Ghent

We started the day off by taking the train from Bruges (read the Bruges blog) to Ghent. There is no need to book tickets ahead of time. We showed up at the station, bought our tickets, and were on a train within 10 minutes. It was a short trip, taking only half an hour, so we were able to have almost a full day in this city. Ghent is like Bruges’ big brother. It has a wonderful medieval center with a canal running through it and a tower topped with Bruges’ golden dragon. But, unlike Bruges, it is surrounded by a sprawling, modern, and colorful city.

Since the previous day’s walking tour was so great, we decided to take a free walking tour in Ghent as well and we weren’t disappointed. The tour wasn’t full of legends and stories so much, but the guide pointed out beautiful buildings, hidden streets, and wonderful historical tidbits.

One of the hidden streets we were shown was full of graffiti. Evidently the city’s youth was covering the medieval buildings with their art. Instead of banning graffiti everywhere, the city set aside a few places where it is legal and encourages people to express themselves in these places. As a result, this particular street is filled with stunning artwork that created a vibrant fun atmosphere.

About halfway down the graffiti filled street, there is a beautiful courtyard. Pro tip: By law, all courtyards are required to be open to the public during the day. So bring your book and a picnic for a peaceful afternoon.

Another building the guide pointed out was the outdoor concert hall. We had walked by it previously and had no idea what it was, so I’m really happy our tour guide explained it to us. He said the building might be ugly but the acoustics are simply amazing. A lot of the people in the city were very upset when it was first built, but they are slowly being won over with the magnificent free music concerts held here on summer weekends. He also mentioned that it is typically the ugly buildings that are world recognized. Think about the Eiffel Tower and Sydney Opera House which, according to history, were frowned upon shortly after their debut.

Towards the end of our tour, we came upon the world’s largest roll of toilet paper. It is actually connected to the art museum, and when the visitors use the restroom, they are inside the roll. But, they have no idea because you can’t see it from the inside. ha!

Another fun fact about this city: Women must pay to use public toilets (around 50 cents), but men can use the free urinals set up along the streets if they don’t mind the occasional glances by people passing by. This free system was set up by the city to get the men to quit peeing on the streets and causing everything to stink. But women are obviously too classy so they have to pay to pee lol!

Since we were hungry after the tour, our guided recommended we check out one of his favorite food joints and try the famous Belgian Bicky Burger. I’m not sure what was in the burger, and I’m not sure I want to know, but it was on a white sesame bun and had friend onion crisps on top. It was tasty, but I’m not sure I’ll ever order it again. We also ordered some fries with some famous brown meat sauce, again recommended by our tour guide. Neither of us could take more than 3 bites of it as it was super bitter but sopposedly you get used to it. Overall, it filled our bellies and gave us the chance to warm up and rest our feet with a great view, so I can’t complain.

After our lunch/dinner, we wanted something a little sweet, so we decided to check out another famous treat in Ghent, the Ghent Noses. These are raspberry sweets that have been baked at a very low heat for a long time, so the outside is crunchy and the inside is a gooey sweet mess. The ones from the original factory have a ‘G’ printed on them and homemade ones have no label. If it has something else printed on it, don’t eat it. Everyone fights over which is the best and most traditional, and it is quite comical to hear them banter back and forth. We opted for a cute little shop with a friendly store owner. Nisheet thought they were delectable, but I thought they were just “meh”. I would rather have more chocolate and waffles!

After walking around and looking through shops, we decided it was time to end the day with some more Belgian beer. We ended up at a famous local bar called Dulle Griet where they sell a yard of beer…that’s right a yard!! However, since so many people have stolen the yard glass, they now require a deposit of one shoe which they hoist up to the ceiling in a basket tied to a rope. It is humorous to see half the people with only one shoe on. And, I might add, you will get a good laugh at watching tipsy people try to hop on one foot up a narrow staircase to the bathroom. We did not get the yard of cheap beer though and instead opted for something better. I ordered a Chimay Blue, my new favorite non-fruity beer. It is dark, sweet, and smooth.

The couple sitting next to us did order the yard of beer though, and we all got a big kick out of it and kicked off an evening of conversation. They were from Iran, and almost all of my stereotypes for Iranians were broken. It was interesting to discover the similarities (and differences) between our countries, and we enjoyed comparing and laughing about our opinions of Belgians (almost all of them being the same).  One of the best parts of traveling is meeting new people and making new friends, so don’t be afraid to say hello to strangers!