SURPRISE....we are in Belgium

Justin and I enjoying the Belgium Pub!  

Good Afternoon from Ghent , Belgium!  This morning when we woke up at 4am! Our intentions were to drive to Belgium to a fleamarket and come straight back.  Little did we know we would end up doing a 3 country tour in a day! Yup, that's generally how we travel.  I am very organized: lunches/snacks...gas station stops, mapquest directions incase gps fails, things to do in the city we are going on, things to see along the way and back home again. Hahaha....it's great to have a plan & then throw it out the window!

    Our first stop was Tongeren , Belgium.  Here every sunday of the year you will find an open air flea market with all styles of sellers.  If you have  keen eye and savvy negotiation skills this place will be your playground!  Today we walked away with paint, wax, wine barrel, dishes, beer & bar decor (the hubby is building his own in house bar) linens & my 10year anniversary ring gift!  At the fleamarket they have an indoor part with bathrooms and a small restaurant so we stopped for snacks & cappuccino and then headed back to the car.

     Our second stop was Brussels.  Today the weather has been quite chilly so most of our touring was from inside the car.  I do have to say it is quite a vast city!  Something maybe if a festival is going on we will come back to visit more in depth.  For now, we drove on to our favorite place in Belgium.......

Ghent, Belgium!  We have been here 3 times.  The first time I was super ill and spent the whole time inside the room of the Ibis hotel.  The 2nd time we got a chance to experience the incredible 10 day festival where Ghents shine! Bands perform right over the canals as everyone sings, dances and parties.   I love the cobblestone streets, the flemish influences & the staggering cafes all throughout the city.  My husband loves the BEER & the Gravensteen Castle!  Together we LOVE the sunday flea market!!!! What can we say we come from families of bargain shoppers & antique dealers...it's only natural that we acquired those same interests and now have them magnified as husband and wife.  You could easily call us a "junking powerhouse couple" LOL!!!! We love to buy, re-purpose/upcycle.  Today, we didn't end up reaching the city until around 3 so we missed the flea market but had plenty of time to check out the local specialty shops.  We got lost for hours in shops that ONLY sell things that are made and sold in Ghent.  A few worth mentioning were: A shop that sold  home made soap , a "frilly bakery" that created the most amazing cupcakes and an upbeat pub that filled in with college students just wanting to unwind and have a good time.  

Each time we visit Ghent there is always something new to see and it hasn't been spoiled by a bunch of tourists flooding in and causing prices to rise.  Its the perfect weekend getaway being only 40minutes from the ocean, the locals are super friendly and from our little village in Germany a 4hour drive tops! 

Below you will find pictures from our trip to Belguim! Thanks so much for following my blog and have a great day! 

                                                                        Beverly

Brussels , Belgium

Ghent , Belgium All home made products made at this bakery <3 

Local  selling Ghent specialty nuts 

Gravensteen Castle in Ghent , Belgium .  We love how its right in the city, not far away and it's a lot bigger than it looks in this picture.  Definitely a place worth visiting 

Our friends Shauna & Steven loving Ghent! 

Just one of many beautiful canals that run all throughout Ghent ,  Belgium