Gant, Gent, Ghent... Hunker down

Gent 

After
leaving their friends in Germany Rob and Beth headed for a short stopover in
Ghent, Belgium before starting the last leg of their trip touring the UK.
However, the weather in Ghent made them question the wisdom of the decision to
begin the northern part of their European travels. The day they arrived was
bitter cold and damp and it only warmed enough to drop 15 cm of snow that made
the days of sunny walks along the Mediterranean seem like a distant memory.
Some of the warm winter clothes they had packed for such an occasion, including
Rob's down coat, were on a transatlantic voyage back to Windsor. In their
desire to lighten their load they underestimated the need of cold protection in
March and mailed some items the week prior.
The Original 
Gulden Draak 




"This
is a completely freak storm." announced their host. "We haven't seen
snow like this for years."


View from the Belfry

When touring
the city during the subsequent days, Beth and Rob hustled in the cold alongside
the canals and rivers that give Gent the nickname ‘Venice of Belgium’. When
they walked the busy pedestrian streets they often sought refuge in merchandise
stores to warm up under the pretence of shopping, or if their timing was right,
entered one of the many medieval churches or buildings left behind from the
days when Ghent, a cloth and wool trading centre, was the richest city in
northern Europe.
Does it get 
more Belgian than waffles?


Enjoying local 
Beers 


When it was
particularly cold and windy they sought refuge in pubs sampling some of the
many excellent beers for which Belgium is known. They took advantage of this
downtime to catch up on "work" (i.e., edit photos, write in the
journal, write blog entries). One afternoon they spent a pleasant couple hours
in a pub called ‘The Out’.



"There's
only a men's toilet." announced Beth when she returned to the table.
"I used it anyway. I'm sure he doesn't mind." 




Gent Castle

While using
the free WiFi to plan the United Kingdom leg of their travels they enjoyed the
music that played. The bar's owner, who was a very sociable fellow, explained
that since the establishment was nearly empty during the day he could play the
kind of music he liked while in the evenings a younger crowd took over and the
less desirable dance music dominated. As they sat he suggested Gent beers that
suited their tastes - a fruitier, cloudy amber beer for Beth and the very strong
Gent ‘Gulden Draak’ for Rob. After only a couple beers sampled on an empty
stomach, they felt they’d reached their limit and ambled on to find a place for
lunch. 
Snowy walk



"What
better way to visit Belgium when it's storming than by touring the local establishments
meeting people and partaking in local flavour?"