- It's the home to Flemish masters, medieval treasures and some of the most picturesque storybook streets and squares you've ever seen.

It is time to get curious about Bruges.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Curious Traveler is made possible by the following.

For more than 45 years, Vacations By Rail has been helping travelers explore the world with a collection of rail journeys and luxury river cruises through awe-inspiring nature and cosmopolitan cities.

From America's national parks to Europe and beyond.

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At GET, we believe travel is more than just getting away.

It's about experiencing a destination and iconic sights and delving deep into local culture.

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- With many of its medieval buildings and much of its medieval street plan still intact, this UNESCO World Heritage City is full of charm and world class art.

(speaking in Flemish) - [Narrator] Who were the Flemish masters and why did they flourish in Bruges?

What is a beguinage and what is he looking at?

- [Jan] Hello.

- [Narrator] Where can you find the Venice of the north?

Why is this lane named Blind Donkey Alley?

And why are all these buildings about the same width?

How did Michelangelo's Madonna get returned to this church?

When did a medieval hospital become home to some of the finest works of art in the world?

So much to be curious about in Bruges.

Bruges is one of the best preserved medieval cities in northern Europe.

Known for its storybook architecture crisscrossed by its winding canals and cobbled lanes where you will encounter more walkers, boats, and bicyclists than cars.

You will also encounter a big, beautiful symbol of Bruges, the windmill.

The legacy of the low countries from the Netherlands to Belgium.

Bruges windmills used to dot its medieval wall that encircled the town.

These replicas and this gate are in the same spot along that original wall.

Which brings us to the best curiosity of Bruges, unlike other European towns and cities, Bruges has retained its medieval look and feel.

Not much has changed since its heyday in the Renaissance and we're about to find out the curious reasons why.

Bruges is also world renowned for something else, its Flemish masterpieces.

The greats, Jan van Eyck, Hans Memling, and others all flourished here in Bruges and Flanders.

This brings us to the Hanseatic League, a sophisticated trade network between German towns and guilds that formed in the late 12th century.

The Hanseatic League organized and capitalized on trade between the European continent and Scandinavia, Russia, and beyond.

And this is why Bruges became so important and so prosperous.

Its geography as the gateway to the North Sea shaped its history.

- Bruges was known as the Venice of the North not just because of all the canals running through it and underneath our feet by the way but also because of Bruges' wealth as a major trading center throughout all of Europe.

In fact, where I'm standing right now used to be Bruges' major port.

This is where all the boats would come in and all the goods would come in and out.

In fact, all these charming, beautiful homes you see lining the canal today, well, believe it or not, once upon a time, these were simply the warehouses for all those goods coming in and out of the city.

- [Narrator] And overlooking the port that made this city great is not a political leader or even a religious leader but instead one of history's greatest artists, the Flemish master Jan van Eyck.

That ought to tell you what Bruges' priorities are around here.

You have to love a city where the art comes first.

And Jan van Eyck Square sets the stage for the many historic and charming town squares to stroll through like Simon Stevins Square, named for the Bruges-born mathematician and physicist.

And then there is this square where Bruges was governed from for more than 600 years.

This is Burg Square, one of the oldest areas in all of Bruges.

This used to be the center of power for Bruges and the surrounding countryside.

Over here this is the old town hall with these beautiful brightly colored coats of arms across its center.

At the base, you will see a lotta statues.

Those are some of the counts of Flanders.

Now, over here, all decked out in gold, that's the old courthouse and you can tell because we have lady liberty at the top shining bright.

But, what I am most curious about happens to be right in the middle.

This archway leads to a little something called Blind Donkey Alley.

- [Narrator] Why such a curious name?

Well, legend says that the citizens of Ghent stole the dragon of Bruges which was the symbol of power and wealth for the city.

The thieves loaded the dragon onto a cart pulled by a donkey and then made their getaway down this alley.

But that donkey was loyal to Bruges and refused to pull the cart so the thieves blindfolded him so he wouldn't know what he was doing.

Unfortunately, those thieves were successful and you can see that dragon today in Ghent but that brave little Bruges donkey had this alley named in his honor.

On the other side of the alley is the old fish market.

And even more canals leading to even more beautiful squares.

And there is no square more grand than this one with its picture postcard medieval architecture and the ever-present clip clop of those horse drawn carriages.

- This is the big, beautiful and bustling Market Square.

Ever since the 10th century, this has been the same spot for the marketplace for all of Bruges.

But what started as simple wooden market stalls has developed into this glorious square full of beautiful architecture, guild halls, the belfry tower, statues to prominent figures in Bruges history and, of course, some curious architecture.

- [Narrator] Including the Provincial Palace and the many, many guild houses built here around the square during the Middle Ages.

All a testament to the thriving trading city that Bruges once was.

