In Bruges

Long time ago in some publishing company or another I came across a book called 'Dream Towns of Europe' and the one place that stuck in my mind was Bruges in Belgium.  In addition the film 'In Bruges' is one of my all time favourites, so off I go from Antwerp on a day trip on the train.

Bruges had its heyday in the 15th century as a Hanseatic town trading throughout the North and Baltic Seas, but by the end of the century the river that provided access to the city had silted up and Bruges quickly became a backwater.

Much bigger than I thought, the town is picture perfect and in the middle of summer packed with tourists. The city centre, beautifully preserved, has two main squares, enclosed by stunning medieval buildings.

However, once you moved away from the city centre the crowds of visitors quickly diminished and the streets were eerily quiet.  Every thing was neat clean and tidy but there were no people - no children playing in the streets, no windows open on a warm summers day and the only sounds were my own footsteps. At the same time I had the feeling that people are watching me and the overwhelming atmosphere was that of some creepy horror film.

Once back the centre, the crowds returned, but now I am convinced that no one actually lives in Bruges and I certainly wouldn't want to stay there over night

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Charles Rennie Mackintosh

One of the benefits of working for a publishing company, is that you come across subjects about which you know either nothing or very little. Even just reading the cover blurbs you end up by expanding your knowledge considerably and by reading the book you, of course, become an instant expert.

One such book I came across focused on the Glasgow designer and architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh and I have always wanted to visit Glasgow to see his work. One of the really sad things about Mr Mackintosh he was still alive to see his style fall from favour and had to witness his  famous interiors ripped out, his furniture sold off second hand and even some of his buildings pulled down.

While he later became celebrated throughout the world, he remained unrecognised in his native Scotland until well into 1970s. What remained was mainly his furniture and a handful of buildings. The fantastic Kelvingrove Gallery has an extensive collection of furniture and interior fittings, the Glasgow School of Arts is an entire building complete with Mackintosh interiors (most of which survived the recent fire), and the exterior of the Glasgow Herald building includes the stunning 'lighthouse' with great views over Glasgow. In addition the famous Willow Tea Rooms have been restored. In reality, I thought the furniture stylish but a bit rough, seemingly produced by amateur cabinet makers. Likewise the interior  of the Willow Tea lacked finesse, the tea was delicious, though the sponge was stale.  

 

Four seagulls and a pigeon

No doubt having a monumental statue erected in your honour is a very great and prestigious thing. A real shame then that your memorial turns out to be little more than a dunny for seagulls and the occasional pigeon.

pigeon. 

Strange faces in the library

The Scottish Portrait Gallery has a beautiful old library open to the public. Along with a fabulous collection of art books a glass case holds a strange collection of plaster casts of various  heads with very descriptive labels such as 'Idiot Girl'. These were collected when the 'science' of phrenology was at its peak and the Scot George Combe founded the Edinburgh Phrenological Society.  

 



On a more regular level it was great to see the bust of Alexander Mccall Smith who has joined the greats of Scottish literature and take pride of place on his own on the staircase.

 

Marianne North

While plenty of people have been to Kew Gardens (including me), the visits are usually confined to the main gardens and the glasshouses. While wandering back to the exit I noticed a small building near the perimeter of the gardens. I assumed it was just some administrative building, but then a man just ahead of me went into through an unmarked door - being naturally nosy I followed. Nothing prepared me for the extraordinary display of floor to ceiling paintings by Marianne North.

An intrepid traveler, Marianne North had no formal training (but clearly plenty of money), traveled the world in 1870s painting prolifically as she went. In total she created over 900 works with a general botanical theme, including several of New Zealand. Returning to London, Ms North had a purpose built gallery constructed in the Kew Gardens which opened in 1882.

All the paintings are of a similar size and cover ever centimetre of the wall space. While they lack botanical detail, they exhibit an exuberance and colour that only a true plant enthusiasts could capture. The sign said no photos but I have gotten used to ignoring rules and took a few quick pics.

Religious Georgia

Although deeply conservative, Georgia is  surprising tolerant when it comes to religion. Most people are Eastern Orthodox with a good choice of flavours - Georgian, Armenian and Greek. Add to this Catholic and Protestant churches and in the old city are two functioning mosques, one Shia, the other Sunni and just 200 metres apart. Throw into that mix, Yazidi Fire Temples and a large and vibrant Jewish community and you just about have something for everyone.

The oldest church dates to the 6th century, with a sprinkling of medieval buildings dating from the 10th to the 14th century. Many are tiny, but as the congregation either stands or kneels you can pack a lot of people into a small area. No comfy pews or cosy carpets (in mosques) for these folk.

The art is distinctly eastern and every church has valued icons brightly lit by numerous candles.

The National Botanical Garden of Georgia

A large and extensive botanical garden was not what I was expecting to find in Tbilisi. Located in the deep Tsavkisis-Tskali Gorge right behind the Narikala fortress, the gardens were originally established in 1625 as the royal gardens adjacent to the castle above. In 1845 the became the Tbilisi Botanical Gardens and now cover 165 hectares.

The gardens feature, not one but two impressive waterfalls and the steep hillsides are laced with easy walks through Italian cypress and cedars. Overall the gardens contain 3500 different plants.

New Tbilisi

Along with fine old buildings, Tbilisi has some dramatic new buildings and the mix oddly works well. In the heart of the old city is the National Theatre with its famous higgledy piggledy clock tower, while crossing the river is a fabulously striking bridge. Along the river is the not-so-successful Court House, looking like an odd clump of mushrooms. However, the metallic tubular theatre complex just looks great.