In-laws and In Bruge

 Warning! This is a looooong post.

As you may remember from my previous post, my in-laws were scheduled to visit the day after our friend Janel left. They arrived according to plan and, just like Lars and Sam, they hit the ground running. Kurt took them downtown for a small tour and some drinks at Annie's (one of the boat bars near the markt). They boys and I met up with them after nap and we took them up to the Burcht before heading home for a dinner of Indonesian take-out.
  The weather for the next day was predicted to be gorgeous so we rented a boat in the morning and went on a canal tour. The sky was crystal blue without a hint of humidity. We puttered around the lakes and canals until it was time to get the boys home for nap. While the kids and I slept Kurt,Dale, and Erik went to a few of the old churches and the antiquities museum. That evening my in-laws graciously ate Hendos take-out while we went out for another anniversary date.
   On Saturday we took Dale and Erik to the market so that they could experience its atmosphere and sample some of it's tasty treats. Erik was easily convinced to try the raw herring and onions although Dale abstained.
   Dale had accidentally made their rental car reservation for a day earlier than was needed so she and Erik had to pick it up on Sunday morning. Kurt really wanted his parents to see the dunes so we agreed to bike there and have them drive to meet us there after they picked up the car. Once again the weather was fantastic with clear blue skies. The sun is getting lower and lower in the sky so its rays always seem to be at a glorious angle that makes everything look golden. We meet at the Meyendel boerderij, a small "petting(?) farm" with a visitors center that dispenses information about the dunes. From there we hiked to the beach and had a picnic lunch on the silky sand. No matter how careful you try to be if you have a picnic on the beach you have to accept the fact that you will ingest a certain amount of sand. After lunch the Andresen-Buehrers headed home while the Andresen-Lindens drove around Den Haag.
 When we met up again later that evening we went to a restaurant that Kurt and I have been eyeing for sometime because of its outdoor seating area that you can drive your boat up to. Appropriately enough it is called Doc 2. We enjoyed drinks and bruschetta out on the dock and then went inside for dinner as the sun set. I don't remember what the others had but I had mushrooms in cream sauce on toast. Heel lekker!

The next day we all set off for Bruges, Belgium. If you have never heard of Bruges and you don't mind a bit of onscreen violence, rent the movie In Bruges and you will get a good eyeful of the town. Bruges was an economic center in Flanders (now Belgium) in the 15th and 16th centuries so the town is full of opulent churches and state buildings. Somewhere in the 1600s the canal, which provided their access to the sea, silted up and choked off the city's economic life-blood. Thus the town is one of the most perfectly preserved medieval cities in Europe. It is getting a bit touristy but it is so much fun to visit that you can't pass it up. This was actually the second time that Kurt and I have gone. We visited there on at 2009 backpacking trip. We did not have kids at the time but we were also living on post-doc/admin salaries so the trip was a bit austere and we did not get to do everything one can do in Bruges. So when Dale and Erik mentioned that they might like to see it we offered to go along.

 We found a great 17th century house to rent called De Hoedenmaker (The Hat Maker) that was only a 10 minute walk to the town center. It had three rooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a quaint little garden. We all fit in there comfortably and it was much cheaper and nicer than getting two hotel rooms. Plus they had a dvd copy of In Bruges! We made Dale and Erik watch it the first night we were there and it is probably the first movie that we have recommended to them that they actually liked.
  Since the boys had napped in the car on the way down we were able to spend a good potion of the afternoon sightseeing. At first, we tried in vain to find a Flemish restaurant that they owner of De Hoedenmaker recommended. We were all a bit hungry and grumpy which made the search for the place that much more miserable. Finally we gave up and ate at the next cafe that we came upon. After that, as requested by Dale, we headed to Chocolate Row, a street lined with chocolate shops. If Leif had any sort of fat on him I'm sure he would have had a heart-attack from his excitement. We walked in and out of the shops buying any truffles that caught our fancy.

  After our chocolate binge we waddled back to the town square and jumped aboard one of the waiting buggies for a charming horse-drawn tour around town. Our tour guide was a sweetest Belgian girl you will ever meet (unfortunately I can't remember her name) with a great delivery and a straw hat. Although the tour was only 30 minutes it was good time and gave us a few ideas of what to visit the next day.
  After a mildly successful night's sleep, we headed to the Groeninge Museum. In 2009 Kurt and I opted for the Hospital Museum over this one in order to see Memling's Mystic Marriage of St Catherine alter piece. It was a tough decision because the Groeninge houses Van Eyke's The Madonna with Canon van der Paele with its eye popping brocaded velvets and palpable metalwork. Luckily we were now in Bruges again! I'm not sure that anyone else enjoyed the museum but I drooled enough for all of us. Oh Van Eyke! I love you!
  The Groeninge is pretty small so we had time to climb the 366 stairs of the Belfort before lunch. As well as a great view of the city, tourists get to see the inner workings of the bell towers bells and have the stability of their ear drums tested by its 47 bells. Neither Leif nor Klaus were big fans of the actual bells but they seemed to like the view and incredibly narrow staircase.

That afternoon, while the boys napped, Dale and I toured the Basilica of the Holy Blood. A tourist attraction even in its own time, this small ornate basilica houses a relic that is believed to be the blood of Christ, brought back from the crusades by a Flemish count. Unfortunately the relic was not on display when we visited but we enjoyed the intense opulence of the place.
  Before dinner we had time for a quick canal tour. Kurt and I were worried that it would be a bit redundant seeing as we already had the perfect tour by carriage the day before. But, once again, the tour guide was charming and the weather was beautiful. The boat was full of other happy tourists and we all chuckled together and admired the time traveling effect of Bruges.
  For dinner we carried our high chair the 30 feet from the rental to a restuarant called Tom's Diner. The name is somewhat misleading to an American audience (entrees started at 16 Euro and don't include hamburgers or fries) but we had read the menu outside before going in so we knew what we were getting into. Our table was in its own tiny cubby separated from the larger dining area by a curtain and overlooking the downstairs portion of the restaurant. The candel lit atmosphere was cozy and the food with its artistic presentation was great.

In the morning we bid farwell to my in-laws as they set out for the rest of their European tour. Before heading back to Leiden, we thought we would check out some of Bruges  fine old churches. Unfortunately the Church of Our Lady, which houses a Michalangelo original, was closed for repairs until November.  Saint Salvator's catherdral was open, however, and so we were not totally thwarted in out tourism efforts. Unlike in the Netherlands, these churches are still Catholic and have maintained much of their intense decoration. A feast for the eyes.
   At home in Leiden, we were greated by the beginnings of the 3 October Festival. This festival commemorates the unsuccessful siege of Lieden by the Spanish in the 1570s. I'm just going to come out and say it: I was hugely dissapointed with the whole thing. I was expecting something a little more old worldly; I had read about how the town hall still gives out herring and white bread to the people of Leiden as it had done after the siege. And about the hutspot (carrot/potato mash) that the towns people found in the Spanish camps after they had left. From the tour book descriptions I had expected a Renaissance fair style celebration. But 3 October is really just a huge version of the Gettysburg fireman's carnival. There is no history left in it. It is all about over priced rides and games and terrible/delicious fried foods. Oh Europe can't you see we only love you for idealized versions of your past? Why do you have to gravitate towards silly commercial stuff just like we do at home?