After a whirlwind tour of Amsterdam and a couple hours traveling by train, I stepped out into the hot, cobblestone streets of Brugge with no knowledge of the city or expectations. I had “appetite” for learning about this new place, and in the short walk from the station to the hostel, I got a real “taste” of the history, culture, and tradition of this medieval city through the nationalism and pride the locals share in traditional foods.
Our first stop was at the grandiose Markt, which appeared to be the town’s center square. I took in all the new architecture, languages, and people, but more importantly the scents—a mixture of sea air and carnival food. One unusual sight was two fry stands right next to each other. It’s a famous rivalry between two fry companies which attract customers all throughout the day and even into morning, making their final sales at
Walking under the archway, I approached another square called the Burg, which is home to more restaurants as well as churches. I stopped at a restaurant for dinner to sample some Belgian specialties here as well. These included mussels in white wine sauce as well as Flemish stew, and rabbit cooked in beer sauce—all of which were delicious. Brugge’s history and geography combine to provide an explanation for their famous cuisines. With a location on what used to be the
Next came the strip of stores we took back to our hostel. It seemed like every other store was a chocolate store—which was fine by me.
Although Brugge seemed like an older crowd, there was a strong dedication to beer. Among the various bars, there were stores selling the over 700 types of beer brewed in
After having a traditional dinner, and grabbing some Belgian drinks, we quickly reached our hostel in time to explore the night life. In this short walk down the alleys and canals of Brugge, I had satisfied by hunger for knowledge about the region, its history and its culture, all through its great national pride in its specialty cuisine.
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