Ode To Ghent...

After a birthday of fun

On August day one,

On August day two

A wedding was done

Amid friends old and new

And we boogied on down.

After a big night of play

To blow cobwebs away

It seemed just the thing

To arrange for a day

Of touristic sightsee-ing

In a neighbouring town.

So to Ghent (or to Gent)

On the Sunday we went

By train and by tram

To the place we were meant

To meet a man with a plan

And a boat to cruise 'round.

Despite threat of a shower

We cruised for an hour

Umbrellas at ready

Past turret and tower

Our camera clicks steady.

Not a drop did fall down.

Next up was a talk

And historical walk

Through old cobbled streets.

At architecture we gawked

And ate local treats:

Jenever and waffles warmed brown.

Apple jenever - delicious

We enjoyed the Ghent view

For an hour or two

Then sought a beer

- a good local brew

To wish all good cheer

(no sorrows to drown).

A wide selection of local beverages

So we followed our nose,

Down cobblestone roads

Til we came to a square

Where a man with a pose

Said 'beer over there!'

With an authoritative frown.

Statue of Jacob van Artevelde in Vridagsmarket (Friday Market)

So thirst quenched we went

To a rib joint in Ghent

Before travelling back,

An afternoon well-spent. 

And as the sky to turned to black

We were hotel-bound.

Ghent train station

Glorious ceiling inside the station entrance

So that was my ode

To Ghent, the abode

of Wiggins, Van Eyck

and an altarpiece of note.

And it does seem to me

There's much more to like

The next time around!