Kayaking the Canals of Ghent
Another point against the town of Bruges is that there is no kayaking permitted in its canals. And have you really visited a country if you haven’t kayaked there? I personally don’t think so.
Obviously, we had to find a Belgian canal in which we could kayak. So we took a day trip to Ghent!


Technically, today was a travel day to Brussels, from which we’re flying out tomorrow morning. But, Ghent was a convenient stop on our train ride. So, we stored our luggage in a locker and made our way to a kayak store.

Ghent is like Bruges’s cynical older cousin. Definitely more of a working class vibe, with lots of practical buildings and infrastructure (and graffiti). In stark contrast to Bruges, Ghent feels like a place where real people live. Indeed, for the first portion of the kayaking journey, I felt like I was potentially in the Hamilton of Belgium.


However, the sights grew increasingly pretty as we approached the downtown.


By the time we arrived at the historic city center, things had become very picturesque indeed.



After paddling around the city centre a bit, I suggested heading back. But James wanted to explore just a little bit further. So we did and we found… a literal castle.
Like, wtf. (And it wasn’t Dundurn Castle).


And that’s about all we saw of Ghent, with the exception of this pretty park. I would definitely visit for longer if I’m ever back in Belgium.


PS. When we returned the kayaks, I noticed that James’s clothes were damp. Apparently I had been mercilessly splashing him for the entire paddle and didn’t notice.
