48 Hours in Ghent, Belgium

Lordy, by this point in the trip I felt like I had been in Europe traveling forever; but, it's only day 3...gotta love getting away from your normal routine. After my first 2 days in Brussels & then a quick trip to Antwerp I was off to Ghent and holy cow I'm not going to lie...it may have been my favorite city during my trip {{tough comparison to my last day though!!}}

For starters it was a hastily booked hostel (ok let's be honest they all were 😅) and when I finally got to my hostel I about peed my pants with joy. I was staying in the cutest little hostel (you can check it out here) it was only $35 a night, it was right in the downtown area, AND {{I haven't even gotten to the best part yet}} it was about a 20 second walk from a stinking castle!!! That's a win in my book!

I mosied around the downtown area for 2 hour or so, many shops were closing, but it was such a beautiful area with the castle and canals, and the winding roads...I just loved it! Eventually deciding I was hungry I found a small pizza shop and ordered myself a caper & anchovy pizza and ate it listening to the sweet music of a street musician. About the time I finished I headed back to the hostel to catch a free walking night tour that I had signed up for. Our guide met us and took our small group of 4 around the city showing us the famous buildings, the newly renovated lights around the city, and telling us stories of how Ghent came to be what it was today. Guys when he dropped us back off at midnight I was feeling like I had struck gold with this adorable little town!

The next morning I all but ran to the castle {let's not kid ourselves...I don't actually run but when the castle door is mere meters away I can make an excuse!} and was one of the first people in line. I spent a good hour exploring every nook and cranny of this place (it's just a small baby castle). Next up was St. Bavo's Cathedral that was oddly predominantly black & white inside with a giant whale skeleton hanging from the ceiling...memorable for sure. Walking around town I was so appreciative for the tour from the previous evening as I felt like I knew how to get from point A to point B as well as having a better understanding of what exactly I was looking at!

After lunch I paid a couple of Euros and went on a canal boat tour of the city that gave me even more views of the beautiful town of Ghent. I spent the remainder of my afternoon perusing the winding back streets in constant awe of the beautiful town that appeared to be straight out of the pages of a fairy tale. Before heading back to the train station I ran into another girl from my hostel and we got some beer and fries (h.e.l.l.o. Belgium!) and soaked up the afternoon sun before parting ways at the train station.

Ghent you've captured my heart, until next time....Brugge, I'm coming for you!