Dec

A Very English Holiday Ramble

by Joyce McGreevy on December 12, 2017

For Revelers with Wanderlust

Albemarle Street, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Albermarle Street in London inspires holiday wanderlust.
© Joyce McGreevy

On a cold December morning, the London sky is gray, the sunlight as stingy as the fire in Scrooge’s counting-house. But the air is fresh, our hearts are filled with festive wanderlust, and we’re off on a Very English Holiday Ramble. Come join us in search of “Oh I see” moments, magic, and a seasonal surprise.

An Airbnb flat in Elephant and Castle, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Holiday flats are charming (and rents less alarming) south of the Thames.
© Joyce McGreevy

We begin our ramble in Elephant and Castle, a vibrant, hardworking neighborhood named for a long-gone tavern. The tavern’s name, in turn, was a playful tribute to La Infanta de Castile, who was once engaged to Britain’s Charles I. Good to know if we’re ever in a pub on “Trivia Quiz” night.

For the festive season, exploring on foot is a must. Why? It’s positively Dickensian. Charles Dickens often walked 20 miles a day, exploring London in detail, then recreating it on the page.

Besides, walking reveals charms we’d otherwise miss:

Red Cross Way Garden, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

A garden on Red Cross Way, the 1886 flagship project of Octavia Hill, a founder of the National Trust.
© Joyce McGreevy

A sign in London offers inspiration during an English holiday ramble. (Photo © Joyce McGreevy)

A sentiment for all seasons from Turner Prize-nominated artist Mark Titchner.
© Joyce McGreevy

A window display in Southwark, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

A window display that sparks memories of handwritten holiday cards.
© Joyce McGreevy

A ghost sign in Southwark, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Another fine sentiment—and a vintage beer ad, at what was once the largest brewery in the world.
© Joyce McGreevy

This is a sign, pun intended, that we’re approaching London’s oldest food market. Borough Market has been serving the people of Southwark for 1,000 years including “the best of times and the worst of times.”

A produce shop at Borough Market, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

At Borough Market, foods are the real deal—fresh, fragrant, and flavorful.
© Joyce McGreevy

Fresh lemons at Borough Market inspire wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Yes, Borough experienced tragedy in June 2017. But on this cold and brightening morning, Borough is a place where . . .

Children caroling at Borough Market, London inspire onlookers during an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Carolers sing . . .
© Joyce McGreevy

Handmade fudge at the Borough Market inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

. . . and life is sweet.
© Joyce McGreevy

Crossing London Bridge, we catch sight of the Bank Station Underground. But don’t hop on the Tube yet, because we’re only a stroll away from another festive sight. See if you recognize it:

Leadhall Market inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Hint: Harry Potter fans love this market in London.
© Joyce McGreevy

A view of Leadenhall Market, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Yes, it’s Leadenhall Market, the real-life inspiration for Diagon Alley.
© Joyce McGreevy

On to the mighty, muddy Thames at Southbank. “Ooh, what’s down there?”

Pop-up shops under Millennium Bridge in London inspire wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Pop-up holiday huts under the London Millennium Bridge
© Joyce McGreevy

“Oy! Save us a hot cuppa and a waffle, will ya?”

What’s next on our holiday rambles list? We could . . .

A pop-up igloo at Southbank, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

. . . have lunch in a very English igloo . . .
© Joyce McGreevy

A pop-up ski-lodge themed bar at Southbank, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

. . . or sip mulled wine by the fire at a just-for-fun Thames-side ski lodge.
© Joyce McGreevy

Oh look, there’s a Foyle’s bookshop. Come on!

Southbank, London in December inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

A sign in Foyle’s announces, “Welcome, book lovers, you are among friends.”
© Joyce McGreevy

Wanderlust turns to book lust when we see Foyle’s Books for a Year table. Lucky gift recipients receive a brand-new book every month, each chosen for “its must-haveness or unputdownability.”

So many books, so few suitcases.

Fortunately, there’s room for a seasonal treat, a poetry pamphlet series called “Instead of a Card.” Candlestick Press of Nottingham publishes these charmers “not only for people who already love poetry, but also for those who will love it but perhaps don’t know that yet.” Sales also benefit charity.

