Bruges
Bruges is the most well-preserved medieval town in Belgium. It's a small town, and a very touristy town. Admittedly, I only know about this town because of a recent movie with Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleason, and Ralph fiennes called "In Bruges". It's now my favorite movie about tourism where the tourists are assassins.
Once again I find myself having fun just because I'm in the same place as scenes in a movie. it is a charming town, but the tourism is rampant now. Lots of annoying shops and tourist prices everywhere. Not as genuine as in the movie. I think a few years earlier I would've experienced a purer town as it was in the movie.
From watching the move, which is only a few years old, I can tell that the town has grown a lot since then. There have been many modern improvements and a lot more tourists. However, it remains an obscure town that even other Europeans I spoke to hadn't heard of before.
Bruges was also the best food stop I've had so far. One dinner I had was exceptional. I'll skip to the good part: dessert. The menu just said chocolate tart, but this is what I got. She even said "oh, good choice". You know if you are genuinely complimented by the waitress on your selection, it has to be good.
I had something I never had before. The little green leaves that trap the small fruit in the middle is called l'amour en cage "love in a cage" (kind of hard to see in the dessert but it's the thing at the top). It tasted like a cross between a berry and a tomato. But it's so pretty, isn't it?
I stayed at a bed and breakfast solely for the promise of a fancy breakfast. It did not disappoint. Actually, I honestly can't remember having such good breakfasts. The taste was very good, but the presentation was just beautiful. She has a very keen attention to detail. I mean, look at the butter. I don't even know how she did that. Not only that, it was at a perfectly spreadable temperature too. Just delicious. This is what she served:
- Fresh-squeezed orange juice ( sometimes with a hint of kiwi)
- coffee, tea, or hot chocolate (and very good hot chocolate, not watery or bland, but very sweet)
- fresh fruit and yogurt
- at least 4 different kinds of bread including deliciously flaky croissants (sometimes with chocolate inside)
- beautiful plate of meats and cheeses
- bite-sized special pancakes (can't remember what they're made of)
- Specialty omelette "made with love"
- chocolates
Tomorrow, Paris.