The best city hikes and walks around Handelsdok

The history of the 1898 The Post hotel begins at the end of the 19th century in the city of Ghent, Belgium. In 1898, the architect Louis Cloquet brought to life an imposing neo-Gothic building that was to serve as the city's new central post office. Located between the historic quays of Ghent and the Korenmarkt, this 4* houses the city's former central post office, a neo-Gothic architectural gem designed at the end of the 19th century by Louis Cloquet. Source: https://www.hotels-insolites.com/de/1898-the-post.hotel

Old Post Office (Ghent) It is richly decorated - the building of the old post office on the Korenmarkt in Ghent. Once, post coachmen used to stop here - today it is a luxury hotel and offers numerous shopping opportunities. Both continue to carry the name "Post" within them: the shopping center "De Post" and the hotel "1898 ThePost", which is furnished with elegant antique furniture and thus fits wonderfully with the magnificent building itself. Source: https://lion-tours.de/reiseservice/wissenswertes/europa/belgien/gent/

Fleischhaus aan de Leie, built from 1406–10 by city architect Gilles de Suttere The connection between the Groentenmarkt and the Pensenmarkt is dominated by the large Meat Hall. This medieval covered market hall was the only place where meat was allowed to be sold until the 19th century. Outside, in the small "panshuizen" (meat houses), the meat scraps were sold. Two of these "panshuizen" house the smallest pub and the smallest chip shop in Ghent. Source: https://visit.gent.be/de/staunen-erleben/groentenmarkt

On the Groentenmarkt, the ›Groot Vleeshuis‹ has stood since 1410 with its long row of gabled windows, emphasizing the enormous dimensions of the hall. Inside, the ornate roof timbers are impressive. Today, the culinary delights of East Flanders are offered here.

The Hoofdbrug was, as the name suggests, the main bridge of 's Gravenburg, a fortification with land around the count's castle, surrounded by gates, surrounded by moats, and equipped with its own administration. On one side lay the Leie, on the other the Lieve, which was connected to the Schipgracht by a moat. This connecting canal eventually received the name "Plotersgracht" because the leather tanners were allowed to set up their field planning there. Several stone bridges were built over this moat. Mentions of this bridge date back to 1274. At that time, there was a wooden drawbridge here at the defense gate of 's Gravenburg, which was replaced by a stone bridge in 1371. On the parapet side of the counts' castle stood a statue of Our Lady with Child in an iron house. The iconoclasm led to the destruction of this statue in 1566. In 1602, a new statue illuminated the bridge. On the other side stands a statue of the executioner with the sword in the air, ready to strike down the condemned. A symbolic representation of the high jurisdiction of the Ghent City Council's bank. In 1855, a wooden swing bridge was built. In 1874, a fixed stone bridge was built, and in 1898, the road over the bridge was widened by the construction of a tram line towards Brugse Poort. A final radical change took place in 1950 to renew the reinforced concrete road surface. Source: https://gentdekuip.com/hoofdbrug/

The Zuivelbrug is the elegant bridge over the Leie, which allows passage between two historically valuable districts. On the one hand, the Oudburg with the Patershol district, which belonged to the county property of the Grafenburg, and on the other hand, the Vrijdagmarkt. From the 13th century until 1476, this bridge was also known by the name Boudinsbrug, after a resident of the "Suvelsteghe". Initially, it was made of wood, then it was built of stone between 1363 and 1426. To allow the passage of seagoing vessels, a swing bridge was built between 1751 and 1754, which was renewed several times over time. On July 1, 1987, a completely renovated metal swing bridge was installed to replace the outdated bridge, which had been out of operation since 1968. Source: https://gentdekuip.com/zuivelbrug/

The Leie is a river that flows through France and Belgium. It originates in the municipality of Lisbourg, in the French department of Pas-de-Calais, generally flows in a northeasterly direction and, after a total of around 202 kilometers, flows into the Scheldt as a left tributary in the city area of Ghent, in the Belgian province of East Flanders. Of the total length of the Leie, around 109 kilometers flow through Belgian territory, and for a length of around 24 kilometers, the river now forms the border between Belgium and France.

Sint Baafsplein The St. Bavo Square is a spacious rectangular square situated between the west facade of the Gothic St. Bavo Cathedral (to the east) and the belfry with the Cloth Hall (to the west). This square originated in 1897 during the reconstruction work at the foot of the belfry, with the disappearance of the Regnessestraat and the Sint-Jansstraat, which led from the belfry to the Nederpolder and the current St. Bavo Cathedral, respectively. The demolition of these streets was part of the project by Mayor Baron E. Braun to clear part of the old city center and thus create the famous sight with the three famous towers of Ghent. In 1899, the Royal Dutch Theatre was founded on the site of the Regnessestraat. Furthermore, the north side of the current square is occupied by a row of colorful bourgeois houses in the eclectic style from the first quarter of the 20th century. The other side (south side), the preserved street side of the disappeared Sint-Jansstraat, is built with spacious 18th-century mansions and bourgeois houses, among which the so-called Hotel Hamelinck stands out. Additionally, between them are heavily modified facades from the 18th and 19th centuries, behind which old cores are presumably hidden. Directly opposite the Royal Dutch Theatre, in the middle of Sint-Baafsplein, is a rectangular lawn with a monument dedicated to Jan Frans Willems (1798–1846), created by Isidoor De Rudder and inaugurated in 1899: a granite pedestal with a relief bust of J.F. Willems, depictions of his most important works, and mentions of his collaborators. On top of the pedestal stands a group of white marble symbolizing the awakening Flanders: a young man, symbolizing Flemish genius, awakens a maiden representing Flanders. Source: https://www.gent-geprent.com/straten-van-gent/straten-n-z/straten-s/st-baafsplein