Despite what Collin Ferrel may say Bruge is incredible

If anyone has seen the movie "In Bruges" you've heard the famous quote that goes; "If I grew up on a farm, and was retarded Bruges might impress me. I didn't, and I'm not, so it doesn't". Nothing could be farther from the truth. Bruge is my favorite city I've been to so far, it really is like a "fairytale town" as other characters describe it in the movie.

I woke up this morning with no plan and toying with the idea of going to Amsterdam, which I'm still somewhat considering. Getting there is rather expensive though, so I chose to go to Bruges instead. It was much closer and much cheaper, I guess that's what happens when you stay domestic. I left Brussels around 11am, and the hour train ride was quite interesting. The train conductor collected tickets and gave mine a puzzling look. He said something in French, to which I gave no response. He than asked "Espanol?", I guess my Chilean relatives were right and I look more like a Chilean than American. He switched to English, and told me I was in first class with a second class ticket. I was kicked out and made to go to the back of the bus, somewhat embarrasing haha. Some dude asked me something in French and pointed to my ticket and then to the conductor, he seemed angry. I assumed he was mad I got kicked out of first class when there was virtually no one there. Once I sat down in second class, some guy sat next to me, and sat way too close the whole time. It was weird.

Stepping out of the train in Bruges was like stepping into a time warp. The modern, ugly look of Brussels was nowhere to be found, in its place a fully intact mediveal city. Cobbled streets, brick buildings, narrow winding footpaths, massive churches, and a large city square made me jealous of Europe. The US has no such cities, and in most of the American cities I've been a central public space is nonexistent. I saw many fascinating landmarks, most notably the clock tower and the Holy Blood Chapel. The clock tower is part of a larger administrative complex that housed all of the economic reserves of the city as well as documents and records. 366 steps to the top, and not for the faint of heart. The steps get more narrow as you get higher, in addition to getting steeper. A real claustrophobic or fear of heights nightmare, it was totally worth it though. The view of the city from the top of the tower is incredible, and the bell at the top is larger than I thought possible. In the movie the tower features prominently, and it is rather dominant in the city aesthetics. The Holy Blood Chapel was very strange but also extremely interesting. According to legend a vile of Jesus' blood, his actual blood, was taken from the Church of the Holy Sepulcure by crusaders. In this church there is a vile of blood that claims to be the literal blood of Christ. The custom is to give a small donation to the church in exchange for touching the vile of blood. I did this of course. At a certain time each day the vile is displayed and apparently it turns to liquid, displaying the true power of Christ. Unfortunately I missed that ceremony. The whole experience was weird, but also really cool.

After Bruges I returned to Brussels and just took it easy. I've been walking a ton the last few days. Three cities in three days will do that to you. I've also not eaten much, been too busy, I guess that contributes as well. I still have not decided if I'll go to Amsterdam tomorrow, but leaning toward not. An easy day in Brussels might be nice before I continue into Germany.