Bruges Retro Walking tour: Highlights and Hidden gems + Pralines and Waffles

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Au programme

1. 1
   Hof Bladelin

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   Start at our beautiful secret garden, hidden inside the center of Bruges. Here we will immerse you in the history of Bruges from the first mintue you step into our courtyard. With the help of one of the most detail medieval maps of Bruges, you will get a sense about the structure of Bruges and it's development throughout time.

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   The Burg square

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   The geographical start of Bruges where our first duke Baldwin with his Iron Arm founded the beginnings of our city. On this square we find the impressive townhall, the long lost church and the most important building of Bruges...

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   Old Port

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   Now, the Jan van Eyck square, named after one of the most underrated painter of the 15th century, this was once the impressive port of medieval Bruges. All the ships arriving into Bruges needed to pay taxation at these loading docks where two impressive buildings draw the attention of the visitor: The porter's lodge and the Pijnder's house.

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   Italian Quarter

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   The Italians were maybe the most important tradepartners for Bruges as they had three different cities represented via nation's houses: Venice, Genua and Florence. This last one was the birth city of the prestigeous De Medici family, giving rise to one of the first stockmarkets of modern Europe.

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   God's Houses

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   Inside this small street we find the almshouses (God's houses) of Bruges, places where poor people could live during the medieval period. Three main groups were responsible for the construction of these houses, each with our own reasoning: The Church, the Guilds and the rich merchants. Look how we incorporate these houses in modern Bruges and how we preserve our culture throughout time...

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   Duke's Palace

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   One of the most exclusive hotels of Bruges was once the home of the wealhiest Duke's of Europe: The Dukes of Burgundy. Bruges was one of the most important cities during the 15th century, providing the Dukes of Burgundy their enormous wealth. Listen to the stroy of our 6-golden years in Bruges and how everything came abruptly to an end underneath of our beloved Mary of Burgundy...

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   Simon Stevin Square

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   One of the few scientists on display in our city, this man was responsible for the reconstruction of our beloved canals. After a thrilling escape of our city during the Spanish occupied late 16th century, he arrives in The Hague, connecting both cities with his canal engineering.

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   Saint-John Hospital

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   This 12th century old Hospital is one of the oldest remaining hospitals in whole of Europe. Today it has an impressive art gallery with works of Hans Memling in combination with old surgical equipment, where visitors van marvel in a mixture of art and science. Walk through the massive hospital grounds and feel how the sick and wounded found their saviours on our doctors and nurses of that time...

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   Gruuthuse Castle

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   Learn about the center of our flemish culture: The art of making beer. This castle was made by Lodewijk van Gruuthuse, a man so wealthy, he bought the land next to our most influential church and made a private entrance into it so he could pray in peace...

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    Belfry Tower

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    Our last stop brings us to the Belfry Tower, an symbol of absolute power during the medieval ages. Marvel in it's shadow and take a closer look to the miniature sculpture in front of it. It may hold some secrets that could amaze you...