Poetry pamphlets from Candlestick Press, Nottingham offer inspiration during an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Candlestick Press hopes “to revive the seasonal tradition of reading by the fire.”
© Joyce McGreevy/Candlestick Press

Suddenly we hear bells! Reindeer? No, the “mobile.” The caller says, “If you miss this, you’ve missed a marvel!” She’s quoting a theatre review.

Quick—to the West End! (Yes, by Tube. Sorry, Charles.) But first, sustenance. We’re in luck. Street Food Union is right around the corner. Mmm, what’s this?

Yorkshire Burritos on Rupert Street, London inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Yorkshire Burrito? Sounds daft—we must have some.
© Joyce McGreevy

Our new BFF (Burrito-style Favorite Food) is braised pork shoulder cooked in cider and herbs, served with sage and onion stuffing, rosemary roast potatoes, spinach, and applesauce, wrapped in a giant Yorkshire pudding. Jolly good, amigos!

The Gielgud Theatre inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Theatre-goers arrive at the Gielgud on Shaftesbury Avenue.
© Joyce McGreevy

When we exit the theatre, night has fallen, yet it’s 4:30 p.m. All the better to see holiday lights!

Angelic decorations over Regent St, London inspire wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

From angelic lights above Regent Street . . .
© Joyce McGreevy

Tropical decorations over Carnaby St, London inspire wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

. . . to tropical lights on Carnaby Street.
© Joyce McGreevy

There really is magic in the air, a sense that holiday spirits could suddenly whisk us off to . . .

The English Market, Cork, Ireland inspires wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Hey, this isn’t London—this is Cork City, Ireland!
© Joyce McGreevy

Yet our Very English Holiday Ramble continues. Launched in 1788, Ireland’s English Market is considered one of the ten best food markets in Europe.

Oh, I see: It wouldn’t be the festive season without a surprise! I guess you just never know where holiday wanderlust might lead.

Vendors at the English Market, Cork, Ireland offer mince pies that inspire wanderlust for an English holiday ramble. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Why just envision sugarplums? At Heaven’s Cakes, in Cork’s
English Market, Laurie and Cíara serve tasty mince pies.
© Joyce McGreevy

Click on the links to find out more about Borough Market, Leadenhall Market, Foyle’s, Candlestick Press, Yorkshire Burrito, Cork’s English Market, or Heaven’s Cakes.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Joyce McGreevy 2 Comments

Cultural Heritage & Traditions/Discoveries/England/Ireland/On Foot

Nov

The Hidden Hearts of Bruges

by Joyce McGreevy on November 28, 2017

Bruges by night is safe and serene.
© Joyce McGreevy

Where Being Bilingual
Is Just the Beginning

So, you’ve practiced your French to visit Belgium. Well, not so fast! Here, being bilingual is just the beginning. In this country the size of Maryland, only 40% of the population speaks French.

The Other 60 Percent

Now how’s your Flemish? Because we’re bound for Bruges. Known locally as Brugge, it’s arguably Europe’s most picturesque small city.

ruges is a World Heritage city in Belgium, where being bilingual is just the beginning. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

This World Heritage city welcomes 7.5 million visitors a year.
© Joyce McGreevy

Wait, did I say Flemish? Silly me. I meant West Flemish. Although to get truly local, you really should learn Brugs . . . In Brugge (where everyone’s also fluent in English), being bilingual is just the beginning.

Now I know what you’re thinking. “Aren’t Flemish, West Flemish, and Brugs all just slight variants of Dutch?”

Variants, yes. But slight, not always. It’s said that while a Bruggeling can easily understand a Dutch speaker . . .

A carved stone head inspires thoughts about language in Belgium, where being bilingual is just the beginning. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

. . . the Dutch speaker might not understand the Bruggeling’s reply.

A carved stone head inspires thoughts about Flemish in Belgium, where being bilingual is just the beginning. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Dutch vs Flemish

If the sound of Dutch is the tap of new shoes on an office floor, Flemish is your favorite old boots padding across moss. The hard Dutch g becomes an aspirated h. Words that look identical can have wildly divergent meanings, and some vocabulary varies by neighborhood.

