Scherer Family ~ European RV Tour: Brugge, Belgium

I know we're supposed to be in England now, but I just couldn't leave without seeing Brugge. After much deliberation, we agreed to skip the RV show at Petersborough (who wants to camp in a farmer's field with no electricity, anyway?) and take a daytrip to Brugge.

While waiting for our train at Antwerp Central Station, we found a 24/7 grocery store, completely automated! There was an assortment of a mini-quickie-mart - from diapers, beer, candy.... even lighters! One wall was food items; another non-alcoholic beverages. We had to make a purchase to see how it works - afterall, they had bottles of wine and 6-packs beer. You can't just drop those things down a chute. A robotic arm lifts a metal box to the row of your purchase, then an arm from the back of the merchandise gently pushes the item into the box. The box is then lowered to the right, a door opened, and you remove your purchase. Best of all, the prices were on par with the neighborhood grocery stores!

Vending machine / "grocery" at Antwerp Central Station.

Fun day - long train ride. It's about an hour and twenty minutes from Antwerp. The weather was a bit cool but pleasant enough to enjoy the day outside. One of the best discoveries of the day is that our day pass (for buses and trams) was valid in both Brugge and Antwerp. Not sure if this is official or not, but we ran the pass through on both systems and it was accepted.

Brugge is labeled the best preserved medieval city of Europe. The city is filled with cobblestone streets, skinny alleys and lots of touristy shops. Prices on souvenairs were less than Antwerp or Brussels. We enjoyed a boat cruise through the canals; found De Halve Maan brewery and enjoyed a beverage. Brugge Zot is not our favorite - it's too fruity. The kids groved on pfannekuchen (pancakes) with sugar and butter... and of course, hot chocolate.

And of course, we climbed the winding stairs up the tower from the 13th century. Had a very cool view of the city from 88m and while we missed the Carillon concert (which is only a few days a week), we were at the top for the half hour toll. Quite loud and very fun to show the girls how the bells functioned.