Our day-trip to Ghent!

Aaaaand then on Saturday (the 23rd) we decided to go to Ghent! Ghent is a city about a half hour (by train) north of Brussels in the Flanders region, where they speak mostly Flemish. (Aka: Dutch, but the proper term for the language of the Dutch people is Flemish) We were told that the Dutch tend to be a proud people, so speaking to them in French (even though they know and understand the language) would GREATLY offend them. Not really a problem for us seeing as how we know about as much French as we know Flemish… but it was, nevertheless, good to know!

So we bought our (incredibly cheap) tickets on Saturday morning and hopped on a train to explore our first new city! The train ride there went well, but then we had a difficulty finding the tram we needed to board to get us to the heart of the city where everything was happening. Awkward. We actually got on the tram going the opposite way for a bit, but realized it quickly with the help of a friendly fellow tram-rider. :) Ghent resembles Brussels in a lot of ways: Big city, stone streets, gorgeous architecture and teeming with people! We actually caught Ghent at an interesting time because it was the start of their ten day "Gentse Feesten" which is actually the largest culture festival in Europe! So the city was full of food tents, music, carnivals, games, dancing, strange things that seem inappropriate for public view… etc! You know... the euro-usual...

Our first stop (once we got on the RIGHT tram) was for brunch at Julie’s House. It was recommended to us by one of Jason’s coworkers, Sabrina. Now, there is nothing I love more (food-wise) that a cute little café, and let me tell you, this was one of the cutest. Super vintage with a hint of chic-ness. Super cute. But, ok, I’ll stop being girly now and get back to the details.

The main attractions we saw were the Gravensteen Castle, St. Nicholas Church, the Ghent Belfry, and the Cathedral of St. Bavo. Both the castle and the Belfry were quite a hike, (which made me glad I wore my tennis shoes) but the views from the top made it WELL worth the climb!

St. Nicholas was just as gorgeous as I’ve come to expect European Catholic churches to be, so we spent some time in there praying, writing in their book of intentions, and lighting candles for our friends and family. Those have been our goals for us to try to do in every new church we visit all over Europe. Our main intentions are for the vocation of marriage and for our friends and family, but please let us know if there’s anything you ever want us to add!

St. Nicholas

Behind the altar of St. Nicholas

The cathedral was beyond words. But words are all I have since we weren’t allowed to take any pictures or video. All of these European churches and cathedrals usually have underground crypts which house even more history from the churches earlier centuries. The St. Bavo Cathedral is home to the "Adoration of the Mystic Lamb" which is a massive (11'x15') panel painting that I can't even begin to do justice with an explanation, so check out this wiki-article if you want to learn more!
Like I said, we couldn't take pictures, but I found this online so you at least have some clue as to what I'm talking about:

It was incredibly gorgeous with the most phenomenal amount of detail. It's currently being kept in a safe area in the cathedral for study and restoration. We were really glad we got to see and learn about it in person. I'm not really a big art person (aka, you won't catch me waiting in an hour-long line to see the Mona Lisa) but this definitely blew my mind. It was very evident that God had certainly blessed the hands of those who created it!

Later on the evening we met up with one of Jason's coworkers from Milwaukee, Amanda, who's assigned to London for two years. We got to have a little dinner and go on an "canal cruise" of the city which was wonderful!

We were so pleased with how our day went, we started planning our next trips on the train ride home :) We're possibly heading to Amsterdam this weekend, and we've just booked our trip to Italy (second honeymooooon!) for the end of September. We'll be spending half a week in Cinque Terre and Florence, and the other half in Rome and The Vatican.

More good news: in a surprising turn of events, my besty best Ashley (the maid of honor at our wedding) will be making the hop over the pond at the end of August to come visit us! *Exciiiiited* She'll be staying for about 9 days, so I can only imagine the euro-mischief we'll get ourselves into...

Remember to check out facebook for the rest of the photos from Ghent, etc! Sending so much love to our friends and family back in the states! We miss you all!

Love,
The Newlyweds