In Bruges

Idyllic fairytale city

Bruges, much like the rest of Belgium, is not a hugely exciting place per se, but what it lacks in excitement it more than makes up for in sheer pleasantness. Horse drawn carriages trundle through the quaint, cobbled streets, everywhere you look there are examples of gorgeous medieval architecture and the large pedestrianised squares give people breathing space that they can so often lack in other larger, more faceless cities.

One nice brief stint of excitement, however, came in the form of an inexplicable confetti-spouting street parade that came out of nowhere, featuring people dressed in all manner of luminous clothing, riding floats with names such as "The Crazy Dogmobile", all to the soundtrack of pumping Euro pop, but suffice to say that this certainly did not seem typical of Bruges. This feels like a wonderful, quintessentially European city and it is this "European-ness" that makes leaving our island for the continent such a delight each time I do, where the people take life less seriously, where aesthetic pleasure seems to permeate virtually all aspects of life and where paprika suddenly becomes a common crisp flavour.

Beyond this European-ness, however, lies Bruges' best aspect and the main draw for foreign tourists; the bars. Belgium being home to arguably some of the best breweries in world, you know that drinking beer while on holiday in Bruges is going to be something special, and in my experience, my expectations were certainly not disappointed.

The clock tower by night

What first strikes you is just how very different the whole attitude to drinking is in Bruges. Belgians take their time over their beer, with one woman I spoke to even recommending I spoke to it for a bit before drinking it. Drinking beer is done more as one would eat in a restaurant, sitting at a table, studying the extensive beer menu and then giving your order. With such a different attitude to drinking, it's no surprise that binge drinking isn't really a problem in Bruges, to binge would be to deny the fine quality of beers and drinking establishments the respect they deserve.

We were treated at one point to the sight of a group of paralytic Brits who had taken it too far, but I feel these parties are something of a minority in a city where most people value the drink, not the drunkenness. If a few groups of British tourists embarrassing the rest of us is the price we must pay in order to enjoy such a fine centre of beer tourism, then in my view it is a price worth paying, albeit somewhat regrettably.

Bruges is a fantastic place, one of those "everyone should go there once" places. My only warnings? Don't go on a Sunday (Bruges appears to largely respect the sanctity of a day of rest by closing many of its establishments) and I wouldn't recommend going for much longer than a long weekend, I felt like I'd done the majority of the city after just a day and a half. Aside from that, my weekend in Bruges was an absolute delight and would urge anyone who is a fan of good beer to visit it one day.

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