval port, to its final downfall into obscurity in the 15th century. The start of its decline was when they imprisioned the Emporer Maximiilan and executed his friend Lanchlas. Max was not at all happy and as his mate's name is very like the Flemish for long neck, he decreed the city must always have swans on the canals, oh and yes he moved the commercial centre to Antwerp. He did us all a favour because as the city fell into decline, there was no money for new building. So we have a beautiful medieval city to visit today. After such an interesting day, we went to dry out and sample another beer or three. 

My abiding memories of Bruges will be the smell of waffles and the sound of bells. The bells of the town hall even played " It's a long way to Tipperary " amongst other tunes, at random times. And while we call it Bruges, to the locals its Brugge.