Oh, I see: In Flanders, language is highly localized. Your address shapes how you speak.

Sint-Clarastraat, Bruges inspires a writer in Belgium, where being bilingual is just the beginning.

Like many streets in Brugge, Sint-Clarastraat is named for a saint.
© Joyce McGreevy

My address this month is Sint-Clarastraat. It’s part of a network of cobbled streets and canals that form a circular, lace-like pattern around this medieval city.

A colorful canal view in Bruges inspires a traveler in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

What’s Flemish for “I could stay here forever”?
© Joyce McGreevy

Storm Before the Calm

While those canals present a placid beauty, they sprang from cataclysmic change. In 1134, Brugge was already three centuries old when a mighty storm ripped open the River Zwin, gouging a deep passage all the way to the North Sea. The “Golden Inlet” was born.

With connection came wealth, as Brugge grew into an international capital of trade. Goods, people, ideas—they all flowed to and from Brugge like the lifeblood of a beating heart. Brugge became a cradle of art and architecture.

The medieval Adornes Domain in Bruges inspires a traveler in Belgium, where past is present. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Bruges’ Jerusalem Chapel and its almshouses were built by a 15th-century merchant.
© Joyce McGreevy

The reach of medieval entrepreneurs extended from Scotland to Jerusalem. Nature’s fortunate flood was followed by a flood of capital, and in 1309, Bruges launched the world’s first stock exchange.

Over time, the flat plains of Flanders and the slow-moving River Zwin proved a doomed combination. The Golden Inlet became clogged with silt, choking the port and sending Brugge into economic decline.

Yet the neglect that settled over Brugge preserved it. Stand in the center of the old Burg, scanning the surrounding buildings, and you will time-travel through the Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and Neoclassical ages.

Old Burg architecture in Bruges, Belgium spans several centuries. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Buildings in the Old Burg span 10 centuries.
© Joyce McGreevy

The Heart of a City

Because it’s central, guidebooks call Market Square the “heart” of the town. But Brugge has many hearts. Like learning the local language, discovering these hidden hearts takes time.

Smedenpoort Gate in Bruges, inspires a traveler in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Don’t miss outer Bruges, where you’ll find its four medieval gates.
© Joyce McGreevy

Did you ever hear the saying, “Nobody goes there because it’s too crowded”? The stereotype about Brugge is that it’s a hive of time-pressured, selfie-taking, beer-tasting tourists pursuing a quick fix of the picturesque before the tour buses leave town.

But if high-season weekends fuel the stereotype, evenings and weekdays dispel it. The most iconic sights become places of solitude then.

A tranquil canal view in Bruges inspires a bilingual writer in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Rarely has a Monday looked so tranquil.
© Joyce McGreevy

Beyond the Center

Whenever you visit, do venture beyond the center. Zigzag along streets unmentioned in the guidebook. Follow laneways to see where they lead—a hidden pond, a sheep meadow, a cloistered garden. Take longer and longer walks.

A sheep meadow in the heart of Bruges inspires a bilingual writer in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Peaceful green spaces are hidden all around Bruges.
© Joyce McGreevy

Look closely at buildings for details that signal the history of this city. Adopt local expressions as you do errands. Ask everyone who can spare a moment to teach you a new word or expression.

A bicycle overgrown with flowers inspires a walk around Brugge, Belgium, where being bilingual is just the beginning. (Image @ Joyce McGreevy)

Ready for a ramble around Brugge?
© Joyce McGreevy

Meet Your Neighbors

By this point you will be so in love with Brugge that you will have a thousand questions about its million mysteries. Filip Bil and Annemieke Demuynck have the answers.

Bilingual travel guides and food bloggers Annemieke Demuynck and Filip Bil live in Bruges, Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Roast venison with chicory and other Flemish favorites grace Annemieke and Filip’s table.
© Joyce McGreevy

He’s a firefighter, she’s a marketing manager. To explore the city’s history with them on foot, to have supper in their home, to visit their recommended bakeries, cheese shops, chocolatiers, and restaurants—each experience reveals another reason to marvel.

