The Belfry of Brugge towering over buildings built right on the Canal
The remains of the Roman wall and the Church Tower in Tongeren
The front of the Church Tower, carnival, and Statue of Ambiorix
Windmill at Bokrijk
Stadhuis in Leuven at Night
Nick and I with the "Beer Bible" at Delerium Cafe
Leah, Tayla, Liam, Chase, Matt, Matt, Danni, Amanda, Toni, and Jenn at Delerium Cafe
The Menneken Pis in Brussels in one of his 700 costumes
The Brussels Cathdrale
The Brugge Belfry built in three different centuries evident by the three different levels
The group touching the bottom of a bridge on the canal tour
Megan, Me, and Liam on the canal tour“In the series of things, those which follow are aptly fitted to those that have gone before.” This phrase, written originally in Greek by Marcus Aurelius’ in his famous Meditations, sits on the wall in the entryway of the Gallo Roman Museum in Tongeren, Belgium. It is fitting that Tongeren, the oldest city in Belgium dating back to the Roman Empire, should have a theme centered on the importance of history – of knowing where you came from to see where you’re going. This theme has been repeated over time in many quips and quotes by some of mankind’s greatest minds. In Niccolo Machiavelli’s Prince, the gentleman who preferred to be feared over loved stated that, “whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times.” Following that same logic, one of my favorite versions of this concept comes from Sir Isaac Newton: “If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulder of giants.” This week, the Loyola group and I took a step back in time, traveling to three very historic places in Belgium and more or less realizing the importance of the past in our present.
I think often times as an American, I look at the world and have a very skewed version of history. Over the past couple weeks here, my fellow study abroad students and I have used the phrase, “This is like __ years older than our country,” numerous times. We often times forget, or rather don’t have an understanding of something that is “historical” at home because our home has only been establish about two and a quarter hundred years ago. Most of the beers brewed here have been made for twice that time. However, these past couple of days has allowed the group and me to throw ourselves back 400 - 2000 years ago. In any event, all of the quotes above have helped me to set the tone for my attitude and awe over my past week traveling through time and history here in Belgium – engulfed in cities older than my country.
Well as you may have guessed, this week the Loyola group, both in independent trips, and trips through the PECs program, got its fair share of historical sites as we visited some of the oldest or oldest look alike places in Belgium. Over the past week we have traveled to Brugge, Brussels, Bokrijk, and Tongeren. After taking our midterm in Dutch on Monday, the clan and I had a relatively easy rest of the week. Through the Loyola program, we headed to Brugge on Tuesday. Brugge is a beautiful city, and despite our tour guide (or lack thereof), I still couldn’t help but admire the medieval city.
The train ride out to Brugge is what helped to set the mood for the afternoon. The early morning sunshine gleaned off of the grass and trees on the rolling hills of the Belgian countryside – an occasional red or black roofed cottage or farm house speckled across the valleys. As the train rolled into the relatively modern station at Brugge, in the distance, over the tips of the trees that greet you at the front entrance of the station, peaked the spires of the churches and the tips of houses – providing the first and faintest signs of the adventure that we were about to embark on. As we walked toward the city, with the faint sound of horse shoes on cobblestone in the distance, I nibbled on my freshly purchased, warm, Belgian waffle, with a sugar/glaze coating that is so sweet it requires no topping.
Brugge is a city trapped, aesthetically speaking, in the 15th century. Brugge’s history dates back to the Roman Empire, when the city’s proximity to the North Sea made it a valuable port location. Therefore, the area that was settled, that is now Brugge (from the Scandinavian word “Brygga” meaning “harbor or mooring place”), was first a Roman military barracks. Then, in the 9th century, the city was settled by Vikings. Next, the textile era came. From the 12th to 15th centuries, Brugge, like many of its other Belgian counterparts, was a major producer of textiles for medieval Europe. With its vicinity to the North Sea, Brugge was an essential port for English wool merchants (the best type of wool at the time). However, in the 15th century, the river around the port began to fill up with silt making the large barges unable to approach the port – and driving out the textile production. As a result, residents slowly moved out the city and headed toward Antwerp (see my previous blog for information on Antwerp). As a result, the city was more or less abandoned, but then rediscovered in the 1800’s. With its red brick buildings built right into the canal water, and narrow cobblestone medieval city streets, walking through Brugge is like taking a step back in time. As a result, in recent years Brugge has become a hot spot for tourists fascinated by medieval Europe. In addition, many areas of the city have buildings from multiple centuries all built side by side.
