It was suggested that on the first full day in Bruges that we might drive to another town because it was going to be the best day of the weekend weather-wise. I thought that if that was the case it would be ideal to do a walking tour of Bruges rather than sit in the car for long periods of time. A compromise was reached and we ventured out to some sites on the outskirts of Bruges.
The first port of call was to see Sint-Trudoabdij Male (St Trudo Abbey of the Sisters of the Holy Sepulchre) which is a significant site in Bruges. The grounds were quite spectacular with the autumn colours and leaves blowing about.
Tags: Autumn, Bruges, Brugge, Sint-Trudoabdij Male, St Trudo Abbey of the Sisters of the Holy Sepulchre, Weekend away
The view from some of the rooms wasn’t all it should be, as you can see the Church of our Lady is under wraps. There was however a spectacular display of the workmen going up and down the spire in their cradle. Rather them than me! This is one of the main landmarks in Bruges which meant I had to be rather creative finding ways to hide the scaffolding from view when taking some of my photos.
The interior of the church however was open for business as usual and well worth a visit.
Tomorrow I shall move out of the hotel and take you on a journey round Bruges and beyond in all it’s autumn splendour.
Tags: Bruges, Brugge, Church of our Lady, Martin's Brugge, Onze-lieve-Vrouwekerk, Scaffolding, Weekend away
That room with a view also had a permanent resident. I am not sure why his hood was up when I arrived (although it was a little chilly in the room), but I thought it made him look a little bit like a monk. He had a message on a tag around his neck, which said:
Hello,
My name is Martin’s Bear and I welcome you to my home. I know you will enjoy your stay. Please leave me in MY room as I do not like to travel!
My cousins however waiting for you at reception and would love to meet your family…
From the looks of it he seems to be planning a small adventure around Bruges. At this point I feel the need to point out that I would never dream of taking a room bear on an adventure 
Tags: Bed, Bruges, Brugge, Martin's Brugge, Weekend away
The eagle eyed amongst you will notice that there is no week 14 post. This is because I was enjoying a well earned weekend away, with all it’s food challenges.
Before I went away I was given the new Weight Watchers ProPoints plan to trial. It was difficult to get my head around the new points system which seems to give me roughly double the points I used to have but all the foods are calculated differently. The previous plan worked on calories and saturated fat, the new one takes into account how the food is processed by the body and takes into account; proteins, carbohydrates fat and fibre.
I was determined to make a go of it whilst I was away whilst still enjoying the cuisine of the region. I do have photo evidence of some of the foods I enjoyed The biggest boost for me was that fruit is now free and the Belgian desserts always seemed to have a fancy fruit and sorbet mix. Which left me free to try out those delicious waffles and chocolate options on other occasions
So how did I do 2 weeks after I had last been weighed? I only gained 0.5lb so I am happy 
I think I am getting my head around the new plan and it works.
Tags: Life, ProPoints, Weekend away, Weight Loss, Weight Watchers
After the difficulties on the journey it was nice to arrive at the hotel and book in. We were all given rooms in the new part of the hotel, in fact I think that the three rooms on the top floor (one of which I was staying in) are brand new. They have the unusual descriptions of cosy, charming and great. The one I was in, was graded as charming and I thought it rather rustic and quaint
The room as you can see had an interesting view.
Tags: Bed, Bruges, Brugge, Hotel room, Martin's Brugge, me, Self Portrait, The Belfry Tower, Weekend away
I am back from my weekend away spending time with my family. The gathering was to celebrate (or is that commiserate) my recent birthday, which means I am now a lady of a certain age
Not one to do things by halves I arranged the meet up in Bruges, the journey there was a little tedious with an accident causing a 45 minute delay which left no chance for a break in the journey on the way to Dover.
The arrival at Bruges was equally challenging due to roadworks and a diversion on the way into the centre. And when finally in the centre there was that little complication of ‘road closure’ on the only way to get to the hotel from the part of the city… A local resident stopped to help out and proclaimed we had a stupid map, followed by ‘IT IS IMPOSSIBLE’. He then advised we go back out to the ring road and start afresh using a different route in. That did the trick and we eventually managed to navigate to the hotel and book in.
A good time was had by all with site seeing, autumn views, good food, good company and time to escape from every day worries. Well one person didn’t quite detach from every day worries and was obsessed with phone calls and what was going on back home. I had the strong urge to surgically remove the mobile and throw it in the canal…
Anyway, I am getting a little ahead of myself. Before I set out in the morning I had to fulfil a long-standing promise with regards to a sunrise photograph. I got up a little bit earlier than necessary to make sure I didn’t miss it, you can see the beginnings of the sunrise in this photo. The full sunrise and other photos of the weekend will follow in due course.
Tags: Cherie's Place, Sunrise, Weekend away
