Around Belgium

This gallery features photos taken in Bruges, Ghent, and Damme.

Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in Belgium.

Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam and Saint Petersburg, it is sometimes referred to as the Venice of the North.

The Golden age of Bruges lasted from the 12th to 15th centuries. Starting around 1500, the Zwin channel, (the Golden Inlet) which had given the city its prosperity, began silting up and the Golden Era ended.

In the second half of the 19th century, Bruges became one of the world's first tourist destinations, attracting wealthy British and French tourists.

Ghent is a city in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the province of East Flanders, and the third largest in the country, after Brussels and Antwerp. It is a port and university city.

Damme is a city located in the Belgian province of West Flanders, six kilometres northeast of Bruges. In the 13th century, Damme was one of the major ports of Europe and the outlet to the sea for the major trading city of Bruges.

Locations: Belgium
Date: 2017