I started to tear up a little bit as I waited for my train. Paris was so great! How could any city ever measure up?!? But I knew there were a million great things about every city I'd be going to, and I figured that the sign of a good trip is being sad to leave. So, off to Bruges I went! I had to change trains twice on my way, but soon enough I was there. What a cute little city!
I had a little trouble finding my hostel because the streets wind and twist all over the place... and the Flemish street names all sound the same, and the streets themselves all kind of look the same... But I made it eventually! This was my first stay in a hostel. For anyone who doesn't know, a hostel is a lot like a college dorm. There are bunk beds, shared bathrooms, common areas, and mostly a bunch of younger people who stay there. They're a pretty good deal budget wise- this one was only 17€ a night, which is about $25 or so. It was a super quirky hostel, with a bar downstairs, which you had to walk though to get to the showers every day (you also had to walk through an outdoor courtyard- this was no big deal, but I bet it would be no fun in the winter!).
I was in a room with 6 other girls, two of whom I met right away: Fiona from Ireland and Lizzy from England. Both of them had been traveling for 3 months straight (not together) and had just come from Amsterdam, my next destination. They had so much insight on what to do and where to go all over Europe, and I'm so grateful for their advice! The three of us went down to the hostel bar for a beer, then headed out for the night because there was a big music festival in town that we couldn't wait to check out. Before the music though, we had to stop at one of Bruges's famous fry stands. So they're basically french fries, except french fries are apparently Belgian. Whatever their proper name, these were delicious. Belgians eat them with mayonnaise instead of ketchup, though there are a ton of other sauces you can order as well. Lizzy stuck with mayo, Fiona got yellow curry, and I had stoofvlees: a tasty beef gravy recommended by the fry man. Yum!
The first festival spot we went to was an instruction class for a traditional Flemish dance. Then we saw some professional tango-ers, and then a huge outdoor Zumba class.
Oh and I can't leave out this adorable little kiddo we saw, who thinks he or she (not sure) is Harry Potter. Check out the wand, gryffindor scarf, and glasses!
Next we went to this tiny little pub down a random alleyway and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't ever be able to find it again. Fiona had heard of it from some friends, and it was the only place in town to get De Garre beer, which is like 12% alcohol and goes straight to your head.
Our hostel had really good happy hour specials, so after our De Garre we went back there to try some more belgian beers. I introduced the girls to the combination of Hoegaarden with a raspberry beer, and they thought I was crazy at first... Until they tried it and loved it. So don't worry, America, I'm representing you really well over here! After happy hour we went back to the main square to check out the festival again, which was supposed to be a little livelier later on. The first thing we walked into was a huge white tent in the middle of the square, and it reminded me so much of Czech Days in Protivin, Iowa! There were accordions playing "YMCA," which was kind of hilarious, and it was definitely an older crowd. Nevertheless, we joined in for a little bit (blame it on the beers).
Next we went to the silent disco. I was really skeptical, but it was amazing and I will never forget it. You walk into this big ballroom crowded with people dancing like crazy and there are 2 DJs on stage, but you don't hear any music... Everyone is wearing headphones tuned in to one of the DJs. You can switch back and forth between the two DJs' stations by hitting a button on your headphones, and that's where the real fun is. One station played Madonna, Billy Joel, Elton John, Michael Jackson, and tons of 80s, while the other station played artists like Rage Against the Machine and Nirvana. It was so so so so so fun, dancing my heart out in a room full of strangers, singing at the top of my lungs along with the half of the people in the room who were listening to the same station as me. It was awesome when I took off my headphones at one point to hear half the crowd singing "Johnny be Good" while the other half sang Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Quite the contrast, but pretty entertaining.
When we were too tired to dance any more, we went to a big outdoor stage for another DJ show, but this one was on regular speakers instead of headphones... Bummer! Ha. It was still pretty great though, so we stuck around for awhile, then headed back to the hostel where my tired beer-filled body had no trouble falling asleep!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
No comments:
Post a Comment