However, the most famous building and landmark for Brugge stands in the center of the Grote Markt – the Belfrey Tower. Made most recently famous in the 2008 movie starring Colin Farrell “In Brugge” (a great but bloody movie that the group watched the night before we left) the Belfrey has stood as a landmark for Brugge since the 12th century. It was originally built over a time span of 3 centuries. Started in the 12th century and not finished till the 15th century, the Belfrey tower was built in three stages – evident by the three different stones used to build the tower. We tried (unsuccessfully) to climb the tower and get a birds eye view of the city, but arrived 15 minutes late (because our 2 hour tour turned into a 3 and half hour tour). However, the allure of the old city was still enough for me for the afternoon.
Feeling adventurous after our trip to Brugge, a group of us took our first independent trip of the year to Brussels on Saturday afternoon. After a twenty minute train ride, we toured the city, seeing the Cathedrale, the Menneken Pis (a fountain of a little boy peeing – legend has it the fountain was made in honor of a boy who peed to put out a fire, and is also constantly decorated in costumes by the locals) and the main Grote Markt. In addition, we were startled a number of times by a drum role and the loud “boom” of muskets that followed, as a festival was underway in the city and the parade, that seemed to follow us from the Menneken Pis to the Grote Markt, went on for three hours. An interesting fact about the Grote Markt is that each building on the edge of the square at one time housed different guilds. Then in 1695, the town square was decimated, however each guild rallied to rebuild the buildings in 5 years – an astonishing feat for that time. This time, they build the buildings in stone that was not as flimsy as the previous timber. In turn, each guild put a symbolic statue over its door frame, signifying which guild was in which building. The statues which still rest atop the doorways of restaurants and shops today are one of the unique historical characteristics of the city.
After the Grote Markt, we made a quick trip to the Jeanneke Pis (the Menneken Pis’s female, and seemingly more inappropriate, counterpart) which was conveniently located next to the Delerium Bar and Café. Delerium is famous for having one of the largest selections of beer in the world. It currently has 2004 beers for sale, with 49 on tap. As we placed an order through the clanking of glasses and bottles in the crowded, smoke filled basement bar (unfortunately how most bars are in Europe), we watched in amazement as a slew of bartenders, flipped multiple bottle caps at time, took five to ten orders at once, and swarmed through the bar and into the back room incessantly – trying to meet the variety of requests for tourists and locals alike. Following our cocktail hour trip to Delerium, we stopped for a relatively inexpensive dinner on one of the small narrow side streets. Then the group divided as half of us returned to Delerium to utilize the large selection and half headed back to Leuven (I’ll let you decide which group I was in).
Though we got back to Leuven, late that night, the group, through the PECs program, headed out on Sunday morning for a trip to Bokrijk – an open air museum on the outskirts of Leuven. Similar to the style of Colonial Williamsburg, this Belgian museum was full of live actors reenacting the lifestyle in rural Belgium more than a century ago. The museum was created out of a fear that in the post WWII era, children would turn away from the painful history of the past and look toward modernization and the future. The museum helps to remind younger generations what their grandparents grew up living in. The buildings, which were all from the late 1800’s and have been transplanted all to one space at the museum, were thatch roofed, white and stone houses with antique furniture and instruments from the time period. Though I got the impression that I would have appreciated the experience more had I understood the language of the actors, this museum provided an interesting representation of the lifestyles from long ago.
