Ghent - seeing the sights
Sights outside the city centre
Our Podtour™ of Ghent focuses on the medieval centre of the city. But Ghent has many more things to see. The two great monasteries of the middle ages were built outside the centre – one of them survives, though the other has left few remains. Then in the eighteenth century, the great merchant families of the city deserted the centre and built their mansions along the newly fashionable Kouter and Veldstraat.
Ghent is usually a one day stop on tourists' itineraries. But it's certainly got enough interesting places for two days – and that's before you start visiting the museums.
Sint Baafsabdij was one of the two great medieval abbeys that dominated the town. It was almost all demolished by Charles V, who built a fortress on the op of the ruins – but what's left is amazing. There's an octagonal lavatorium in Romanesque style, and a lapidary museum. The stonecarvings include reliefs from the facade of a surgeon's house showing blood-letting and dissection, as well as the tombstone of a Ghent boatman. Unfortunately the museum seems to be closed at the moment – let's hope it reopens soon.
Of St Peter's Abbey, few medieval vestiges are left; most of the buildings are seventeenth or eighteenth century. But the abbey now houses fine art exhibitions, which are well worth seeking out for the medieval-minded visitor.
Ghent also has two Begijnhofs – that's one more than Bruges! The St Elisabeth Begijnhof, off Rabotstraat, is quite urban in feeling. It was founded in 1234 by Joanna, Countess of Constantinople – the daughter of the Count of Flanders, despite her exotic title – for single women who lived in this closed community, though without taking nun's vows. Their stay might be permanent, but equally, they could treat it as a temporary seclusion and marry later on. This corner of Ghent is now home to a number of ecumenical churches, including Orthodox and Anglican.
The Klein Begijnhof, with its eighteenth century houses and chapel clustered around a lawn, has a more serene feeling to it.
The water gate or 'Rabot' of Ghent stands at the point where the river Lieve crossed the city moat – a weak area of the city's defences. It was built in the 1480s, with two towers flanking a gabled building above the water. Its fine spires and gable are instantly recognisable. Unfortunately the inside can't be visited.
The Bijloke was a Cistercian abbey, some way to the south west of the city. It has an elegant church with a fourteenth century infirmary and refectory, as well as a fine baroque building, the so-called Abbess's House (actually, it was an infirmary). Now, the Bijoke is also home to a fine museum of art.
Ghent is mainly visited for its fine medieval sights. But there are a couple of very modern sights that are worth taking the time to visit. First is the Boekentoeren, or book tower, of the university, built in 1940. It's jokingly known as Ghent's fourth tower – after the cathedral, Sint Niklaas and the belfry – but looks more like a New York skyscraper than a medieval turret.
And finally, SMAK, the museum of contemporary art, housed in a huge modern museum in a park on the outskirts of the city. This was Belgium's first modern art museum. It opens in the evening on the first Friday of the month – and it's well worth timing your visit to coincide with the event.