Today, many of these historic guild markets are restaurants so in a way, this once market square is still a center of tasty commerce.

(stately music) - One of the most amazing things about Bruges is that it still has so many of its medieval buildings like the massive belfry behind me.

It originally served as the town's market hall, later its treasury but its real beauty comes in what is high, high above, a full carillon in its bell tower.

- [Narrator] And, if you are so inclined, you can climb 366 steps to the top for stunning panoramic views.

But the market hall had some pretty nice neighbors too.

Just look at all those colorful buildings in a circle around the market.

- The architecture is gorgeous.

It is quaint, it is charming.

I love all the little rooftops that go like this.

- [Narrator] And there is something else you will notice about these cute and colorful buildings.

Don't they all seem to be about the exact same width?

Well, there's a curious reason for that.

- Why are they so tall but so narrow is there a reason for that?

- Well, that depends, of course of the period but in the beginning, architecture was more difficult.

Now we have much more techniques to build the houses but at that time, the width of the house could only be the length of one tree.

It was made with beams so the structure initially was made with beams so you have the length of a tree, length of tree but if you do it like that for to be strong, you can't build it bigger because you only have one tree.

- So before they were using brick or stone or something and it was the half timber construction, it was literally the width of, you had to find a really tall tree?

- Yeah.

- [Narrator] Now, many European cities have laws in effect that protect the architecture of their old towns and that is part of the reason why Bruges' old town looks just like it did in the Middle Ages but the other reason is quite curious.

- It's because people here, they were very conservative so they didn't want sometimes new kind of buildings.

Also we missed the Industrial Revolution.

We didn't have money to build new houses with a lot of iron, with a lot of glass in it so we stayed with the old houses but now we are glad we have them still.

- [Narrator] So missing out on an entire revolution wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

And today you can stroll through a time capsule of sorts.

- If you would have a map of 1525 and a map now, you wouldn't see a lot of difference.

Just a little bit.

You know that we even have in the center of the city a place where we have sheep and another place where we have some cows.

- You still have sheep and cows within the city?

- Yes, in the city.

- Oh my gosh.

- Yes.

(peaceful music) - [Narrator] Well, we didn't find any sheep grazing in our next curious spot but we did find fields of daffodils inside a little oasis within the city.

This area also contributes to Bruges' UNESCO status.

Its precious beguinages.

- In the early Middle Ages all across Flanders, beguinages started popping up.

Now, a beguinage was a special place for women to live who perhaps sadly had their husbands and sons go off to war and then they were left all alone.

Now, they did have to work to be able to live here but on the plus side, they got to enjoy these beautiful grounds and beautiful gardens.

Today, this beguinage is part of Bruges' UNESCO World Heritage status and it feels like a little sanctuary within the city.

- [Narrator] So a beguinage wasn't a convent and the women weren't nuns but they were religious.

In fact, name beguinage comes from one of its founders, a priest named Lambert le Bègue.

This particular beguinage was founded in 1244 and while it no longer houses beguines, the architecture and layout has survived.

It is still surrounded by a wall with its two historic gates.

These gates would have separated the vastly different outside world from the serene oasis inside.

Now that we have toured the town, it is time to get curious about the pride of Bruges, its Flemish art heritage.

In the Middle Ages, Bruges was one of the wealthiest and largest cities in Europe.

Rivaling Paris and London.

And where the money flows, the art goes.

So, in the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries there was a renaissance in art here in norther Europe with Flanders at its heart.

Because of Bruges' wealth, artists could be commissioned by the church leaders, politicians, and noble families of the time.

The Flemish masters include Rubens, Bruegel, van Eyck, and Memling.

Each created innovations in oil painting techniques and made huge advancements in both realism and perspective.

And today in Bruges, you can experience many of those masterpieces in situ or in the same spot that they were created for.

So, to experience Hans Memling's works, we go to a medieval hospital.

That's right, a hospital.

- St. John's Hospital is one of the oldest preserved hospital buildings in all of Europe.

Patients began coming here as early as the 12th century but it is also home to some of the finest Flemish masterpieces in the entire world.

So what is the connection between fine art and a hospital?

Well, back in that time period, the patients here would be inspired and consoled by these beautiful works of art.

Not only that, they would actually send their prayers through the artwork as messengers up into heaven.

(reverent music) - [Narrator] Side by side with a medieval ambulance and the nooks where hospital beds once lay, you will see six of Hans Memling's works.

Including the exquisite Shrine of St. Ursula.

Four of the works he created specifically for St. John's Hospital including this one, the St. John Altarpiece.

- This is one of his greatest works of art and one of two works that we know by him that are signed and dated.

And it was really made for the St. John's Hospital, depicting St. John the Evangelist and St. John the Baptist.

Two Johns that give the name to this place.

