Bruges #2: Architecture

I’m hoping the title of my second post on Bruges doesn’t sound too boring! The architecture of this city is really important to mention, as it was so medieval and preserved in a way that is rare to find in most of Europe.

Walking around Bruges, you can’t help but notice how similar all of the buildings look:

The horses and carts complete the feel. We didn’t opt for one of these, but you can take a tour by horse and cart of the city. One of the Museums even has it’s own ‘bus’ service!

We did take a boat tour of the canals though, which cost around 8 Euros for each of us. I’d really recommend this, as it was a great way to see more of the town:

Watch out for the insanely low bridges though!

Also added to this tour was a hilarious tour guide, who did the tour in both Dutch and English. He proceeded to tell us how one of his favourite hotels he had stayed in four times with his wife, “and I also have four daughters”….. thanks for that, captain!

We got some little nuggets of Flemish history, including this house where the colour was achieved by mixing Ox blood into the paint (urgh!):

 

Nice bald head...

For a while the city council also imposed a ‘window tax’, where residents paid tax according to the number of windows on their houses. As a result, lots of people boarded up windows, and you can see them on lots of the buildings:

Finally on the boat tour, we passed our hotel!

(We tried not to look smug, as it is beautiful. It’s also where Colin Farrell jumps out of the window in the film In Bruges)

When you’re not on the water, Bruges is full of streets that lead to open squares:

My favourite was this one, which had a very old two-story church (more on that later!)

Unfortunately, as with any European city, there are lots of day trips milling around. But unlike Venice, the town squares mean it is easy to get past them all, and it doesn’t bottleneck. No aggression necessary!

The architecture in Bruges was the main reason the city has so much charm. It makes you feel like you truly have walked into the past.

So why not take a trip?! 

x

Bruges Part 1: Food

Hello everyone! After a bit of an absence, I'm back with a vengeance and with some lovely blog posts on....Bruges!

My boyfriend and I had a lovely little weekend here, hopping on the ferry from Hull and landing in Belgium the next day.

It's been tough trying to decide how to divide these posts up, so I thought it was best doing it in very vague categories. The first, as you can see, is food. Food is certainly a cause very close to my heart, and Bruges was an absolute dream for it! The culture in Bruges is centred around beer, in that they take it super seriously and intend for it to be drunk slowly and enjoyed. Chocolate appeared to be a secondary thing, and boy do they do it well:

Firstly, for all you fiends out there....the chocolate! This will largely be in photo form, but I will try and explain it as I go along. There were lots of different hot chocolates I got to try while on my little getaway, including stir-in sticks and spoons. By far the most impressive was the standard melted chocolate and milk:

Drool

As you can see even the boyfriend is super happy:

We also ordered the chocolate tasting plate (totally not overindulging....) which was a great idea, if not chocolate overkill. A handy tip folks - most hot chocolates in Bruges are already served with a little side plate of chocolate, so you really don't need to order more!

After dinner some nights, we found that we still needed something sweet. Most chocolate shops in Bruges will allow you to buy the bare minimum of 100g of chocolates, which you can then eat like a takeaway. The little sugar hit was just right, and it was usually fairly cheap price-wise.

Some of my favourite things in the chocolate shops were the chocolate boxes that were actually made of chocolate:

As well as random chocolate objects:

Chances are in Bruges, if it's not solid chocolate it will be praline (a lovely nut-flavoured filling), and I was in HEAVEN:

Now for the Beer.

In Belgium, Beer matters. The focus is on drinking slowly and savouring it, rather than getting blind drunk. As an ignorant drinker, Bruges was the place where I finally found out that each brand has its own glass, to enhance the flavour:

Another fun fact: in Belgium, beers are only allowed to be served in either brown or green bottles, as in the sun the hops react to create a horrible smell and taste (which you can't sense unless you have a large glass). To be honest, I'm not fussy. I do love my fruit beer though:

There was also an epic Beer Wall near our hotel:

Other food? Definitely Mussels and fries. They were everywhere, from high-class restaurants to takeaway outlets in the squares, and so can cater to any price bracket:

And so, that's it for my Bruges food round-up! Keep your eyes peeled for my next one on this amazing city....

