Belgium Day 1 - Ghent

Belgium Day 1 - Ghent

3 hours' drive from Paris. Beautiful little quaint place. One of the many World Heritage Sites; touted as the largest pedestrianized area in Belgium. And as always, I'll let the pictures do most of the talking...

At the heart of Ghent's city centre. The famous Korenlei and Graslei area separated by a river.

What I love about this place is as quoted:" All that remains of some of the original buildings is the outer walls! Behind them is a brand new hotel." True enough, our Marriott hotel is one of those. Excellently located among the quaint facades, it is no wonder why it's the top hotel around here. Talking abt location (and since Ghent is such a compact and walkable city), we set off for a walk and unexpectedly "visited" a few attractions:

A PLAYMOBIL-like castle that got S a bit excited :) It's called the Castle of the Counts.

The Belfry. Dating from 1313, proudest symbol of their independence.

See the squarish "windows" below the gold clock? We climbed the 366 steps just to get up there! But look what we were rewarded with..

Steep, small, treacherous steps. Some of them hardly had enough space for half a shoe! Took the lift down as it was clearly too dangerous to climb downward. The golden thing at the top of the Belfry is supposed to be like that: a dragon (not a rooster!) hehe.

St Michael's Bridge. Slowly turn through 360° and soak it all in.. "the only place in Ghent to get a decent view of the three towers in a row".

Belgian beer by the river. Just gotta have it. Pleasant dinner by the river too. But best bet is to try their local Flemish stew.

And end the day with a good night's sleep at Marriott! What a contrasting modern design. (P.S. Look out for promotions on their website. You might be able to get a room at less than half the normal rate. Serious. ;) )