With all the saints surrounding Mary and little Christ child and in fact we think maybe the artist has depicted himself as the black man hiding behind the color.

- With the black cloak and.

- That's right, that's right.

There's a mysterious figure.

- [Narrator] That's right, look closely.

See that sneaky fella?

Some say that is a monk gazing at the saints and the Virgin Mary.

Others say it is the artist himself, keeping an eye on his masterpiece.

And there are many, many more wonderful details hidden here.

You just have to look closely to find them all.

One of the biggest advancements from the Renaissance art movement was perspective.

So in many paintings from the Mona Lisa to this painting, the backgrounds seem to recede for miles and miles.

Often the artist would use his own home as the background and that's exactly what Hans Memling did here.

So, no one is saying that the Virgin Mary actually hung out here in Bruges, but it was common for artists to place these important religious figures here in their own cities.

Next, from a triptych to a diptych, our next work by Memling is a diptych of a wealthy patron with a healthy ego.

- His prayer book is lying on the tip of her mantle, you see?

This is the mantle of Mary.

- Oh, yeah, yeah, her cloak comes all the way through.

- Comes all the way through and his prayer book is resting on her mantle and the way that Memling has depicted like this bodice of velvet, you really want to stroke it.

It's so very delicate and with the tip of one piece of white paint, he makes the nose of Jesus shine.

It's very, very refined.

He's called Martin so that's why the patron saints of Saint Martin of Tours.

- Oh, Martin of Tours, yeah.

- Is in the stained glass window here.

- So he was instructing the painter these are the elements I want in my.

- This is how I want to come across and Memling provided why you wanted to look like.

- [Narrator] Martin's ego aside, there are more wonderful tiny details to discover here.

Look closely, see that mirror in the back?

- The mirror that's in this side, what's the mirrorage painting by van Eyck?

- The merit of the Betrothal of the Arnolfini in the.

- Yes.

- Yeah, that's the same mirror.

- Were all the Flemish masters doing that or was that kind of a?

- Yeah, Roger de la Pasture, Roger van der Weyden also did this.

There's a painting at the Prado in Madrid where we also see such a mirror.

- Were they trying to be mysterious with it?

Why were they putting mirrors in their painting?

- Actually it's proof of their artistic capability, yeah?

- [Host] Oh, I see, 'cause it's difficult to do isn't it?

- It's difficult to do and it adds a little bit of fun for the onlooker also.

It's just fun.

- Okay.

- I think also fun.

- It is fun.

- We always look at these paintings as something really serious but I mean just as we ourselves, we have to like fun at what we do and painters are no different.

- It's the same.

- [Narrator] Speaking of having fun, we now explore our third painting in the collection.

Simply titled Portrait of a Woman.

She has a rather serious and somber expression, right, but.

- He uses this illusionistic trick of putting the tips of her fingers on the frame as if she would step out of the frame.

She's really coming out of the picture in a literal way.

That's what we call a trompe-l'Sil.

So a trick of the eye.

- Trick of the eye, right.

And with the writing as well that comes out onto the frame.

- That's right, that's right.

- And goes through the banner.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

- Now I have to ask, just for fun, we were talking about how art can be fun, the hairstyle of the time?

- That was a hennin, so it's a medieval head wear, headdress and they would just shave away all body hair underneath to make the forehead appear much higher.

- So a receding hairline in this time period was a good thing.

- I have, there's a natural, it's natural with me.

(bouncy music) - [Narrator] But more famous than Hans Memling, sorry Hans, is the Flemish master Jan van Eyck.

Of course we already met him over at Jan van Eyck Square at the historic port that made Bruges so wealthy.

Jan van Eyck spend much of his life here in Bruges and is credited with major innovations in oil painting techniques and is widely considered one of the finest artists in history to master realism.

And you can experience his work along with six centuries of Flemish art all in one place, the Groeninge Museum, built on the site of a former abbey.

Just look at the wrinkles in this face.

The texture of this cloak.

It's so soft you feel you could touch it.

This armor reflects the red cloak of the Virgin Mary.

And van Eyck's use of light, those rich, bright colors he is known for, are all still just as vibrant today some six centuries later.

Van Eyck's most famous works include the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, known as the Ghent Altarpiece at Saint Bavo's Cathedral in Ghent.

Fortunately, many of his works stayed here in Bruges including this masterpiece, the Madonna with Canon Joris van der Paele.

- Is is the subject matter?

Is it the perfection with the detail that makes this particular work of art such a treasure?

- Well, it's definitely the details and the feeling of texture.

If you look at the fur, it's totally different painting than the letter next to it or the pages of the book or the skin.

You have the feeling that you can almost touch it, that it's real, and that makes van Eyck very, very special.

- [Narrator] The Canon commissioned this work to be done.

He was very ill at the time and wanted this piece to be his legacy.

But there is more here than meets the eye.

