Today I will tell you about the day spent in Bruges, seen during my trip to discover Flanders. Travelling with a friend, we arrived in town by train from Gent (The train ticket costs € 7.40 and the journey takes about 40 minutes).
As a first thing, we took the map at the information point, and we head towards the centre through the park that is opposite the station and where we also find a colony of swans. Bruges struck me right away, more than any other city and even more than Gent, which, among the cities we have visited, is undoubtedly the one that most resembles it.
We stop to visit the Cathedral of the Holy Savior (free entry except for the sacred altar for which you pay 4 euros). I admit that I thought it was bigger since we talk about the cathedral, but in fact, I had not thought that Bruges is very small and, therefore, this could not be that way. I liked the fact that the interior was straightforward compared to the idea that we usually have about it! Bare walls, and also everything else that composes the interiors (altar, statues, organ, etc.) is “complex” but still very simple [I do not know if I could explain myself, but I hope so!].
We moved for a quick visit to the Our Lady’s church, and then we head towards the centre, towards the “Burg” where we took a boat to take a ride along the canals of Bruges [ticket: € 8. The tour lasts about 40 minutes; there are various companies and various starting points, the duration and the cost are always, or almost the same]. From those boats that show you the city from a slightly different point of view, you can breathe the atmosphere of tranquillity of this little town, invaded by tourists.

From a distance, we saw many things of the city, like a wooden house which should be one of the first of the city, the Church of the Holy Blood and the colony of swans that, at the beginning of the morning, we observed walking through the park. A lot of different animals inhabit the canals, and they seem to be (by now) accustomed to the flow of boats that passes through the canals.
In the background, now and then, you always hear the horses that drag tourists in a carriage for a ride at a trot. I liked this small town as soon as we arrived and I must admit that after this boat ride I loved it even more! I recommend you to do this tour (the tour is roughly the same for all the companies that offer the service, can be longer or shorter but the difference is minimal). If like us, you arrive at the end of the tour which is lunchtime, you can go directly to the Grote Markt, the main square, where the Bruges town hall is and where there are many restaurants. If, like us, you arrive at the end of the tour which is lunchtime, you can go directly to the Grote Markt, the main square “next door” to the burg, where the Bruges town hall is located and where there are many restaurants. Now I want to tell you about Historium, a “trip” in the Bruges of the ‘500 through the story of a young assistant of the painter Van Eyck [admission ticket: 10 euros. It lasts about an hour and a half. You enter the Grote Markt, with your back to the town hall the building is at the end of the square on the right].
At the entrance, a person gaves us the audioguide (in Italian) that, in each room, tells us with the voices of the protagonists the story of some famous places in the city. The doors automatically open at the end of each scene to let you access the next one. At the end of the story, you can access the exhibition halls where there are also several interactive bulletin boards that will allow you to try your hand in a game that is quite nice too, concerning the story that has just been told (and that I will not reveal in advance!). After the exhibition we went to the panoramic terrace, which overlooks the square: you will not be disappointed, I’m undoubtedly sure about that. I leave you some pictures of the ride to finish the post.