"In Bruges"...West Flanders

I only knew Bruges from the movie (with the same name)...I was glad to find out that the city it's a lot more than just what it looks like in the movie... Plus the weather was more pleasant to visit it...although I could feel that september was so close...and summer was done...

I ended up loving Belgium, not just because of the beautiful old (and new) cities it has, but also knowing wonderful people, that made this hole trip something to remember after years!

Here are some pics along with some info about the places I've seen...

The belfry of Bruges (or Belfort)

- is a medieval bell tower in the historical center of Bruges, Belgium. One of the city's most prominent symbols, the belfry formerly housed a treasury and the municipal archives, and served as an observation post for spotting fires and other danger. A narrow, steep staircase of 366 steps, accessible by the public for an entry fee, leads to the top of the 83-meter-high building, which leans about a meter to the east.

Provincial Court

The historic centre of Bruges has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.

This is a spot that is very known in Bruges...and every tourist has to take at least a pic here...couldn't be an exception... :)) Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam, Bruges it's sometimes referred to as "The Venice of the North".

All the windows from the Chocolate Shops (and there are a loooot!) look fabulous...beware!!! If you are a sweets lover (as I desperately am...), you can easily spend all your money on loads of eye catching and delicious sweets... I died there several times... :)

Yeah..we couldn't leave Bruges empty handed...

Brussels

Apart of being the administrative centre of the European Union and the capital of Belgium...Brussels means picturesque medieval streets, lively squares, beautiful boulevards, impressive monuments, spacious parks, cosy cafés, interesting restaurants and an active cultural life and (probably the same poem for all the tourists) - chocolate, waffles, beer, lace, and ...chocolate again... :)

delicious belgian waffles :)

St. Michael and Gudula Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Michel or Sint-Michiels Kathedraal) was the first thing we visited as soon as we parked the car...Inside the cathedral we heard a beautiful voice singing the mass...celestial :)

City atmosphere...

...one of the many things I like to do when I get out of the country is I buy my fave magazines at their (almost) normal price...For eg. Vogue Paris is three times more expensive in Romania to buy than in the rest of the (central or west) european countries...Thant gets on my nerves... Freakin' backward country...

say good bye to Langley, UK

Yeah...so two weeks of fun and work ended so fast... it's almost the end of the month...the end of summer...time to go back home, to my theatre bizz.. :) Since we left Romania at the beginning of the month, we've experienced only great stuff! Not only that I've seen a lot of new countries and cities, I've learned about them , but I got to spend 2 weeks in Langley School, near Lodon, Norfolk ,UK and work with english-belgian-american incredible people for belgian teens. It really was a wise idea of work&fun mix for this last month of summer. All this refilled my batteries with good energy that I so need for my theatre work back home. So with all these good memories still fresh in my mind, we've started the journey back to Romania.

These were the stops ->Dover,UK->Calais,France->Ghent, Belgium->Bruges, Belgium->Bruselles, Belgium->Germany->Salzburg, Austria->Hungary->Baia Mare,Romania.

Langley School, Norfolk, England

Inside the Euro Tunnel train

The summer is so over....but it was amazing!!

Norwich, UK

It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the second largest city in England, after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom.

Norwich has a number of important museums which reflect both the rich history of the City and of Norfolk, as well as wider interests.

The largest is Norwich Castle Museum. This contains extensive collections of archaeological finds from the county of Norfolk, art (including a fine collection of paintings by the Norwich School of painters), ceramics (including the largest collection of British teapots), silver, and Natural History. Of particular interest are dioramas of Norfolk scenery, showing wildlife and landscape. The Museum has been extensively remodelled to enhance the display of the many collections.

up -Norwich street vibe

down - one of the museums

(The Beatles theme...) inside the Castle

The Castle Mall

Cambridge

Cambridge...not only a city where every student dreams to do his college, but a wonderful old and new mixture of arhitecture, history and peacefully places, all surrounded by the Cam River. Absolutely amazing!

Above the Cam River

in the back-> King's College Chapel

is the chapel to King's College of the University of Cambridge

with the Gibb's Building

people punting on Cam River

love these pics!

down ->Near The Corpus Christi Clock

It is located in Cambridge outside Corpus Christi College's

new library building. It was invented by Dr John Taylor.

with some english goodies (the fudge also !) bought from one of the many shops on King's Parade

fooling around in the University Museum of Zoology near a dinosaur fossil...

Cambridge, UK

at the Grantchester Orchard Tea Garden with Mate

good bye France, hello UK!

Here we are...left Belgium for France, then right here we're about to take the ferry for UK to continue our journey. I love going by ferry, I did it first when I left Sweden with family for Germany, to go back home after a lovely holiday spent in Norway...and I couldn't wait to board for Dover...of course it was a nasty weather, of course the ferry was nice, of course I hit the duty free shop, of course I couldn't left it without an Escada parfume and some Estee Lauder make up and some french cooking books, of course we admired The White Cliffs...of course everything was wonderful! I've enjoyed it soooo much!