Still More Bruges Scenes

We still had some hours left in Bruges, between our Sint Jan Hospital visit and our Flixbus ride to Ghent, so we saw a few more sights, tied up a few loose ends, etc.

First, a hike over to the city hall and the adjoining Basilica of the Holy 
Blood

There was a festive air at the former, easily explained by the wedding
get-away car; a Triumph model I don't recall ever seeing before

Interior of the Basilica of Holy Blood: a crusader came
back from the sack of Constantinople with a vial certified
to be the blood of Christ, preserved by Joseph of Arimethea

The Papal Bull of 1310 said that the blood re-liquified at noon on
Fridays, but this happened only once, with an alleged recurrence
in 1388

The church--actually two, an upper (Gothic) and a lower
(Romanseque)--dates from the 12th century and originally
was the chapel of the Counts of Flanders; the city hall was
their palace

Oddest pulpit we've yet seen

Altar, etc.

You can view the vial of holy blood over in a side
chapel, as Vicki is doing here; the vial is actually a
12th century Byzantine rock crystal perfume bottle;
I imagine the merchants of Constantinople laughed
for decades about how gullible the conquering
Crusaders were

Back outside, today's wedding photo: "everybody smile" or at
least look at the camera

Now we are in the Romanesque chapel, unchanged
since its building

Capitals but no funny faces

Bullet-proof donation box

Moving right along, we are now in the city hall, looking
at a painting of the lord high mayor welcoming Napoleon
to Bruges; Napoleon was no doubt disappointed to learn
that the French Revolutionary armies had already looted
the city of all its art treasures; they all would be returned
in 1815, however

Relatively nearby, Bruges' monument to Jan van Eyck

It's a beautiful place, but there is a certain monotony of
architecture here; we looked in vain for a single art nouveau
or art deco structure

Sic transit, Gloria: this chapel is now...

The frites museum

Our last stop was the city's cathedral, that of San
Salvator

Nice Gothic

In the original chapel

We would have liked to tarry, but it was time to go to Ghent