The Epic Journey

The next stop on the adventure was to take mom and Tony to the most magical place in Europe - Bruges (or Brugge). Matt and I fell in love with it instantaneously when we where there last fall and I was excited for them to see the fairytale land of canals, Gothic buildings, chocolate, beer, and fries. Hey, even the crappy movie In Bruges did not diminish the beauty and allure of the city.

Unfortunately, we were in Domburg - at the edge of the sea, on a long peninsula - and we needed to get to Bruges - just 50 km south as the crow flies but a 4 hour bus/train ride away. We decided to skip the trains and venture out using buses and ferries. Mind you, this is no easy task because the bus schedules at one stop are only good for that stop and are useless in determining a multi-step journey - not to mention this trip was going to take us across two countries, with two different bus systems. Have I mentioned I forgot my passport at home?

So here's the journey, in all its glory:

1. Walk from Kasteel Westhoven to Domburg Windmill (2.5 km, 25 minutes)
2. Bus from Domburg Windmill to Middelburg Train Station (20 minutes)
3. Train from Middelburg to Vlissingen is running 30 minutes late - hop on a bus from Middlelburg to Vlissingen Center (20 minutes)
4. Bus from Vlissingen Center to Fast Ferry (5 minutes)
5. Ferry from Vlissingen to Breskens (15 minutes + loading and unloading)
6. Bus from Breskens to Brugge (1 hour 20 minutes)
7. Get off bus at first site of Brugge to avoid passing out, since it was at least 100 degrees on the bus (the heat was on and it was about 75 degrees outside)
8. Walk to B&B (3 km, 30 minutes)
   

View Trip to Bruges in a larger map

But then we were there -Brugge! And she was just as magical as I remembered!

Domburg & the Beach

On Thursday morning, before embarking on an epic journey to Bruges, we headed out to the beach to walk along the ocean and pick up sea shells. The beaches in the Netherlands are beautiful - mostly due to the fact that they have not allowed building close to the water or on the dunes. Now if only the water wasn't 60 degrees in the summertime...

Goes to Domburg

Last Wednesday, Mom, Tony, and I met our old neighbor, Myriam, in Goes for lunch. We walked through the city and by the harbor to her house, where she treated us to a wonderful lunch of goat-cheese, honey, and roasted pine nut sandwiches. After lunch, she took us around the peninsula in her car, stopping at interesting sites along the way.

Our first stop was in Yerseke, where we got to see the oyster pits and fishing boats docked in the harbor.
Next we stopped in the picturesque village of Veere. We enjoyed an ice cream cone as we walked along the water and down the main street. Our tour ended in the seaside village of Domburg.
We dropped our bags off at the Kasteel Westhoven, where we would spend the night, and headed into the small village for a bite to eat. After dinner (and a rain storm), we walked back to the castle along the ocean and through the dunes, being very careful not to step on one of the frogs we passed along the way.