Country Images Magazine North December 2017 | Page 10

More of this national humour stood outside our hotel. Called the Fountain
‘t zand eng els by Stefan Depuydt and Livia Canestraro, it is four groups of
statues representing four totally unconnected subjects. Th e fi rst section is
four bathing women symbolizing the towns of Antwerp, Ghent, Courtrai
and Bruges. Next comes a representation of the fl at landscape of Flanders,
then a group of fi shermen indicate the age-old ties between Bruges and
the sea; while cyclists make an expression of youth and hope for the future
– a fi gure amongst this group is waving to the fi nal and main part of the
fountain. Topping the whole is Tijl Ulilenspiegel, the court jester-cum-
Robin Hood fi gure who sits on top of the column looking towards his
beloved Damme district, the former outport of Bruges.
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Just a few metres round the corner from this strangely attractive fountain
took us straight into the heart of the old town; this was where festively
decorated stalls selling gluwein and hot spicy sausages soon made us realise
that Christmas was not so far away. Fairy lights and a skating rink completed
the wintry atmosphere. Brightly lit shops were displaying delicate Belgian
lace and intricately woven tapestry work, as well as those selling the famous
Belgian chocolates. But the shop that reall y caught my attention was the
one where its main window was full of diff erent bottles of beer. Th ere must
have been at least a hundred diff erent brands and types, all the result of
hard working monks, who centuries ago developed beer as an alternative to
drinking polluted water.