Page 110 - (DK Eyewitness) Top 10 Travel Guide - Brussels Bruges Ghent & Antwerp

108  BEY OND BRUSSELS

A 90-Minute Walk Around Bruges

Almost all the most famous sights of Bruges are in the centre Spiegelrei
and to the southwest of the centre. But the commercial and On the right-hand side of
residential heart in Bruges’ medieval golden age was to the the Academiestraat stands the
north of the Markt. This is where a cosmopolitan collection of Poortersloge 8 (Burghers’
Lodge), a clubhouse for leading
European merchants had their grand national “lodges”, which citizens in medieval Bruges.
oversaw the trade that passed into the city along a network of Almost all the city’s grand
canals. Only small traces of this former glory remain, hidden buildings of that era had a
among a collection of waterways, bridges, and residential tower; this is a rare example
streets of exceptional tranquillity and charm. where the tower (rebuilt in
1775) has survived. On the
other side of the street is
Louis Delacenserie the Oud Tolhuis 9, the Old
(1838-1909), the Customs House. It overlooked
architect responsible for a weighbridge where customs
much of the restoration charges were assessed; that i
of medieval Bruges. On area has been replaced by the u
the other side of the square, Jan van Eyckplein, STRAAT RIJKEPIJNDERS ROPEERDSTR. CARMERSSTR.
Markt, on the corner of named after the city’s great LANGERE I POTTERIER E I E. ZORGHESTR.
St-Amandsstraat, is artist who is represented by O. GISTELHOF ROLWEG
the Huis Bouchoute 3; a statue 0. The canal GOUDENHANDSTRAAT CARMERSSTR.
the compass on the that once led to
façade, attached to a the city centre o GOUDEN-HANDREI J E y
weather vane, was used now stops AUG US TIJNENREI B ALS TR AAT
by merchants to check e
the winds for the ships p GENTHOF t
BLEKERSSTR. R U Z ALEMSTRAAT
bringing goods to S P IEGEL RE I
Bruges. Opposite it is VERVERS DIJK r
the Craenenburg 4 q S P INOLAR EI
ST- ANN AR E I
(now a café), where 9
Archduke Maximilian GRAUW- WE R KERSST R. 0 KONING STR.
w
of Austria was 8 ENGELSE STR. MOLENMEERS
2 The Provinciaal Hof housing the local imprisoned by the a 7
government offices Bruges’ authorities f 6 S T-JAN SST RAAT
in 1488. A walk 5
Markt and Vlamingstraat up Vlamingstraat d NA AL DENSTR. s VLAMI NGSTR A AT ST JAN
PLEIN
Like most of the old trading leads past the KUIP ERSSTRA AT
cities of Flanders, Bruges clusters Stadsschouwburg 5 ST-J A K O B S S T R AAT
around its old market square, (Municipal Theatre),
the Markt (see p101). The 19th- a handsome Neo- PHILIPSTOCKSTR.
century statue in the centre Classical building h MARKT
EIER-
celebrates Pieter de Coninck and from 1868. At No. M OER STR AAT 2
Jan Breydel 1, the guildsmen 33 is the former MUNT 1
PLEIN
who led a revolt against their Genuese Loge 3 MARKT
ST-AMANDSSTRAAT
French overlords in Bruges in 6, the lodge of g GELDMUNTSTRAAT 4
1302. It culminated in victory at the Genoese ONTVANGERSSTR.
the Battle of the Golden Spurs traders, dating
(see p34), a key date in Flemish from 1399, which HELMS TR AAT
nationalism. Goods came into now houses the Friet
the square on a canal, and Musuem. No. 35 was the
were unloaded under the Huis Ter Beurze 7. The word Key
roof of the Waterhalle. “bourse” comes from the Walk Route
The canal was filled in family Van de Beurse who
during the 1780s and now ran an inn here in the 15th
the site of the Waterhalle century, which became a between Spiegelrei and
has been taken by the meeting place for traders, Spinolarei. On the corner of
Provinciaal Hof 2, much like Lloyds’ coffee Spiegelrei and Genthof is
which is used for house in London gave its Roode Steen q; this was the
exhibitions and name to the insurance home of Georges Rodenbach,
receptions. This Neo- brokers who met the author of the controversial
Medieval building 1 Statue of Pieter de there in the novel Bruges-la-Morte (Bruges
was designed by Coninck and Jan Breydel 17th century. the Dead, 1892). Koningstraat,
108-109_EW_Brussels.indd 108 10/01/17 10:54 am
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