Whine and Chocolate or The Great Ghent Christmas Disaster

My kids love history… sometimes.

It’s hard to predict when they will embrace something, or when they will start marking the minutes until we return to the car and start the journey home.

Yesterday was a freak show.

Ghent is this lovely little Flemish city. It is filled with charming 16th century architecture, three rivers, medieval bridges, gothic churches, and art masterpieces. It was even rated one of Lonely Planet's Top 10 Cities to see in 2011.

I tried to sell this little Belgian daytrip to my kids by offering a trip to a castle, a climb of a historic tower, Belgian chocolate, and later, as my arguments fell on disinterested ears, french fries.

I knew we were in trouble when we had not even left the parking garage before Jack started asking how long it would be until we could go back home.

In their defense, it was cold: damp and cold.  But surely we should be able to see a few things?

The castle Gravensteen is everything you’d want in a medieval structure. It was rough and ragged around the edges, “a Keep” Jack called it. It was built for defense, but later used as a prison.

Unlike the Tower of London, there were was no glossing over of the Gravensteen’s gory history here. They made it very clear that this place was used for torture and execution. They had a very informative display of torture devices, how long the torture could be endured, and which room was used for which application. When they started using life sized manikins to make their point, I had to get Audrey out of the room. They did have a cool guillotine complete with a burlap sack to catch the head. You don’t get an education like this every day. Any questions, kids?

Guillotine

The whole place made me glad that we live here and now when places like Gravensteen are museums and any form of capital punishment is debated, considered and reconsidered.

My kids, on the other hand, were wishing themselves dead.

The whining had been a background noise throughout the castle, but now we were back out on the street. The thought that we would just wander around the old city until we saw a few things was too much for Jack. He started to plan a mutiny. When Audrey started crying because her hands were cold, I thought it was time to pack it up and go home.

Thank God for Belgian chocolate. We ducked into a little shop called Van Hoorebeke on Sint Baafsplein. This Victorian chocolate shop had curved glass counters and shelves filled with fresh chocolates. The aroma from the kitchen below was absolutely divine. While Audrey warmed up, Jack and Jordan made selections from the counter. For five euros in chocolate, I had bought myself some time.

We ventured in to the Gothic church of St. Bavo, where I had heard the Flemish masterpiece “Adoration of the Mystic Lamb” had recently been restored. Access to the side chapel with the “Adoration” was four euros per person. I approached Walt and made my pitch. “Walt, there is a very famous early Flemish masterpiece here. It’s four euros to see it.” I watched Walt’s eyes glass over as I spoke.

There is an advantage to 15 years of marriage. You tend to be able to read your partner. I changed my tact and offered, “We could pay that four euros, or I could show you pictures of it on-line when we get home.” Walt broke into a large grin and we moved on.

If you’ve seen the “Adoration” by the van Eyck brothers, let me know if it was worth the money. I’m dying to know.

So that was our afternoon. The kids outright refused a trip up the belfry of the Cloth Hall, a world heritage site. We spent a few minutes at the merry-go-round. Then it was time to pack the kids up and head home. Jack smiled for the first time that afternoon.

Later, I had an interesting conversation with the kids about what kind of travel they like to do. They agreed that all trips should involve an amusement park with roller coasters, oh, and lots of kitty cats.

I think Flemish and Dutch Medieval cities are done for while. Too bad considering that there are about 50 amazing cities just like that around here. Sigh…

A Castle Tour of Luxembourg

If your little ones are like mine, tales of princes and princesses, knights and battles fill their bedtime stories. We were lucky enough last Autumn to travel to Luxembourg to see the medieval castles that bring these stories to life.

I loved this trip because it allowed my children to do what they do best: run, play, explore, and imagine.

We based our trip out of the tiny charming hamlet of Vianden. Nestled in the forested hills that define Luxembourg, this little village oozes European charm. And, BTW, it has a fabulously restored medieval castle sitting on the hilltop smack in the middle. We spent a full day touring the castle Vianden, climbing into arched stone window frames, calling down into cisterns, and walking the ramparts.

On our second day, we drove up a winding mountain road to find the ruins of Bourschied Castle. This is where my children’s imagination ran wild. There is not much left of Bourscheid, but that is part of its charm. Crumbling walls give you only an outline of what was once there. Breathtaking views of the countryside meet you at every turn: the green rolling hills, the winding river. I can recommend the audio tour, which was scripted to bring the castle to life, telling the story of an ancient king who appears as a ghost and served as our guide.

The children tore up and down stairways to nowhere. They climbed the castle’s keep and imagined the siege that destroyed this place. They stood in fireplaces and looked out the remnants of bedroom windows. It was a fine day, and we spent hours wandering the stones and thinking about long ago.

Berg Eltz, Yuck!

Our third day was a huge mistake. Here we decided to see Burg Eltz, a ridiculously well preserved German castle which Rick Steves declared his “favorite castle in Europe”. Rick, I might add, does not travel with children. God bless Burg Eltz. Just as old as the other two castles above, it was never sieged or destroyed; the royal family was never sent packing by a mob of angry villagers armed with torches and pitchforks. One third of the castle is still the residence of the Countess Kempenich, of the same family that has owned it for 800 or so years.

Did I love this place? No. It was impossible to find down poorly marked roads. Entrance and parking were expensive. And the hour long tour? At the discretion of the tour guides, it was only given in German. We were trapped with no way out. The rooms were filled with antiques that my children were reminded again and again not to touch. Ugh. Even just thinking about it makes me cringe.

Courtyard, Berg Eltz

Was it beautiful? Good Lord, yes! Stunning! If I had it do over, I would have packed a picnic lunch, found a spot near the lovely Moselle river, and hiked around the grounds for an hour. But that is only if I was in Germany and had a day to kill.

There were many more castle ruins in the Vianden area that we did not have time to visit.

 On the ride back from Bourscheid, we happened upon one crumbling ruin that was completely unmarked and fenced off. Leaving the kids in the car, Walt and I hiked the dirt road to the castle gates and remembered a time before children, when under the cover of nightfall, we might slip through a hole in the fence and explore a place forbidden. But that time was long ago, and our children sleeping in the car below needed us. And so, we drove home, steeped in the history that clung to us like a fragrance and filled our thoughts with the past.

Vianden Tourist Information

Bourscheid Tourist Information

Burg Eltz Tourist Information