After our trip to Bokrijk, we headed, we traveled directly to the oldest city in Belgium, Tongeren. Tongeren is a small city, devoid of most tourists, at least on a Sunday afternoon when we arrived, and very quiet. We walked around the city upon our arrival and listened to our own footprints as we approached the center of town. Most of the shops were closed, and the only activity came from the carnival which was in the townsqure. As the carrousel played American music, seemingly inappropriate in front of the 12th century church, the PECS group, consisting of 20 Americans and 40 European/Asian/Indians, wandered into the town square toward the statue of Ambiorix – a local hero/legend who was renowned for slaughtering legions of Romans during Julius Caesars conquest of the area 2000 years ago.
I think often times as an American, I look at the world and have a very skewed version of history. Over the past couple weeks here, my fellow study abroad students and I have used the phrase, “This is like __ years older than our country,” numerous times. We often times forget, or rather don’t have an understanding of something that is “historical” at home because our home has only been establish about two and a quarter hundred years ago. Most of the beers brewed here have been made for twice that time. However, these past couple of days has allowed the group and me to throw ourselves back 400 - 2000 years ago. In any event, all of the quotes above have helped me to set the tone for my attitude and awe over my past week traveling through time and history here in Belgium – engulfed in cities older than my country.
Well as you may have guessed, this week the Loyola group, both in independent trips, and trips through the PECs program, got its fair share of historical sites as we visited some of the oldest or oldest look alike places in Belgium. Over the past week we have traveled to Brugge, Brussels, Bokrijk, and Tongeren. After taking our midterm in Dutch on Monday, the clan and I had a relatively easy rest of the week. Through the Loyola program, we headed to Brugge on Tuesday. Brugge is a beautiful city, and despite our tour guide (or lack thereof), I still couldn’t help but admire the medieval city.
The train ride out to Brugge is what helped to set the mood for the afternoon. The early morning sunshine gleaned off of the grass and trees on the rolling hills of the Belgian countryside – an occasional red or black roofed cottage or farm house speckled across the valleys. As the train rolled into the relatively modern station at Brugge, in the distance, over the tips of the trees that greet you at the front entrance of the station, peaked the spires of the churches and the tips of houses – providing the first and faintest signs of the adventure that we were about to embark on. As we walked toward the city, with the faint sound of horse shoes on cobblestone in the distance, I nibbled on my freshly purchased, warm, Belgian waffle, with a sugar/glaze coating that is so sweet it requires no topping.
Brugge is a city trapped, aesthetically speaking, in the 15th century. Brugge’s history dates back to the Roman Empire, when the city’s proximity to the North Sea made it a valuable port location. Therefore, the area that was settled, that is now Brugge (from the Scandinavian word “Brygga” meaning “harbor or mooring place”), was first a Roman military barracks. Then, in the 9th century, the city was settled by Vikings. Next, the textile era came. From the 12th to 15th centuries, Brugge, like many of its other Belgian counterparts, was a major producer of textiles for medieval Europe. With its vicinity to the North Sea, Brugge was an essential port for English wool merchants (the best type of wool at the time). However, in the 15th century, the river around the port began to fill up with silt making the large barges unable to approach the port – and driving out the textile production. As a result, residents slowly moved out the city and headed toward Antwerp (see my previous blog for information on Antwerp). As a result, the city was more or less abandoned, but then rediscovered in the 1800’s. With its red brick buildings built right into the canal water, and narrow cobblestone medieval city streets, walking through Brugge is like taking a step back in time. As a result, in recent years Brugge has become a hot spot for tourists fascinated by medieval Europe. In addition, many areas of the city have buildings from multiple centuries all built side by side.
However, the most famous building and landmark for Brugge stands in the center of the Grote Markt – the Belfrey Tower. Made most recently famous in the 2008 movie starring Colin Farrell “In Brugge” (a great but bloody movie that the group watched the night before we left) the Belfrey has stood as a landmark for Brugge since the 12th century. It was originally built over a time span of 3 centuries. Started in the 12th century and not finished till the 15th century, the Belfrey tower was built in three stages – evident by the three different stones used to build the tower. We tried (unsuccessfully) to climb the tower and get a birds eye view of the city, but arrived 15 minutes late (because our 2 hour tour turned into a 3 and half hour tour). However, the allure of the old city was still enough for me for the afternoon.
