THURSDAY IN GENT

Another lazy start to our day today--since I'm not able to do full days of sightseeing we seem to have settled in to a late morning to mid afternoon schedule.  It is what it is!

After a leisurely breakfast we left our apartment about 11:30.  We only had a loose plan for today--there was a church we wanted to visit and also a castle.

We've passed this interesting building several times already--I LOVE the fairy like figures on the top:

So whimsical:

The front of Saint Nicholas Church, built in the 13th century

The "back" of the church is even prettier:

The altar area:

(There was no service at the time I took this photo-the priest was tidying up)

Pretty stained glass windows--installed in the late 1800's:

The nave--several life size saint figures:

After our brief visit to Saint Nicholas Church, we walked across the bridge towards a BIG, beautiful church we had been admiring.

St. Michael's Cathedral.  We walked all the way around and tired every door--but it was closed.  Darn! It looks very interesting, and the stained glass windows looked to be original, or at least very old.  We did notice lots of renovation/road work around the front--so maybe it's not an active church right now.

The main entrance was definitely not open!

The view down the canal from St. Michael's Bridge:

This cool building is now a hostel-22E a night for a bed!

Another view from St. Michael's Bridge:

One of the very few street art pieces we've seen on this trip:

There was a walkway under the bridge and along the canal.  What a view!

Next up: Castle of the Counts, built by Count Phillip of Alsace on the site of a 9th century wooden castle

Entrance to the castle.

We didn't pay to go into the castle, the reviews were pretty "mixed" and there was mention of several sets of steep and tall stairs.  Not for me this trip!

David by the big entrance doors:

We were happy to just see it from the outside--it's pretty cool:

There was a small square with several cafes right across from the castle, so we relaxed for a while with a couple of cold beers--beer with a view!!

We wandered a few more side streets, then decided we were ready for lunch.  We chose a place by the canal and ordered the local Gent specialty--waterzooi.  It's a chicken/vegetable soup/stew dish--really delicious.  This one had chicken, leeks, celery and carrots.

Another goat cheese salad--not the best, for sure.  David ate the cheese and left most of the rest.  The bowl of waterzooi was huge, so we had plenty to eat.

After our lunch we slowly made our way back to our apartment.  I'm trying to limit my walking, hoping to help my knee get better.  We decided to stay in for the rest of the day, so we stopped by a cheese shop to pick up a piece of really good cheese to have with a baguette and wine for dinner.

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening relaxing and reading--me with my knee propped up.

Tomorrow in Gent--there are a couple of markets we are interested in, hoping my knee is better!