Vintage-style home!

Here is the second post armed with my new camera. I've been wanting to do an interiors post for a while, and a few weekends ago I finally got the chance...

My aunt has the most impeccable taste in decorating, and its the perfect example of how you can put history into your home without it looking like a museum!

She has about 6 full tea sets/dinner services, but here is an example of how to keep them out without the pressure of having to use them.

Now the kitchen is Country Living/Antiques perfection. It's full of floral china all from the same company, which can be found online (Ebay etc) or at antique fairs. However, be careful not to go overboard!

There is also a mix of old-fashioned kitchen bits, which are purely decorative but a lovely touch:

The greatest tip my aunt gave me was to always put things in groups of threes. Apparently it was a florist who told her this, but it applies to anything. Not great if you're into symmetry...

At times, it branches out to more than three and becomes a full group. Here is her collection of lilac glass, and can be both old and new pieces so nothing is ruled out!

Some more pieces I have my eye on....

And of course, no country home would be right without a cat:

What about you? Any tips for a vintage-style home?

x

Some blogs to check out

Before I started this blog, it was my job to contact and keep an eye on the blogging world (fashion and beauty PR daarrling). Despite this, I always felt like I had never fully explored other kinds of blogs, particularly anything to do with history.

What I’ve found is that there are blogs about anything and everything (as is very much the case with mine), and a good way of exploring is by clicking through a bloggers ‘blog roll’ or side ads. For the history-obsessed, most historians have a blog of some kind and Museums have their own blogs too…keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming post on this!

Below are some of my absolute favourites at the moment. I’ve tried to keep them relevant, but some are just because they’re generally fab:

Historical Honey:

This website is the holy grail for anyone who wants to write, but doesn’t have the confidence yet. I’ve written a few pieces on history, but I’m also a part of their ‘Secret Book Club’, where you get sent a book in the post at random and then once you’ve read it you write a review. This site is getting steadily more popular, and to my surprise, someone I am working with writes for it too! Small World! It’s not just about the writing though, the articles are usually full of fun and interesting pieces from history.

Paleo with Mrs P:

For those of you who don’t know, I am trying to (loosely) follow the Paleo diet. I actually love this blog because it’s very new and the photography is beautiful. I need to do a post to explain how Paleo is relevant to my blog, but in the meantime, why not try a recipe?

Sunny Sweet Pea:

I had the pleasure of advertising on this blog a few weeks back, and I can’t stop reading it since. It’s full of vintage and wonderful photography, and will lead you on to many more of her friends (cup-and-saucer, thoroughly English etc)

Tincture of Museum:

Another rarity in the blogging world; a blog entirely dedicated to Museums! This lovely blog focuses on exhibitions and experiences in Museums that are mostly geared towards families (she also did a fantastic series about her collections cleaning course at the Museum of London). The author of this blog has an autistic child, and so is half blogger, half campaigner. A true inspiration!

Lucy Worsley:

You really thought I could resist? The daily musings and activities of the woman who has the world’s most sought-after job: head curator at Historic Royal Palaces!

Little Tin Bird:

I love to crochet, as it adds so much charm to a home/presents/life, and this blog is the perfect place to learn how to do it. The tutorials on this blog are some of the clearest out there.

Medievalists.org:

Only for the hardcore medieval lovers out there. Medievalists.net is a community for medieval historians, which regularly posts on bits of history that are absolutely fascinating. My current favourite is on the history of beer brewing!

This Little Lady:

Finally, here is a travel blog that makes me seethe with envy. If you can think of a place in London, I guarantee you this blog has covered it. Warning: you will be scrolling through for hours, it’s addictive.

What about you? Let me know in the comments what your blog is called and I’ll have a nosey ;)