Tag Archives: belgium

Blogging from A to Z: G is for Ghent

Ghent … so picturesque a place that there can be no bad photos.

<<beware numerous adverbs and adjectives>>

<to see the full sizes click on the photos to enlarge>

I was there in January some years back – the weather was cold, overcast and somewhat gray. It didn’t detract from the beauty of Ghent nor deter me from exploring this gorgeous city.  It’s a melange of ancient churches and historic buildings co-existing alongside the newer architectural styles – a historic city etched by canals and waterways.

A to Z challenge Ghent
Ghent cityscape ©2021 Regina Martins

My keen eye picked out the many chocolate shops.

A to Z challenge Ghent
Chocolate shops all over the place ©2021 Regina Martins

Christmas decorations and attractions were still up; I love the changing lights of the ferris wheel reflecting off the facade of St Niklaas church.

At night the beauty of the city is doubled.

Ghent is also the home of a torture museum housed in the medieval Gravensteen Castle dating back to 1180.

A to Z challenge Ghent
Gravensteen Castle ©2021 Regina Martins

A typical street.

A to Z challenge Ghent
©2021 Regina Martins

Canals etch their way through the city, important avenues of connection. Ghent, though an inland city,  has the third busiest port in Belgium. It connects to the North Sea via the Scheldt Estuary.

A to Z challenge Ghent
©2021 Regina Martins

Below is the graffiti alley.

A to Z challenge Ghent
©2021 Regina Martins

And finally, the stunning St Niklaas church.

A to Z challenge Ghent
St Niklaas church ©2021 Regina Martins

More interesting places I've visited: 
F is for Flic en Flac
E is for Erawan Falls
D is for Durban (Memories)
C is for Chiang Mai
B is Bangkok
A is for Ayutthaya

CFFC: Places People Live

Today, Cee is inviting us to post pics of places people live.

De Heerlijckyt van Elsmeren is gorgeous. It’s a castle in the Belgian countryside in the small municipality of Geetsbets. The family who owns it still live in a section of the castle, the rest is a hotel and conference centre. I spent a week there in July on a course – there was no better place for that.

The back view of De Heerlijckyt van Elsmeren by one of the imposing entrance gates
©2018 Regina Martins
De Heerlijckyt van Elsmeren’s lake and rowboat. It would have sunk had anyone taken it out into the lake, as the wood at the bottom was rotting
©2018 Regina Martins
De Heerlijckyt van Elsmeren abounded with sunflowers
©2018 Regina Martins
I didn’t have a wide enough lens to capture the whole facade of De Heerlijckyt van Elsmeren – here is a part
©2018 Regina Martins