Hays Travelogue

Our purpose for this trip was to chaperone some high school students who were part of a Junior Achievement Trade Fair in Antwerp, but there was plenty of time for sightseeing. On Friday, we took a walking tour of Antwerp. In front of the Town Hall is a statue that portrays the founding of the town, and this is what we learned. Once upon a time, there was a terrible giant who charged a toll for anyone who crossed the river. If a person had no money or refused to pay, tough luck. The giant chopped off a hand and threw it into the river. The river was getting pretty full of odd hands when a hero finally came along, killed the giant, chopped off HIS hand, and threw it into the river. Once the giant was gone, a town could get started here.

***

Another thing I liked at the Grote Markt (this main square) were the Guild Halls. A few of them were originals from the 16th century; others were more recent reproductions. We learned that before the system of numbering houses and numbers it was the practice to identify buildings with statues or painted plaques. So, each one of these buildings has a gold statue on the top to identify it. The statue might be the patron saint of the guild or just the name of the guild.

***

Saturday was the Junior Achievement Trade Fair. This is a competition in which teams of students develop a mini-company that has a product to sell. They have to set up and run all parts of their company. Our students were selling hearts in order to raise money for the Heart Association. They didn’t win a prize, but they did recoup their expenses and will be able to make a nice donation. They learned that the color red really attracts customers.

***

On Sunday, we moved down to Brussels. The weather was very bad that day – lots of wind and rain – so we checked into our hotel and rested. On Monday, though, the weather was clear and beautiful for our field trip to Brugge. We all loved walking along the canals in this medieval city. After lunch, the girls shopped while Mike and I went sightseeing. Here are a few more photos here if you want to see them.

We wished you were there!

Tags:   Antwerp · Belgium · BruggeNo Comments