Belgian break (3) : Ghent
For our third day in Belgium, we made a trip from Antwerp to Ghent. As a schoolchild, Vee studied a poem by Robert Browning titled “How they brought the good news from Ghent to Aix” (actually this was a fictional incident and one never learns the nature of the good news). Little did she think that half a century or so later, she would actually visit the city – now with a population of 250,000. It was an easy journey of about 40 minutes on a local train and we had excellent weather all day.
We headed first for St Bavo’s Cathedral because this is home to what is said to be one of the greatest cultural treasures of Northern Europe – a huge painted polyptych by the brothers Hubrecht and Jan van Eyck. The religious work is called “The adoration of the mystic lamb” and consists of 12 brightly coloured panels. It is currently in the process of restoration so two panels were absent and replaced by black and white reproductions.
Next we visited the Belfort or befry which was built in 1380-1381 and towers up 299 feet (91 metres). We went up as high as we could for good views of the city as well as access to the large drum with 17,600 square holes which activates the 54 bell carillon.
Ghent claims to have the most extensive pedestrianised zone of any city in Europe so, after a light lunch, we strolled around the city centre, admiring the medieval buildings, many with stepped gables, overlooking cobbled squares and streets. Like Bruges, Ghent has a network of canals and we enjoyed a pleasant 40 minute canal ride to conclude our day in the city.
Back in Antwerp, we were able to eat dinner outside and I concluded the meal with a seriously good banana split – one of the best I have ever had.
September 7th, 2014 at 5:44 pm
The Van Eyck really is a marvel. Hitler tried to steal it as he thought one of its panels contained a code that would lead him to the cup of Christ and unlimited powers
September 7th, 2014 at 6:23 pm
Yes, Lee, the survival of the polyptych is something of a miracle. It was rescued from Protestant vandals in 1566, and from fire in 1822. Parts were carried off by French soldiers in 1794, sold in 1816, and stolen in 1934.