Fortunately, you can do all these things, because Filip and Annemieke are licensed guides, two of the friendliest experts you’ll ever meet. They also write a bilingual food blog called Vertelle Mentjes, “Little Stories.”

A candlelit restaurant in Bruges, Belgium inspires a reader of the bilingual food blog, Vertelle Mentjes. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

There’s much more to Bruges’ food scene than “steak-frites.” Just ask Filip and Annamieke.
© Joyce McGreevy

We almost didn’t meet. The price of a private tour was so reasonable that I hesitated. How good could it be, I wondered, if even I could afford it?

Thank goodness, we did meet. Without Filip and Annemieke, I would surely have missed many hidden hearts of Brugge.

A windmill in Bruges inspires a bilingual writer in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Hike to the old city boundaries, where the scenery’s anything but run-of-the-mill.
© Joyce McGreevy

Hidden in Brugge

Today in Brugge, where being bilingual is only the beginning, another heart is hidden—mine. Somewhere between the place where the wind ruffles the down of a swan and the moon illuminates the bridges, that’s where I left it.

I’ll just have to return for it one day.

Brugsch Swaentje, or swans of Bruges, inspire a bilingual traveler in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Legends surround the Brugsch Swaentje, or swans of Bruges.
© Joyce McGreevy

Meet Filip and Annemieke here and here.

Explore differences between Dutch and Flemish here.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Joyce McGreevy 7 Comments

Belgium/Language & Culture/On Foot

Nov

“Blistering Blue Brussels, Tintin!”

by Joyce McGreevy on November 6, 2017

The Tintin mural in Brussels, Belgium showcases comic book art as a cultural tradition. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Where Comic Books Are
a Cultural Tradition

Remember watching Saturday morning cartoons and reading Sunday’s comic strips? Settling in to reread stockpiled comic books? And how your parents—those draconian disciplinarians—made you go outside to play?

In Brussels, you can have your comics and play outside, too. Just follow the Comic Book Route.

The Léonard mural by Turk in Brussels shows why comic books are a cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Launched in 1991, this citywide project turns buildings into comic-book panels to celebrate one of Belgium’s most popular cultural traditions—l’art de la bande dessinée, the art of the comic strip.

A mural of Francis Carin's "Victor Sackville" in Brussels shows why comic books are a cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Meticulous cartoonist Francis Carin, creator of spy hero Victor Sackville,
is known as Belgium’s “tour guide to history.”
© Joyce McGreevy

Picturing Brussels

Brussels features 55 murals and counting. Centering your sightseeing around comics is a wonderful way to explore the city.

A mural of Frank Pé's "Broussaille" in Brussels shows why comic books are a cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

The Ninth Art

Belgium boasts more comic strip artists per square kilometer than anywhere else in Europe. It’s here that the comic strip grew from a popular medium into le neuvème art, “the ninth art.”

“In most Belgian homes, you will find a collection of comics or even an entire library dedicated to comic strips. More than half of the books published or produced in Belgium are comics.” So says Jean Auquier, director of the Belgian Comic Strip Center, Centre Belge de la Bande Dessinée.

There’s a comic book museum? Actually, there are several. “Nowhere else are comics so strongly rooted in reality and in people’s imagination.”

The Belgian Comic Strip Center in Brussels showcases comic books as a cultural tradition. (Image © www.visitbrussels.be and Daniel Fouss)

Belgium’s Comic-Book Legacy

Some Belgian comic-book characters are famous worldwide. As a kid, you likely spent Saturdays with Les Schtroumpfs, as Franco-Belgians call them, De Smurfen in Flemish. That’s “Smurfs” to you and me. Cartoonist Peyo (Pierre Culliford) invented the little blue characters after coining the word schtroumpf as a joke and sprinkling variations of it into conversations.

A group of children intently reading comic books at the Belgian Comic Strip Center show why comic books are a popular cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © www.visitbrussels.be and Daniel Fouss)

Belgium’s Boy Wonder

First, however, came Tintin, globe-trotting reporter, faithful dog Milou (“Snowy”) and brash Captain Haddock—he of tongue-twisting epithets like “Blistering blue barnacles!” and “Ten thousand thundering typhoons!”

