48 Hours in Ghent, Belgium
Arriving in Ghent felt like being transported to another world. Nothing could have prepared me for the medieval grandeur that this city displays. Gothic churches, towering castles, cobblestone streets, canals, and architecture like I had never seen before. The faint smell of chocolate and freshly pressed waffles drifted from boutique candy shops and followed you around like a constant reminder. How had I never heard of this place? What’s its story?
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While staying in The Hague, I spontaneously went on a 48 hour trip to Ghent, Belgium. With two days off my au pair duties, I wanted to venture out further than The Netherlands, yet not so far that I would spend the majority of my time traveling. A quick Google search lent me the perfect solution: a gorgeous Belgian city three hours away by train. Without overthinking it, I packed up a small backpack and headed straight to the train station. I had no idea what there was to do there, but figured with the existence of frites, waffles, and chocolates I could just eat myself into a coma if nothing else. After a few tedious transfers and almost missing my final train, I successfully made it to Ghent.
Belgium did not give me the warmest welcome. The train station in Ghent was dirty, littered, and home to many characters I did not wish to get to know. I kept my head down and quickly located the bus going into the center of town where my hostel was located. I sank into my bus seat and tried to calm my racing heart. Oh sh** where am I? My sensible side immediately started scolding my impulsive side on making such a rash decision, listing out all the reasons why I should have done more research before coming here. My impulsive side snapped back, stating that we were misled by that anonymous travel blogger and this was not its fault. This internal ping pong went back and forth the entire bus ride, each side making fair points to counter the other. The bus came to a jolted stop, temporarily putting the case to a halt. I gathered my backpack and courage and timidly made my way off the bus.
Stepping off that bus felt like stepping into another world. I was no longer in the universe of that dirty train station. Or any universe I had ever been to before. Nothing could have prepared me for the medieval grandeur that this city center displays. Gothic churches, towering castles, cobblestone streets, canals, and architecture like I had never seen before. My heart still raced, but now from excitement instead of fear. My impulsive side grinned as my sensible side retreated back into silence.
My first mission was to find my accommodation- a well rated hostel (the only available hostel) that I booked on the train ride here. I put the address into my maps and followed along as it led me through busy narrow streets crammed with people, cars, buses, trams, and bikers all trying to claim their path. I quickly learned that pedestrians do not have the right of way here. Or any rights for that matter. These streets were ruled by the bikers and everyone else beware. The loud hum of chattering drunk people from the cafes, honking cars, and rumbling trams left no room for extra thought. I just needed to focus on finding my accomodation without getting hit by someone or something.
After a short walk, I was amazed to discover my hostel was a tall brick building with latched windows sitting right on the central canal. It was the type of beautiful building that would compel an onlooker to stop in their tracks and take out their camera. In fact, that is exactly what I had done moments before even realizing it was my final destination.
A nice Belgian woman checked me in and took me up to my room. I followed her up a few stories to a room at the end of the hall which happened to have one of the latched windows I had stopped to admire just minutes ago. I looked out to see the towering medieval buildings lining the opposite side of the canal, packed tour boats slowly passing by, and, of course, the familiar chaos of the busy streets.
Okay Ghent, I know we got off to a bad start but I think we are going to get along just fine…
I spent most of my time here roaming the streets in a daze with my camera in one hand and a waffle in the other. I had come to a non-planner’s dream city as you do not need to have any agenda here. Walking around, popping into shops, and looking at the amazing architecture will be enough to keep you occupied for days. If that doesn’t interest you, there are plenty of cafes to settle into for the day and go down the list trying every Belgian beer. Either are respectable options.
After two days in fantasyland, I made my way back to the train station where I began the trip. This station quickly took me out of my daze and anchored me back to real life. I got on my train back to The Netherlands, a place that had grown to feel like a home in such a short time. I watched out the window as the buildings disappeared into the distance when my impulsive side abruptly interrupted my moment with “So where to next?”
Some facts I learned about Ghent:
-A large majority of the demographic is in their young 20s as it is a major University city. I think their city slogan should be “Old buildings, young people.”
- Ghent used to be a wealthy powerhouse of western Europe- gaining massive wealth from being a major trading port and manufacturer of fine Flemish cotton.
- Belgium does not have a “Belgian” language as it is divided into four different regions, each speaking different dialects depending on their proximity to surrounding countries. A trip to Belgium turns into a game of language roulette. Is that French? Dutch? French Dutch? German? Ghent, in particular, is located in the northern part of Belgium in the region of Flanders where they speak Flemish- a type of Dutch with French influence.
-They are known for Flemish beef stew, frites, chocolate, cuberdons (raspberry flavored gumdrops), and Belgian beer. (Big fan of all the above)
-Like many extremely old cities, there is a dark history here with lots of ☠️😵💥⚰️🗡️🪦🧙 in the past. (Not a big fan of)
Check out the full collection of photos from Ghent here.
