27 May 2017

A very sort drive saw us arrive in Brugge by lunchtime. Thankfully we could plug in the EHU, as the aircon was essential. Sitting outside for lunch the thermometer hit 40 degress and we were roasting.

While Dasvid sat out sunbathing loving it the rest of us including dogs moaned. I had to send Lucy back into the van when she came out wearing black long trousers and black thick top, she would have died. We soon discovered Lucy did not have any summer clothing so a shopping trip was required – this would be fun NOT!

While the girls shopped the fellers popped to a pub for their first Belgium beer of the day, it wouldn’t be their last.
After the shopping we decided to go beer tasting, Lucy was not so keen but was happy to be in the air conditioned beer hall with a seat. The beer tasting involved getting a €15 payment card and a glass to walk round with, each time you used a pump it took some of your credit. Not surprisingly Dasvid used all his credit first followed by Neil who was cheekily getting free top ups from the owner. I’m not a great Belgium beer lover so took my time to slowly seek out the most Amstel like lagers, when that failed I filled my glass with the highest strength beer at 10% and downed it as quick as possible. The clever beer hall had water pumps to flush your glass out with in between each drink, Lisa nearly wet herself when I discovered you could pump the water into people’s faces and Dasvid trustingly walked straight into it as I beckoned him over. The idea of a water fight saw Lucy to her feet but as the water hit the ceiling we stopped before getting thrown out.

From the beer tasting we popped to the beer wall via the antique market were I found a Jolly Bank to add to my collection. The Belgium market man would not haggle although Neil did try his best to knock him down.

After popping back to the van to check on the dogs we headed out for dinner. Unlike us we went Irish instead of Italian but I did manage to find tomato pasta on the menu. With the FA cup on TV the bar was full of atmosphere and the food was lovely.

The walk back to the van went via another Irish pub and Lucy decided we would play pool, Shazells Vs Butlers. Slightly tipsy and Lucy just rubbish it was going to be a long game. A lucky clear up saw Neil pot the black declaring the Shazells the winners Lucy’s winning dance had the whole pub in stiches.

An early night saw us back at the van for a night cap by 11pm. Tomorrow we move on to Bastogne and need to be off our pitch by 11am due to 24 hour parking charges, this will be interesting with hangovers.

Overnight Location: Brugge Aire, Belgium

Overnight Cost: €25

Overnight Coordinates: 51.19631°N 3.22547°E

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