Created by Hergé (Georges Remi), whose tumultuous life merits its own graphic novel, Tintin comics (1920s–1980s) influenced generations of cartoonists with their lignes claires (“clear lines”) and innovative use of speech balloons—previously, cartoonists kept text beneath the drawings.

A window at the Belgian Comic Strip Center showcases the comic-book art as a cultural tradition. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Beyond Europe, Hergé influenced artists like Andy Warhol and Roy Liechtenstein and filmmaker Steven Spielberg. He was also honored by the Dalai Lama for his 1960 work, Tintin in Tibet.

Paper Heroes

Brussels Comic Book Route will inspire you to get to know other Belgian héros de papier, too.

A mural of Hergé's Quick and Flupke in Brussels shows why comic books are a popular cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

The adventures of Hergé’s “other sons,” characters Quick and Flupke,
take place in the Marolles, where Hergé grew up.
© Joyce McGreevy

Where to Begin?

Because you’re never far from public transportation, I recommend starting wherever you are. Use the museum’s interactive online map to locate clusters of nearby murals.

A mural of Yves Chaland’s comic-book character, Le Jeune Albert, in Brussels shows why comic books are a popular cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

My base is L’Art de la Fugue, in the St. Gilles neighborhood, an inexpensive B&B with—aptly—visually dazzling rooms, each unique. Like a cartoon detective, I begin my mystery tour by seeking out the proverbial Fat Cat:

A mural of Philippe Geluck's "Le Chat" in Brussels shows why comic-book art is a popular cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

The trail winds through the heart of the Marolles, one of the city’s oldest neighborhoods, where streets are lined with vintage shops. Like comic-book panels, the neighborhood reveals itself one fascinating window at a time.

A vintage figurine in a Brussels inspires comparisons with Belgian comic-book art as a cultural tradition. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Likewise, everyday sights seem to imitate comic art, evoking the seductions of a great story.

A street scene in Brussels, with yellow motorbike and "L'Etoile Verte" sign, inspires ideas for comic-book art, a cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Walking Through Pictures

By moseying from one mural to another, I cover a wide swath of Brussels on foot. The search for comic-book murals reveals other urban pleasures, too. Like comic-book motion lines, the aromas of coffee and fresh-baked bread lead to wonderful cafés, places filled with locals, where visitors find a warm welcome.

A street scene in Brussels, featuring Café L'Aubette, inspires ideas for comic-book art, a cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Turning a corner becomes like turning a page. Mural by mural, I’m guided from one facet of the city to another—peaceful gardens, bustling market squares, centers of cutting-edge design, and places of gilded baroque magnificence.

At one point, I encounter a glass elevator that lifts me high above red-tiled rooftops to panoramic views from the Palais de Justice.

A mural in Brussels of François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters' "The Passage" shows why comic books are a cultural tradition in Belgium,. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

A couple stands beside François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters’ “The Passage,”
unaware of their cartoon shadows (inset).
© Joyce McGreevy

All day I follow the visual narrative. The passing hours play with the autumn sunlight like a cartoonist experimenting with background colors: slate grey dawn becomes morning’s pale gold, then afternoon’s bonus blue. With so many comic-book heroes watching over Brussels, can sunset be anything but rosy?

Finally, as darkness inks in the sky, the city’s windows begin to glow, like panels in a graphic novel.

A café window in Brussels inspires ideas for comic-book art, a cultural tradition in Belgium. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Oh, I see: In the comic-book city, where the cartoonist’s art is a cultural tradition, Brussels has ever more stories to tell.

View a map of Brussels’ Comic Book Route here and see a mural being created here. See more street art in London here, on top of gum globs here, and at the Tour 13 project in Paris here.

Comment on this post below.

Joyce McGreevy 2 Comments

Belgium/Cultural Heritage & Traditions/On Foot/The World's Art & Design

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Author Archives: Joyce McGreevy

A Very English Holiday Ramble

For Revelers with Wanderlust

The Hidden Hearts of Bruges