It makes me laugh how many cities are described as the Venice (or Paris) of the ...north/south/east/west/orient/pacific etc. I have been to a few and they are lovely in their own right without making these comparisons.
I did some solo travel during my trip. The boy couldn't get a lot of time off work. Last time I was in Europe (2007) had wanted to catch the Eurostar from London to Brussels but for some reason I didn't actually go.
So this time I booked myself onto the Eurostar and decided I liked the idea of going to Bruges, so many people told me it was a pretty city, I had never been to Belgium before so booked the hotel through the Eurostar booking site too. I really enjoyed the Eurostar experience - then again I love train journeys (not so keen on daily commuting by train though - used to catch the train to school and the novelty wore off).
First, I caught a train from Bristol to London (Paddington) - about 2 hours, and train was overcrowded due to trains being cancelled and works on the lines. The it was on the underground to Kings cross/St Pancras. To go on the Eurostar I went through immigration processes by French Immigration and security checking similar to air travel but without the liquids or luggage restrictions.
It is a very comfortable journey, and I wasn't at all worried by travelling underneath the channel. I wasn't sure if the idea of being in a tunnel under the sea between two countries would cause me an concern, it didn't. On arrival in Brussels I then caught another train to Bruges (1 hour), lovely to see Belgian countryside from a comfortable train. So that was 4 trains for the day across 3 countries.
After checking in to my hotel I headed out to explore my surroundings, stock up on my favourite beverage (diet coke) and identify a good destination for dinner. I quickly fell in love with this pretty canal filled city.
Every second or third shop being a chocolate shop only enhances its appeal!
Wonderful shot Megan! I've been wondering what I will think about going through the channel too. I have just booked our seats on the Eurostar from Paris to London for next month. I love finding a bargain and I'm kicking myself that I didn't book sooner and get the cheaper fares... oh well. I love hearing about your trip!
@bella_ss I hate missing cheaper fares, but this time I totally missed out on a bargain - I booked it the day before. But there is something joyful in a last minute almost impromptu trip.
Other tunnels on the UK side affected my airs with pressure changes but the chunnel was smooth and no noticeable pressure changes. I just read my book and barely noticed. You'll have much better weather than my trip - I seem to go everywhere in the off season and have terrible weather but I miss out on the crowds too which is a good thing
@lbmcshutter I agree, last minute decisions can be the best. Being from North Qld I'm not sure I could cope with too much cold. We've been there in May before and the weather was beautiful, as you say we will pay the price with the crowds.
Eurostar is great... not done it to Bruges though, glad to hear it's easy. Took an overnight ferry there a few years ago and loved it. We passed a view like this and George said 'it's so lovely we'll have to come back to take it all in' - I wonder if his 17-yr-old self would think the same now...
May 12th, 2013
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Bruges looks beautiful from your pic :)
Other tunnels on the UK side affected my airs with pressure changes but the chunnel was smooth and no noticeable pressure changes. I just read my book and barely noticed. You'll have much better weather than my trip - I seem to go everywhere in the off season and have terrible weather but I miss out on the crowds too which is a good thing