Bruges - From Zero to Hero!

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What a difference a TGV train journey makes! It was not a case of out of the frying pan and into the fire on this occasion as when we left the Parisian hell hole! No, Bruges was a welcomed relief and we embraced it with opened arms. The weather had cooled and our stay was an un-sweaty one. It was however the destination where I found out that one of my friends back home had told my girlfriend at the time that I had done the dirty on her. It was a failed attempt to try and navigate his way to the dark, moist place between her legs. Even though it failed, it was a mission in convincing her otherwise that this was not the truth....thats another story that unfolded way down the trip in Innsbruck, Austria.

Bruges was a wonderful getaway from the busyness, the heat and the attitudes that Paris had thrown our way. Its cobbled streets and its fairytail buildings relaxed our temperaments immediately on arrival. So much so that our over night stay which was initially planned turned into 3 and it wasn't just the place that did this.

Its cobbled streets and its fairytail buildings relaxed our temperaments immediately on arrival

The fellow travellers that were few and far between during our stay in the French capital were in abundance here and we met some amazing like minded backpackers. Mostly from the States and Canada, the people we conversed with sparked my bug for travel that still remains in me today. In can be said that our 2003 trip started here but I pessimistically assumed that it was so nice here because Paris was so bad.

Circumnavigating the town takes a little over an hour and the river makes for some excellent flat meanderings before heading to the hostel bar to sample some real Belgium beers. Much to our amazement there were over 25 beers to be tried in the bar and they ranged from 5% all the way up to 20% plus! Our attempt to try them al fell disappointingly short and after the first 8 it was a lesson to speak proper English all over again.

The centre piece for this wonderful town was the Belfry which was the tallest of its kind in Europe and was "Older than my country" a Canadian excitedly shouted to us at the top of his voice. Chad was starting out too on his travelling escapades and we would in time come to bump into each other over the years to come.

This is what travelling was about in my opinion, to me it was about the people you meet and the stories you tell and Bruge started that for me. Whilst sitting eating with 20 or so backpackers we all sang West Virginia in toast to the couple who made food for all and who came from the American state. If the trip was going to unfold and be like this then life is truely on the road.