This seemingly simple composition is loaded with symbols and hidden treasures.

Look closely at the center of the painting.

Maybe it's just me but I don't recall reading about Jesus playing with a parrot in the bible, do you?

- Bruges was the center of exotic products, luxury products.

So he was using these kind of references to make clear that he had all the information.

Same goes for the parrot which was an exotic animal at the moment but he had the chance to bring it to Bruges or to buy it in Bruges and to depict it here in a proper way so.

- Is there any other painting throughout history where you have the Christ child holding a parrot?

Probably not.

- I'm not aware of it but it has been copied very often after this painting.

- [Narrator] But there is another more curious theory about that parrot.

At one time, parrots were seen as being pure and miraculous because they could be taught to speak so, many Dutch painters used the parrot to symbolize the pure and miraculous Virgin Mary.

And there's even more fun to discover.

Look very, very closely just below Saint George's arm.

There is someone hiding there.

- This is Jan van Eyck, he depicted himself as well.

- No way!

- And not in just the place.

He used the shield of Saint George and that means in Dutch (speaking in Dutch) and that's the same word as (speaking in Dutch) which is painter.

- Say that again, that's fascinating so.

- So this is a shield and that's in Dutch is the word (speaking in Dutch).

- Okay.

- And that is the first part of the word (speaking in Dutch) which means painter.

So it was very clever thought of and that's why he depicts himself.

- Now a little detail like that was that lost in history and then art historians rediscovered it?

- Yes, actually, it was, yeah.

- Just one day they looked really closely and they looked and they figured that.

'Cause it wasn't as if the artist wrote down, hey, I'm doing this.

- No, no, no, no.

- [Host] Wow.

- [Narrator] But Jan van Eyck did actually write down his intentions in another famous painting.

This portrait of his wife.

- Sometimes you just kind of walk by, you miss the details.

Perhaps the best part of this is not what the subject so much, it's what's written above and especially below.

- There is a very important detail.

It says (speaking in Dutch) which means as good as I can.

Which is quite an ambiguous message because Jan van Eyck was the very best painter of his time.

He knew it.

- So he's sort of pretending to be modest a little.

- Yeah, actually, yeah, but he knew what he was saying so.

- That's funny.

- [Narrator] Well, you can't blame a guy for bragging when you're just this good.

And finally we have saved the best for last.

In a town renowned for its art, we enter one more church, the Church of Our Lady to visit the treasure of Bruges and one of the most important works of art of the Renaissance, Michelangelo's Madonna of Bruges.

This masterpiece in marble is famous for many reasons.

Firstly, because of its similarities to Michelangelo's Pieta in Rome.

Secondly because this is the only work of Michelangelo's to leave Italy during his lifetime.

And last but not least, this heavenly sculpture is famous because it was stolen.

Not once but twice.

First, by French revolutionaries and later by the Nazis.

Fortunately, at the end of World War Two, the Madonna of Bruges was heroically recovered by the Monuments Men.

Along with thousands of other masterpieces and works of art, hidden away in a salt mine in Austria.

It was safely returned home to the Church of Our Lady on November 12th, 1945.

And it has been here ever since and remains the treasure of Bruges.

(upbeat music) So, from the Venice of the North, watched over by an artsy genius who liked to sneak himself into his masterpieces.

- [Jan] Hello.

- [Narrator] To the canals that crisscross a beautifully preserved medieval town filled with donkeys, stolen dragons, and colorful buildings, exactly the width of a very tall tree, to some windy symbols of the low countries that surrounded some quaint town squares and one of those squares leads to an oasis for some very devoted ladies while other squares lead to some surprising homes for the world's greatest works of art with some pretty curious hairstyles.

- I have this, it's natural with me.

- [Narrator] And other treasure troves of art tell the story of one man's hope for his legacy.

And yet one more tells the story of not one but two treacherous art heists.

That thankfully ended in a triumphant return home for a work of art so precious that it came to represent the heart and love of art that Bruges is so known for.

Bruges has so much to be curious about.

- Thank you for joining us on our educational journey and hopefully now you're even more curious about the who, what, where, why, when, and hows of curious Bruges.

As they say here, (speaking in Dutch).

- [Narrator] Curious Traveler is made possible by the following.

For more than 45 years, Vacations By Rail has been helping travelers explore the world with a collection of rail journeys and luxury river cruises.

Through awe-inspiring nature and cosmopolitan cities, from America's national parks to Europe and beyond.

Vacationsbyrail.com.

At GET, we believe travel is more than just getting away.

It's about experiencing a destination and iconic sights and delving deep into local culture.

Learn more at gettours.com.

smarTours offers group tours to over 50 must-see destinations around the world.

With smarTours, we want you to enjoy the fun of travel while we do the planning for you.

The journey begins at smartours.com.

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