"Ghent, Belgium" a Gent Travel Page by genki44

Ghent (pop. 237,000) is set on the banks of three rivers -- the Lys, Lieve and Scheldt. Once a flourishing medieval city, Ghent is often compared unfavorably to its perfectly preserved neighbor Bruges. Nevertheless, this university town has a nice combination of the ancient and the contemporary -- and fewer tourists than Bruges.

The old section of town should be seen on foot. Start at St. Michael's Bridge to get an overview, then visit the belfry (note the copper dragons on top), the town hall (part Renaissance and part Gothic in design), St. Nicholas Church and the impressive guild houses on the Graslei quay. For a grisly display of torture instruments, stop by the walled Castle of the Counts of Flanders or the Castle of Geraard de Duvel -- Gerald the Devil. A nicer side of human nature is shown at St. Bavo's Cathedral, which has a magnificent art collection, including works by Van Eyck and Rubens. (The church closes rather early, so be sure to get there in time to see it.) For a different view of the town, take a boat ride along the canals (not all boat tours are offered in English, so check first). There are many other museums, castles and abbeys in the city and surrounding area. We especially liked the Folklore Museum.

If you're driving via Aalst, stop to see its early-15th-century belfry, which looks as if it would be right at home in Bavaria. A day trip can also be made to Sint-Niklaas, which has a museum containing the personal and professional belongings of Gerard Mercator (the great 16th-century mapmaker). Sint-Niklaas also has the biggest market square in the country (and that's saying a lot in Belgium). 35 mi/55 km west of Brussels.

The annual July street festival in Ghent is amazing and draws 1.5 million visitors (July 16-15, 2005)

The website below boasts that the festival is the greatest cultural and popular festival in Europe and I'm no expert on festivals in Europe--but it was really amazing!
More details:

The Ghent Festivities: 10 days of free feasts on several squares in the historic centre of Ghent, in the heart of Flanders. 1.5 million visitors go crazy at the greatest cultural and popular festival in Europe. From Saturday the 16th until Monday the 25th of July 2005, the lovely inner-city turns into a whirlpool of cultural high tech and atmosphere!

Source for this info and more:

http://www.gent.be/gent/vrijetij/feesten/english/fr_eng.htm