Good Times in Ghent

For the first two nights of our Belgium-France extravaganza, we stayed in the 12th-century city of Ghent, Belgium. We stayed in a wonderful apartment from Airbnb that came with two cats! I'm not sure if hanging out with Fons and Babs made missing Ricky and Lucy better or worse, but we sure had fun with them.

Fons doesn't look so happy to be corralled. Jason, on the other hand, looks thrilled.

 Ghent is a beautiful city that mixes very old buildings with modern conveniences and the hustle and bustle of a good-sized population. We had a lot of fun checking out the sights and eating waffles, frites, and chocolate (more on that later). Of all the cities we've visited so far, I think Ghent gets my vote for place I'd most like to live.

Hanging out at the castle.

On our last night in Ghent we went out with friends from the ship and their friends that actually live in Ghent. It was incredibly nice to have a local show us around (and order for us, since our Flemish is a bit sub-par). As one does in Europe, we met up with them outside the castle pictured above, as it is an easy landmark to find in the middle of the city. While we were waiting I was able to take some great pictures of Ghent at night, and we had fun helping some teenaged girls do some sort of initiation pranks on teenage boy scouts.

Ghent has won awards for its night illumination.

Once we met up with our friends, we grabbed a quick dinner of doner and falafel, then headed out to a few bars. In one spot we ordered a specific kind of beer that is traditionally served out of bowls! Weary, old travelers that we are, we didn't stay out too late, but it was a fitting way to say goodbye to a fabulous little city.

Beer in a bowl in Belgium.