Happy Wanderer: Netherlands & Belgium 2022

15 October 2022

Netherlands & Belgium 2022 - Day 9 / Ghent

Steps today : 27 513 / 17.93km

We started off the day with fun and games. As we were leaving the room at the hotel, we discovered our door didn't lock! So much for their clever code system. We went to reception and thankfully the room next door was available so they offered it to us. So simple and easy and uncomplicated - makes me wonder if this was a regular occurrence. The second room was bigger! I wonder what we would have gotten if it happened again... but once was enough, thanks. Room swamping fun took us about 20 minutes and then we were on our way for real.

The walk to the train station is very quick, only 500m right down the road and it's such a beautiful building that it's a pleasure to admire it as we approach. The Cupola on top looked like it was candlelit with the rising sun this morning.

According to my app, and the fixed travel boards, our train was due to leave from track 2. We arrived and it was suspiciously deserted which was a bit strange, but not THAT unusual, however we are not rookie travellers and we should have listened to our suspicions right from the start. After a few minutes passed with no train and no travellers and nothing posted on the electronic board, we decided to check the main electronic board (which is regularly updated) as opposed to the fixed board, and sure enough the train was diverted to track 4. ARGH! we ran to catch it, but just like that time in Gouda we missed it by seconds. Thankfully, there was another one coming in 14 minutes. Kinda odd however that the app didn't update...

This gives me an opportunity to include some pictures of the station that I took yesterday and forgot to include in yesterday's post. The Antwerp train station itself is an attraction!

Sunny blue skies greeted up on arrival in Ghent, and we decided to walk to the Old Town instead of taking the tram. It was about 30 minutes.

We arrived in the picturesque area of the Korenlei and Graslei, around where the Leie River splits...

... and stopped for a drink and finally an opportunity to have Belgian Waffles in Belgium. Really, to me, it's nothing special - no different than an Eggo. I didn't even finish and gave the rest to Frank...

... my boozy coffee was better.

After our snack, more never-ending beautiful views as we crossed the bridge and made our way towards the main City Square: Korenmarkt

Next was a journey up the Belfry to see the views from above. It's the tallest one in Belgium at just over 90m tall. Nice views, but honestly I find that these perches are more interesting if you know what you are looking at!

Thankfully there was an elevator, not because I don't have the energy to climb up, but because I have trouble going down those narrow uneven twisty stone steps and since I'm so slow I always feel like I'm holding back the line.

The main purpose for a visit to Ghent was to see the famed "Ghent Altarpiece" (The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb) because it's such an important work of art. So off we went to St Bavo's Cathedral.

Well, I didn't do my homework. You can only see it by appointment and for a fee and you can only book it on line. I was instantly incensed. I did try to book on the spot but the site was not user friendly and kept upselling me to the virtual reality experience so I gave up. Will I regret it? It's like going to the Louvre and not seeing the Mona Lisa... Time will tell but so far I feel fine with my decision to skip it. Felt like a cash grab to me.

The rest of the church was very nice to visit.

We visited Gravensteen Castle. The audio guide was good! Engaging, relatable, interesting, I was impressed - but... it was tooooo looooong and we were getting overheated climbing all those stairs, so we skipped ahead a lot. We didn't need a long visit to get the gist - 30 minutes was plenty.

I love this shot at the square below through the castle window...

Next up, back to the Graslei area for lunch. If you haven't noticed by now, it seems all I ever ate was either Italian food, Croque Monsieur, or some other variation of ham and cheese sandwiches. Today was no different.

Back to Belfry area after lunch and veered left to see the Modern Market Hall and the Old City Hall. Quite the contrast!

Then, Werrengarenstraat / Graffiti street. Not usually my thing, but I liked the colours.

We thought we'd have our afternoon tipple at the Vrijdagmarkt...

... but we didn't see anything very inviting so we just took a few pictures and kept wandering.

Cute!

We ended up at a café with a nice view of the Castle, but I kept thinking my drink tasted a little soapy so it was not a truly relaxing moment. Very distracted. Frank didn't taste it.

Time to cross of the remaining dots on my map. We headed off to see Jonas. Apparently no one knows the story.

Last was the Rabot. Along the way we took a few pictures, including a nice building with pointy towers that crossed the River.

After a further 10 minutes, we finally arrived at my dot, and it was a closed church... didn't make any sense so I Google it. Guess what, that building with the pointy towers we passed is what we were looking for. How did my dot end up so far away from it?

I regret now not going back to get a picture from the front, ah well. I have to live with the one I took. We were getting tired, and it was a 45 minute walk back to the train station so we were not in the mood for any more detours.

Back in Antwerp for supper, Frank was on his last leg but he was a trooper and agreed to go to the Old Town to eat. Thanks Frank! I'm glad I took these pictures of our usual route.