12 June 2014 – 14 June 2014 - Bruges, Flanders, Belgium

Bruges was a picturesque medieval town with cobbled streets, canals, stone bridges, rows of charming terraced gabled houses and lovely squares.

The Provincial Courthouse

Belfry of Bruges

Belgian Waffles come in a variety of flavours

The Markt

Friday night festivities at a bar next to the train station

Our Belgian friends Stefaan and Tine took us on a day trip to the Belgian coast and the green Flemish “polders” (large flat areas of reclaimed land)

The ruined church at the small medieval town of Damme

 

Where we found a lost Unicorn

De Haan, a village on the West Flanders coast

Beach houses

A coastal forest walk near De Haan

Back in Bruges

Church of Our Lady

What are you looking at????

10 June 2014 – 11 June 2014 – Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Cologne (German: Köln) is Germany’s fourth largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich).  Although it was bombed quite heavily in WWII, many of the buildings have been restored.

The Coat of arms of Cologne

Street art

Cologne’s skyline is dominated by the twin gothic spires of its famous cathedral

The side entrance

Stained glass windows inside the cathedral

St Christopher, patron saint of travellers

Turkish Sufis in the cathedral

Mosaics

The highlight of the cathedral’s art collection was a heavily gilded and bejewelled shrine said to contain the remains of the Three Magi.

The Roonstraβe synagogue, the only synagogue remaining out of Cologne’s 7 synagogues

The Hahnentor Gate

Kölsch (pilsener beer) is the drink of choice in Cologne and there were several breweries and beer gardens dotted conveniently around the city

The Biergarten Rathenauplatz

Cologne’s American football team!

Cologne’s picturesque old town

The Rathaus (town hall)

Blowing bubbles in Hohestraβe, the main shopping street of Cologne