We welcomed the day with bright blue skies, sunshine and
our cruise friends Heidi and Achille...we have sailed with Heidi and Achille on
a number of world cruises. Heidi and Achille were at the Zeebrugge cruise
terminal to meet us on arrival and take us to Ghent for the day. When it comes
to Belgium, we loved Bruges but you really can’t get much better than Ghent
(Dutch: Gent). On our hour drive into Ghent we caught up on the comings and goings
for each of us. The best way to enjoy Ghent is on foot so we parked the car
just near the historic city center and started our walking tour. There's a
wealth of medieval and classical architecture here, just outside the parking
garage was our first stop, St. Michael’s Church and then over St. Michael’s
Bridge...no matter which way you look, you see picture-postcard views from this
bridge of the Lys River including the perfect row of famous towers I was able
to capture lined up in a row from this one particular spot. Next, we climbed
the Belfry, standing at 91m high makes this UNESCO World Heritage belfry the
tallest in Belgium...the views were magnificent. Next door to the Belfry was
visited the beautiful St. Bavo’s Cathedral. Leaving the Cathedral, we wandered
around the corner to the Town Hall and came upon the Castle of Gerald the
Devil...the buildings were incredible. Ghent being a crisscross of waterway, we
took the canal cruise to see the city from a different perspective...after our cruise
we made our way to the Castle of the Counts or Gravenstein, we climbed this
medieval fortress dating back to the Roman occupation with its defense system
virtually still intact...in days gone by this castle was known as a torture
chamber and had a few displays depicting the types of torture. Before leaving
Ghent to return to the ship Heidi and Achille treated us to Belgium’s famous
chocolates and waffles...what delicious treat. We have an absolutely wonderful
day with Heidi and Achille and want to thank them for showing us Ghent.
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