nding Culture In Bruges, Belgium

Bruges, Belgium is a cultured city off the beaten path. At least it was until a hilarious movie came out. In Bruges changed all that. While visitors will have a hard time finding movie stars, the city offers a bevy of cultural locations that are worth visiting.

Every city, even a drab one, has an immediate obvious theme. Bruges screams history in the form of museums. Frankly, they are plentiful. The city is quaint enough to be worth visiting anyway with an old historic town and canals, but history buffs will really love it.

Love museums? A small sampling of the best in Bruges includes the Groeninge, Memling, Archeological, Gruuthuse and Folklore Museums as well as the Renaissance Hall. There are many more niche oriented museums as well. You just have to walk five feet to find new ones.

The days of cobblers are largely past, but not at the Folklore Museum. Home to a 17th century almshouse still owned by the local cobblers association, you can view cobbler studios, Flemish homes and other items at this museum. It is like looking back through time.

Mention museums and many people immediately think of art. The Groeninge in Bruges offers a unique twist. It is a large gallery of excellent art, but primarily from local artists. Check out Memling, Eyck, David and van der Goes to mention only a few artists.

Like a little kick in your adult beverage? How about spicy beer? If so, the place to go is the Gruuthuse Museum. It was a family owned spice beer brewery that was legendary in the medieval period. It will give you an entirely new perspective on the idea of BYOB.

Art is an odd world. Hans Memling is considered a great Flemish painter and has his own museum, the Memling. The odd thing? He was Germany. Still, his works are amazing and definitely worth a viewing, which makes the museum carrying his name a must see.

Reading about history is nice and all, but most of us prefer a more realistic experience. If 16th century Belgium interests you, the Renaissance Hall is the place to be. You’ll be transported into the daily life of this fascinating period from the mundane to the spectacular.

Contrasting old and new is what the Archeological Museum is all about. You can view Bruges through time and then walk out the door to see the modern version of the city. It will give you an odd sense of perspective of time running through the hour glass.

Bruges has much to offer in addition to the museums. It is one of those cities you enjoy by just being there. The people are friendly and the city has much to offer in casual comfort and atmosphere. A walk around the canals is certainly an enjoyable time.