Feeling adventurous after our trip to Brugge, a group of us took our first independent trip of the year to Brussels on Saturday afternoon. After a twenty minute train ride, we toured the city, seeing the Cathedrale, the Menneken Pis (a fountain of a little boy peeing – legend has it the fountain was made in honor of a boy who peed to put out a fire, and is also constantly decorated in costumes by the locals) and the main Grote Markt. In addition, we were startled a number of times by a drum role and the loud “boom” of muskets that followed, as a festival was underway in the city and the parade, that seemed to follow us from the Menneken Pis to the Grote Markt, went on for three hours. An interesting fact about the Grote Markt is that each building on the edge of the square at one time housed different guilds. Then in 1695, the town square was decimated, however each guild rallied to rebuild the buildings in 5 years – an astonishing feat for that time. This time, they build the buildings in stone that was not as flimsy as the previous timber. In turn, each guild put a symbolic statue over its door frame, signifying which guild was in which building. The statues which still rest atop the doorways of restaurants and shops today are one of the unique historical characteristics of the city.
After the Grote Markt, we made a quick trip to the Jeanneke Pis (the Menneken Pis’s female, and seemingly more inappropriate, counterpart) which was conveniently located next to the Delerium Bar and Café. Delerium is famous for having one of the largest selections of beer in the world. It currently has 2004 beers for sale, with 49 on tap. As we placed an order through the clanking of glasses and bottles in the crowded, smoke filled basement bar (unfortunately how most bars are in Europe), we watched in amazement as a slew of bartenders, flipped multiple bottle caps at time, took five to ten orders at once, and swarmed through the bar and into the back room incessantly – trying to meet the variety of requests for tourists and locals alike. Following our cocktail hour trip to Delerium, we stopped for a relatively inexpensive dinner on one of the small narrow side streets. Then the group divided as half of us returned to Delerium to utilize the large selection and half headed back to Leuven (I’ll let you decide which group I was in).
Though we got back to Leuven, late that night, the group, through the PECs program, headed out on Sunday morning for a trip to Bokrijk – an open air museum on the outskirts of Leuven. Similar to the style of Colonial Williamsburg, this Belgian museum was full of live actors reenacting the lifestyle in rural Belgium more than a century ago. The museum was created out of a fear that in the post WWII era, children would turn away from the painful history of the past and look toward modernization and the future. The museum helps to remind younger generations what their grandparents grew up living in. The buildings, which were all from the late 1800’s and have been transplanted all to one space at the museum, were thatch roofed, white and stone houses with antique furniture and instruments from the time period. Though I got the impression that I would have appreciated the experience more had I understood the language of the actors, this museum provided an interesting representation of the lifestyles from long ago.
After our trip to Bokrijk, we headed, we traveled directly to the oldest city in Belgium, Tongeren. Tongeren is a small city, devoid of most tourists, at least on a Sunday afternoon when we arrived, and very quiet. We walked around the city upon our arrival and listened to our own footprints as we approached the center of town. Most of the shops were closed, and the only activity came from the carnival which was in the townsqure. As the carrousel played American music, seemingly inappropriate in front of the 12th century church, the PECS group, consisting of 20 Americans and 40 European/Asian/Indians, wandered into the town square toward the statue of Ambiorix – a local hero/legend who was renowned for slaughtering legions of Romans during Julius Caesars conquest of the area 2000 years ago.
Despite the absence of activity, the tours of Tongeren were for the most part very interesting. We took a tour of the Gallo-Roman Museum, which was just opened earlier in the year, and houses both the history of the region and the history of the city. In addition, we took a tour of the city visiting the Begijnhof, the Cathedral, and ruins from Roman times. In the end, though our visit to Tongeren was quiet and short, it was a fitting way to cap off a week full of history for the Loyola group. The footprints of generation after generation are evident throughout the city of Tongeren in everything from the location of its Cathedral to the ruins recently uncovered. After this week it was pretty easy to see how the places we have today fit aptly into “those that have gone before.”
Too bad your group didn't get to climb to the top of the belfrey in Brugge - but if I'm not mistaken you've done that already!
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