Brugge in the Rain

This morning my  parents, and Bill and Katie Burrow and I took a taxi, departing the ship at 9:00 a.m., to Brugge, Belgium.  It can be pronounced Brug-ga or Bruj.  The driver dropped us off at the bus station in Brugge and we told him to pick us up at 2:00 p.m .for the return.  If I had been by myself I would have stayed until 4:00, but I was outnumbered.  We started walking through town  in the pouring rain.  Fortunately, I had a rain poncho that kept me dry, but it was chilly, about 55 degrees.  The town of Brugge is very old and quaint and actually had been in decline when tourist discovered it and it is now thriving.  I found a chocolate shop that you could stand at the window and watch them make the chocolates and it was so tiny and so busy it was shoulder to shoulder standing room only in the shop.   I then met up with 2 other couples and agreed to meet my parents and the Burrows for the taxi.   We ate lunch at an outdoor brasserie (it quit raining), and I odered a Flemish Brown Stew with Leffe Beer that was sweet, kind of like a good onion soup can be sweet, and I had a Belgium beer and chips (fries) with it.  The Belgium people really know how to make good fries. I ended up using my fries to soak up the liquid part of my stew it was so good.  I then walked around the Market area and found some lace. By this time it was about 1:00 p.m. so I started walking back to our meeting place.  On the way I stopped at a sidewalk cafe and had a Waffle that left a burn mark on my thumb, but it was worth it.  At 2:00 p.m. the cab driver arrived and returned us to the ship.  Since that time I have been to see the doctor since I have now been the lucky winner of a sinus infection.   Woooo HOOO!   Tomorrow we arrive at Le Havre and we are renting a van with the Tansils and will be touring the region on our own.  I can't believe the time has past so quickly.  I'm tired and now I'm sick, but I wouldn't change a thing.   Love your comments.  Beth