It’s no secret that I love Belgium as a gastronomical destination, but it has other charms, as well. (No surprise, though, right?) One of our favorite activities in Belgium, besides eating and drinking, was spending a day biking in Bruges and in the surrounding area.
During our short visit to the country of Belgium, we spent most of our time in the completely adorable, preserved medieval town of Bruges. We entertained ourselves there well, but on our last day, we decided to get away from the more touristy part of the city. We rented bikes right off the Markt Square and followed local directions to the nearby town of Damme, said to be a smaller, less crowded Bruges.
While we didn’t find Damme to be that much quieter, as there was some sort of festival the day we visited, the bike ride in the countryside was gorgeous and idyllic. Our favorite part, of course, was the working windmill we stumbled across, right across the canal (built by Napoleon!) from Damme. We wandered in to explore and watch the flour-making process ourselves, which E was especially excited about. I was amused that the miller lazily waved us up the tiny, crickety, slippery stairs, obviously used to tourists coming in and out. Be careful–everything is covered in flour and there is very little traction! We didn’t go up all the steps as the floors got smaller and closer to the machinery, but we went up three floors to explore as much as we could.
We biked through town and the countryside to get to the town and the windmill, but I loved the ride back, along an easy forested path and close to the canal. It’s a perfect piece of nature and farmland in the middle of Europe.
It took us about half a day to bike out to Damme, and went spent the rest of the day biking around the cobblestone streets of town. Biking is a great way to get around Bruges, and to explore further out, as well.
Rick Steves has the best directions to Damme, outside of locals! We used both his book and the directions of our innkeeper.
{the little town of Damme / proudly flying the flags / the adorable, red-tipped windmill / the canal near Damme / down the canal / this boat looked really fun–you can take tours from Bruges to Damme!–but we were much faster on our bikes 🙂 / the working windmill / romantic / E is a natural on a bike (unlike someone else I know…cough) / biking away from the windmill / a cute country house on our way back to Bruges / biking along the streets of Bruges…I was biking too, which made a clear image a little more difficult!}
This post is Letter B from April’s A to Z Blogging Challenge. Click the link below to check out the other bloggers taking part, and to find out more!
Ida Chiavaro says
The last photo could very well have been taken in any number of streets around Copenhagen or Aarhus. I find the history of Europeen buildings i.e how incredibly old some of them are, to be the most fascinating thing of all…
AmyMacWorld says
I know! Incredible how beautifully preserved some of them still are.
Corinne Vail says
When we stayed in Brugge we were in a B&B down the road from the windmill…It was dreary and cold, but we still loved it!
AmyMacWorld says
Oh wow! I’ll have to find that B&B next time. I imagine Brugge would be adorable no matter the season.
jenny_atasteoftravel says
What a great idea to go for bike ride in Brugge. It would have been a great way to escape the crowds!
AmyMacWorld says
Yes! We couldn’t escape them completely but most of ’em!
Jenn says
Love it! I love cute little towns on the water 🙂
AmyMacWorld says
I know! Bruges has to be one of the most adorable too.
Calli D says
Sounds like a wonderful bike ride! I love Belgium for the food (and beer!) and would love to return one day. When I do I’m going to make sure it’s during sunny weather so we can pedal through the countryside 🙂
AmyMacWorld says
Yes, we loved Bruges in August, although I’ve heard the spring is perfect, too! Although the Christmas Market at Christmas is also supposed to be divine…I obviously can’t wait to go back there ;).