Chris ordered waffles for breakfast, I ordered oatmeal (porridge). And the pastries and breads, and fruit, and sliced meats and cheeses. So European and delightful.
It just got better. As we exited the hotel at the rear of the building after breakfast, we walked in to a story book setting with the buildings, the canal, the cobbled streets, the smell, the beautiful sunshine. We couldn't have asked for better weather. Yesterday in Amsterdam we fit in brilliantly with our puffy jackets as many in Europe wore them as well, today, we wore lighter jackets and enjoyed sunshine.
We walked onto Korenlei Street next to the canal in the center of the historic district. The sights and sounds were just amazing. Our walk took us toward the Korenmarkt, and entered St Bavo's Cathedral. There was something like 300 narrow steps to the top of the church to the bell tower. Chris was still feeling the effects of his cold, so we took the elevator part of the way up. Every 15 minutes the bells chimed and on the hour it was musical. We happened to be in the room where the large organ grinder type thing started to play. It wasn't too loud, but cool. The view to St. Nicholas' Church from St. Bavo's Cathedral.
We took a boat tour along the canal after exploring the churches. Our guide, Matt, gave the tour in French and then English. I LOVED Ghent. It was kind of a hidden gem as most people visited Bruges since it was a UNESCO site and very touristy. It was such an amazing little city in the heart of it.
We saw the Castle of the Counts as we toured. I had read about it while planning what to do and learned that it was famous for its torture chambers and now torture museum. We opted not to go in a see the museum, but wandered along the streets up and down these quaint cobbled roads.
Every so often I would stop to take a picture and Chris was so patient to stop and wait. For lunch, Chris found this tasty little treasure on Yelp called the SoupLounge. There were four flavors of soup available: Tomato, Zucchini, Pumpkin, and Asparagus. I had zucchini and Chris ordered Tomato. Then they added tiny meatballs, cubed cooked potatoes, onions, and croutons. They also gave us bread, butter, and an apple. Delicious. And only 5 Euro each. We took advantage of the bathroom there since they were a little hard to come by elsewhere.
We continued our wandering through the shopping district filled with people dressed in their fancy clothes and smashing shoes. That's one of the things I noticed the most. The Europeans dress to the nines to go out. And their shoes. They like nice shoes.
We hurried in to the Bibioteque to use the WC (Water Closet) right before it closed for the day. One of the older ladies using the bathroom didn't appreciate that I took two paper towels to dry my hands (I think) and she proceeded to chew me out in Flemish.
There was a mall across the street and we stopped to get some hairspray since mine was a gloppy mess every time I tried to use it. We walked back the way we came through the shopping district to the hotel to rest for a short time before going to find dinner. We did purchase some cuberdon or Ghent noses. A candy that is a specialty of Ghent.
It was so lovely to be in a hotel right in the heart of things. We chatted with the girls as it was Saturday morning at home. Kristen was trying to get her Halloween costume ready for Trunk or Treat later in the evening and Amy and Misha were preparing for Homecoming. Misha had even allowed Amy to paint her fingernails. Amy was in charge of the glam shop and helped each of her sisters get ready for their events.
We left Amy and Misha on their own for the week at home. Kristen stayed with Wasdens simply because Amy and Misha left so early in the morning for seminary that they would not have been able to help Kristen get up and out the door for school each day and to the bus. My girls were rocking the home alone thing the whole time we were gone. They were responsible, made their curfews, shopped for groceries, watched out for each other, and just made this mom proud. They had neighbors on the street checking in on them, and Batsons next door invited the girls for dinner on Sunday afternoon.
So on Saturday evening our time, I tried to help Kristen figure out shoes for her Goddess costume, and both Amy and Misha helped to get her costume pulled together.
We ventured back out on to the market for dinner and as so often happens, couldn't really decide on what to have. We ended up at a gourmet burger shop called Ellis Gourmet Burger. I ordered the Funky Chicken and Chris a burger with bacon. Of course there were the usual fries, which I must admit I didn't find to be anything special. Just fries. Or frites.
We walked around the market a little longer, listening to one person playing the violin and then later another person playing a cello. They were in a funky new building that had great acoustics.
Chris took this amazing photo with his phone.
