Ghent – more than one night’s stay

I arrived in Ghent at lunchtime, and after one false start (followed the wrong tram line), I found my way to Hostel Uppelink, a place with a view of four towers. I was shown the city by a local, finding out about more than just the tourist spots, but when we visited St Bavo’s Cathedral, we were disappointed to find that the famous Van Eyck painting, “The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb” was undergoing 5 years of restoration. On the upside, I learned the story behind the saying ‘stinking rich’ and enjoyed the sunshine and catching up on the last 13 years with a friend.

I tried some Belgian beers, of course, Westmale Tripel (9% alcohol) and La Chouffe (8% alcohol) but was not brave enough to touch the aptly named Delerium Tremens during this visit. Belgian cuisine is fairly meat-oriented, I can recommend the yummy ‘stoverij’ (like a beef casserole), with frietes, but there is a growing number of vegetarians in Ghent, so I was treated to vegetarian vol-au-vents by my hosts (shout out to Hostel Uppelink).  I also devoured numerous waffles, why wouldn’t you when they are available on every street corner in return for a mere gold coin?

With another sunny day in Ghent, I explored the city further, eschewing the Castle of the Counts (full of screaming school children) for the completely empty Caemersklooster, which I found by accident, yet it was one of the best €2 experiences I’ve had.  This cultural centre had a blow-by-blow exhibition of the restoration of the Van Eyck I had missed in the cathedral, its history, resoration processes, even details about the scientific methods being used to explore and define the composition of the painting, the layers, even its wooden frame.  There was also a delayed webcam recording of inside the laboratory where the project team is actually doing this work!

After more walking, a local tip took me up the Belfry, for another fascinating examination of the inner workings of the clock and carillon mechanisms inside the bell tower, culminating in a 360° panorama of Ghent, and I swear I could even see Brussels in the distance!

Some tips for future visits:

• EVERYTHING is closed on Mondays.
• Fork out the €1.30 for a tram ticket, it will save the legs if you want to get across town.
• Hire a bike and get outside the city centre too, I wish I had more time to do this, the Belgian countryside looks so beautiful!