Side Trip: Damme

During each of the major stopovers during our travels, we took a side trip. From Paris we went to Versailles, from Amsterdam we went to Harlem and Zandvoort, and from Bruges we went to Damme.

Just as Bruges was the smallest city we visited, Damme was the smallest side destination.

Sternwheeler tour boat takes people from Bruges to Damme

Damme also served as our bicyle ride for the trip. It is much easier for us to pedal without heavy traffic than with; our bicycle ride in Italy was in Lucca, a town very similar to Bruges.

Damme's windmill

The day and night before were very wet and very windy, but for our ride it was merely damp and breezy. (It’s a good thing. We later found out that the widespread storm was powerful enough to kill a man taking shelter at a bus stop in Amsterdam.)

Dark and windy

Lunch in a shoebox café was lovely; we each had a local beer and sandwich made with local cheese. 

This is about as busy as the main street gets

There’s no longer much to Damme, but the past echoes. The canal we followed from Bruges is arrow-straight, created by the emperor Napoleon … or, rather, his Spanish prisoners. Now there are waterfowl and the occasional tour boat. The church was a marvel in its day, but was stripped of its icons during the religious wars. The church and the town’s artists (more on them later) continue to bear witness to the past. From a history of the Church of Our Lady, posted in four languages inside:

"The church of Damme is not only a work of art of Gothic architecture; it is also a witness to the faith of our forefathers. Nowadays it keeps watch over the flat countryside and dreams of a great past, when merchants from the whole [of] Europe sailed up the Zwin, bringing riches and prosperity to Damme."

Looking six kilometers from Damme's bridge to Bruges

 In and around the church were artworks of the present -- bringing a big-city feel to the streets of the village.

Church's entryway

Medieval church; modern art

 The ride home brought us a tailwind, thankfully.

Stacey happy to be back in Bruges

The occasional large tractor that rumbles across the town’s cobblestones reflects a countryside that looks pastoral, but is in one of the most intensively farmed regions of Europe. Much of it is reclaimed salt marsh. Beyond the fields, modern windmills harvest energy from the sky.

Windmills look over a dairy operation

Bruges seemed a little larger (though not huge by any stretch) upon our return, but after a couple of navigational challenges, we relied on instincts to get ourselves safely back to the bike shop.

Bronze brightened by national colors -- a common sight