"Cabana Boy's Brugge Page" a Brugge Travel Page by Cabana_Boy

Brugge was definitely the best stop on my “your daddy’s unemployed” tour of Belgium, Germany and Holland…My company had been laying-off large numbers of people each quarter for more than a year and I had been asking to get on the “list” for at least six months when my wish was finally granted in May 2002 (Thanks, Lt. Dan).

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The street near the levy...

I was tried of work, burned out as they say. I had put everything into this job, repeatedly worked 100 plus hour weeks and pulled more “all nighters” than when I was at university. My reward, along with a lot of other people, was the bursting technology bubble full of psychologically manufactured consumer demand, unproven business models and inflated stock valuations resulting in worthless stock options, bankruptcies and job cuts. The system needed a good douching, a clearing of the baffles so to speak and I needed a long break to clear my mind, relieve two plus years build-up of stress and frustration…and that’s when my “your daddy’s unemployed” tour started.

The term actually comes from a line in a Johnny Socko song, which I used to describe the six glorious months of my life I was out of work in 2002. The entire time I “hoboed” around Canada, Europe and the United States without a care in the world.

As with all my trips to Europe, the European portion of “your daddy’s unemployed” tour was thrown together at the last minute. A friend of mine named Action Jimmy, who was still gainfully employed, found a “deal” to Amsterdam and wanted to spend a couple of weeks in Europe. I had always wanted to go to Amsterdam and since I wasn’t doing anything, I jumped at the opportunity to tag along…at the time I'd do anything to delay my job search for gainful employment for a few more weeks.

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Town hall....

We quickly cooked up some goals for the trip: sensory deprivation in Amsterdam, the Kolsch versus Alt beer challenge in Koln and Dusseldorf and a quick jump over the border with a sidetrip to Brugge for good measure...

Although Amsterdam served its purpose well and both of the Germany beers were good, Brugge was the perfect solution for my much-needed rehabilitation. The canals, medieval architecture, outdoor cafes with hearty food and the friendless of the Belgium people was everything I had imagined and more.

The warmth of the September sun provided the perfect temperatures and I was truly able to relax. And lets face, there’s no greater concentration of beers and brewers on Earth than in Belgium. I remember thinking, how could people live here, its too perfect, and then I thought, why can’t I live here!!!