Our day in Ghent was a little on the mellow side as the heat continues to slow our pace. It’s been quite nice to see a sight or two each day, although I still have hard charging days left in me!
After breakfast at the hotel, it was time to head to St. Bavo’s for the famed Alter of the Lamb. I love a good triptych and this one is amazing.
The front half of the cathedral is free to enter. The ceilings are amazingly high. This was the first cathedral we’ve been in this trip and they really are remarkable structures.
The first part of the Lamb experience is to take an AR tour through the crypt. It was nice and cool in the crypt and it was nice to learn about the church and the art. I wouldn’t want to go that in depth in every cathedral but for this one, it was perfect.
The restoration of the alterpiece has really revived the work in terms of color brightness and detail. There is a more in-depth exhibit at a local museum which we did not attend, but I’m sure it’s exceptional. The panels above are some of my favorites. One, contained St. Livinus, holding his tongue that was torn out while he was preaching :[. Two, the angels in one of the smaller panels are very into their singing…or maybe someone is singing off-key? In all seriousness, the main panel was my favorite with the groupings of people, the central lamb, and the trees and plants in the background. I strongly recommend seeing this in Ghent!
It was interesting to me how modern I found the stained glass in this church and others. There are square blocks that seem somewhat abstract, and others that have figures that seem almost comic-like. Above, there’s a guy who looks like a comic figure and a groovy skeleton to his right.
These paintings in the knave were so cool. From a distance, they look like 3D marble reliefs, but they are actually monochromatic paintings. So talented!
The Rococo-style pulpit is very famous.
We had a nice coffee and treat break. We also bought some chocolates and nut mix for later.
Then we did laundry at a cafe/launderette. Yes, it was that time on the trip. Especially since it’s been quite warm- shirts are a one and done!
We had dinner at Alberte, which I’ll write about separately. This was another surprise menu that, for our tastes, didn’t work out quite as well as others on this trip but I would recommend the restaurant!
Our walk home was partly along the river Lexie, which is quite beautiful. All in all, it was a nice day in Ghent.