One day in Ghent

We came here to see an exhibit at the art museum and fell in love with this beautiful city. We were here in January when there were no crowds and we enjoyed watching the local children ice skate in the rink they have near the town square. But the highlight was St Bavo's Cathedral and Van Eyke's The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, it is a masterpiece in a category of its own and certainly worth the time it took to listen to the headphone tour.

Quick Tips:

Visit St Bavo's first thing in the morning, crowds build up even in the off season to see 'The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb'. If you like art the cathedral also has a Rubens. The square is also home to the Belfry and several very nice lace shops. Buy your lace here it is much less expensive than in Brugges.You can buy a nice tablecloth or even a christening gown made with beautiful Belgian Lace. We picked up quite a few small pieces to give as gifts. You can also find some wonderful Belgian Chocolate, try the local handmade ones, they are so far superior to anything we can buy in the states.

Best Way To Get Around:

Walking is best but cabs are available and inexpensive. We were amazed to see that both the cab driver who drove us to the museum and one who picked us up were both women. We found that a little unusual. In the warm weather there are horse drawn carriages available for tours but of course in January they were not out.

Parking in Ghent was a nightmare. We found a parking spot along the street near the town square eventually but the meter was only good for 2 hours so we had to run back twice to feed it. Take the train in for the day if you can.

We spent three wonderful nights at this delightful bed and breakfast. Joe had the blue cottage and Al and I had the green. They are beautiful stone cottages with fireplaces, bright modern bathrooms,a tv, a wooden kitchen table that seats 4 and a sofa which can be opened into a bed. There is a small galley style kitchen where I fixed our evening meals. The fridge comes with some supplies which you can make use of ( the prices are listed) but there is plenty of room for everything we bought. One thing I did use in the fridge was Belgian Beer.

There is a very interesting stock of different beers and since Belgium is know for the quality of its beer I felt I owed it to myself to try a few.

Breakfast was delivered to our homes by Ingrid every morning and they were a little different each day. There could be cheese, meat, eggs,cereal, bread, jams, hot chocolate and coffee.

All very fresh and hot. This is a whole family operation and Ingrid, Daniel and their daughters all chip in to make you feel welcome but they never intrude on your privacy.

This is a great place to stay and I can't wait to go back. The location is perfect. The town where we did our grocery shopping is Destelbergen, it has 2 groceries, a bakery and an ATM. The houses are located just minutes off the highway. Ghent is only 10 minutes away and Bruges about half an hour. In the other direction you can go to Brussels in about 30 minutes. This is a perfect location to visit the whole of Belgium. They have a website at vanherke.com/bb/grecott.htm

UPDATE January 2003 We did return for a second visit. We spent five very enjoyable nights here and toured all of Flanders from this one location. We switched cottages this time and they are equally as comfortable. Ingrid showed us the conservatory where she will serve breakfast in the warm weather. If you are lucky you will be able to get a booking here.