Belgium: Nieuwpoort, Ypres and Bruges

Posted by Anura Samara, 16 September 2014

Although we did stop in at a museum in Ypres, the stay in Belgium was meant to give us a break from the World War One battlefields and cemeteries. We also took one day off from sightseeing to just relax in Nieuwport.

Nieuwpoort

Nieuwpoort is really a seaside town, although the older part that we stayed in is a few kilometres from the sea on the river. It has a smallish old town, with cobble-stoned streets, a main market square and old buildings. Of course, now we’re not so sure – so many of these French and Belgian towns were destroyed in the wars that it’s hard to know if they are original or not. This part of town has lots of cafes and restaurants and we really just set out to relax.

On our ‘free’ day, we hired a couple of bikes from the hotel with the plan of riding to France. It’s so close, and say that you rode to a different country sounds so cool.

We set off along the river towards the newer part of the town on the seafront. This ride was along well formed pedestrian/cycling paths – they have really developed this to provide good access between the inland and seafront parts of town.

When you arrive at the seafront, some of the charm is lost. This area is really tall apartment buildings bordering the beach – you can definitely see it as a seaside resort for locals. Clearly, in peak season it would be bustling but we struggled to find a cafe open for morning tea.

From here, we then set off in a westerly direction towards De Panne with only a couple of missed turns along the way. Generally, the route is well sign-posted for a couple of different cycling routes and there’s a mix of riding next to main roads, in the suburbs and through the countryside. From De Panne, the road turns inland and then we make a further turn for the border. In the end, the border is a bit of an anti-climax – just a small restaurant, a service station and kiosk. But it’s another country – we rode to another country!

Instead of retracing our route, we took a more direct – but inland – route back to Nieuwpoort. It was mostly open fields but there were concrete bunkers dotted around – it ‘s hard to tell which war they date from.

All up, we rode for 68 kms without even realising it. The terrain is just so flat that you can ride for hours with little effort. And back in time for a beer in the market square!

Ypres

Ypres is another city that was close to the frontlines during World War One.

First up is the In Flanders Fields museum. After having grown up in the Australia commemoration of wars, it’s always interesting to see how other countries commemorate wars. It’s even more interesting when you’re in the country where Australian soldiers served – we tend to only see these countries through Australian eyes and memories, forgetting the impact of wars on the people who live their.

So this museum is very much about the Belgian experience of war. It details the Belgian experience from initial rumours of war, mobilisation of their troops, occupation by the Germans and the war effort under the Allies. There are a series of video projections of people dressed for their roles reciting their experiences – not just Belgian soldiers, but civilians, nurses and even German soldiers. There are also some great photo displays showing the currrent landscape overlaid with significant landmarks from the war – it’s so hard to imagine what the countryside was like during the war.

From the museum you can climb the bell-tower for a view of the area. Unfortunately, our entire time in France and Belgium featured fog and mist so there wasn’t much to see.

The other thing to see is the the Menin Gate. Maybe I’ve been to the Australian War Memorial too much but I understand the deep connection between Australia and the Menin Gate. Firstly, two of the lion statues from the original gate are now in the AWM and there’s also a moving painting called Menin Gate and Midnight hanging in the AWM. And finally, the last post ceremony is conducted by local volunteer firefighters, some of whom I met when they were in Canberra.

The new Menin Gate is an imposting piece of architecture, a grand arch on the edge of the city. It’s really a hall of memory , with the names of fallen soldiers and their units engraved over nearly every internal surface. It’s important to linger in Ypres until the evening, as every night at 8.00pm a last post ceremony is conducted. But you have to be there early – the area under the gate starts filling with spectators from 6.30 onwards and if you arrived at the time the ceremony starts then you would see nothing.

The ceremony is a formal affair. There were uniformed soldiers, with officers running key aspects of it. There are invited guests – old soldiers and their families given pride of place in the front. The last post is played by a bugler and then wreaths are placed by various organisations. It’s great to see how the sacrifices made so long ago are still gratefully remembered by the local people. And of course there’s a personal connect for me – each of the buglers is required to be a member of a local volunteer fire brigade and are in unifrom.

Bruges

Bruges is another city we had so much about. We love the old parts of European cities and Bruges is a real delight s its just so large – lots of narrow streets to get lost in. We started out with a short boat ride along one of the canals, as it’s a great way to see a city from a different perspective.

We then went to the southern edge to the Powder Tower. From there we walked through gardens along the river to reach the Begijnhof, a community for religious women. This was definitely the quieter area of town, as we found when we continued northwards. We stopped in at the Church of our Lady – unfortunately, around half the interior is blocked off for renovations but there is a statue of the Madonna by Michelangelo which is worth seeing.

We finally ended up in a secondary square called the Burg – it’s smaller than the main market square but the buildings here are more ornate and impressive.

Categories: Belgium

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