No Brussels

Lace Maker

Alms House

Nose Candy

 

May 27, 2011-Change of Plans

We never got to Brussels. It's kind of sad but we hit a glitch. David decided not to set the alarm for today and fell asleep at 10 PM. I wrote until 11:30 PM, climbed into bed and was wide awake. My usual trick of reading until I got sleepy didn't work. In fact I started stressing that I was reading too much and would finish all four books I brought before the trip was over. Then I started thinking about the stuff in Akron. I finally fell asleep at 2 AM & woke at 11 AM, an hour after David did. We'll have to be content to see the peeing boy statue (Mannikin Piss) in postcards.

We made it out of the room in time for lunch. I knew exactly where I wanted to eat & even found it. As we stood outside looking at the menu a server came out, pointed to a sign & said "full." I guess there's no concept that we'd wait so we went across the street. Eventually the sign on the first place was flipped to "open." But we did great. We had brothy minestrone (sans beans), David had a tuna panini & I had pizza funghi (mushrooms). The panini was half the size of an American portion and perfect for lunch. My coffee was my idea of heaven. It came with  & a wafer a lump of chocolate to melt in it or eat on the side. There was a miscommunication when I ordered coffee with cream. I forgot where I was & the waiter asked if I meant creme fraiche. Oops! I told him milk & he understood. When my pizza arrived I asked the men at the next table if it was proper to eat it out of hand or if I had to use knife & fork as I'd seen in France. I'd heard them speaking at least three languages & they did understand me. In hand was ok. So I attacked the pizza. It was served "uncut" (as are most European men) & as I struggled with my knife the waiter brought a "better one" that looked like a steak knife. Later on my napkin blew to the ground (we ate al fresco) & one of the men handed me a fresh one from a neighboring table saying "for the lady" and making a slight bow. So gallant!

Of course using their toilet was an adventure. They have a gizmo where the seat completely swivels and is run through a sanitizer after you flush. Very reassuring. In a public toilet I used later I forgot that lights here are on timers and it got extremely dark as I sat in my cell-like stall. Luckily I had no need to aim from a height so I managed.

Sites

Our destination was to see old Flemish artists and we were directed to the Memling Museum. We preferred viewing more of a variety so went to the Groening Museum instead to see several old Masters(Van Eyck, Memling, Gerard David). An impressive collection of 15-16th century art was displayed. One map of Bruges showed it as a port in the days before the river filled with silt. Subjects were both secular (an autopsy) and religious (many versions of Jesus birth/death). There was a new technique they used to create better light reflection and depth of color. Linseed oil was used in their paints instead of egg yolk. The show-stopper for me was Jan Van Eyck. I'd only seen his work as slides on a screen during an art history class forty-eight years ago so when I saw them "in the flesh" I welled up. Overwhelming is a good description of my emotions.

We returned to the hotel by way of the Basillca of the Holy Blood. It was built in 1833 and the holy blood of Jesus was sequestered behind a silver tabernacle. Lovely Basillica, unseeable blood but a nice walk.

This evening our guide arranged for a friend, Danielle, to take us on an interpretive walk back in time. Danielle was dressed as a lace maker in frilly cap and apron with black cape. She was particularly proud of her pantaloons & flashed them as an inducement to keep the men following her. She was quite the storyteller and peppered history with tales of fancy. Poor women turned to lace making as their only way to make money. They were paid by piecework and made the same pattern over and over so they could work quickly. They could do it from home while caring for their 13-14 children. When I asked Danielle how many grandchildren her imaginary 11 progeny produced she said she'd lost count and she was now a DMC (dement makes content). She described Belgians as historically too poor to build new and too proud to tear down. Thus they've become rich as tourists come to see their old buildings. We stopped at an old fish market to taste Genievre du Citron, a lemon flavored gin, and again for a bit of "nose candy" of the sweet not cocaine variety. It's a fruit flavored "kiss" shaped gummy candy that you can lick and stick on your forehead making a second "nose." It must have been a sight with all sixteen seniors following her instructions.

We went through streets we hadn't walked before and came to the original 9th century Viking harbor when they used Bruges as a passageway to the Rhine on their way to Baghdad. Man, they got around. There was a 13th century stock exchange that established their opening by ringing a bell as it's still done in New York. Leather works existed in old Bruges and tanning took place in the canals. Leather was used to insulate foundations from the high water table since Bruges is below sea level. Stone was laid and topped with leather before the flooring was installed. We even saw a haunted convent that now housed the Christian Democratic Party. So appropriate. A 16th century alms house started by wealthy patrons was one of forty-two within the city still in use with meals supplied by and buildings supported by the welfare system today. We walked through the courtyard and gardens tended by those now living there. A system of public water boilers and public baths existed for years before a Catholic king deemed them immoral. Well, they were a business center for prostitutes of the era. When they closed, the high ruffled white collars we associate with paintings done in that time appeared. The collars were an effective way to block the smell of your own unwashed body.

Dinner was included and we enjoyed the company of people from Tampa. He is retired Air Force and was stationed at McCoy AFB in Orlando where they met. She's an Edgewater High grad (my high school) but several years older. It was fun talking about old times. He graduated from Muskegeon College in Ohio so there was common ground there too. They belong to an open and affirming Methodist church and were cool with our story. They were also interested in David's work with their church and workshops he's done for them.

For those interested David drank a local beer, Bruges Jester, & I had red wine. We both had beef stew made with beer. I told you I'd have a piece of that fat-assed cow. It was delicious. Of course there were the Belgian fries they claim to have originated (not the French).

Tomorrow we pack early and head for Ghent, Antwerp, & the boat. Can't wait to see those tiny cabins.

Toby