This was a very different type of trip for us. Typically as a gay couple on vacation we tend to go to places where there are fun or relaxing things to do, in an environment that’s light and carefree. But sometimes you want to go somewhere a bit more meaningful – with important history and stories that need to be explored and shared. And that’s what we got with our visit to Ypres in the Flanders region of Belgium. It’s an area of significance especially for the first world war, which ended exactly 100 years ago this November. There are quite a few Canadian connections there from the war time so it was really interesting for us as Canadians ourselves to learn more about what took place and witness the monuments, cemeteries, and museums that remained.
As you can see in the video above we stayed at The New Regina hotel, visited the In Flanders Field Museum, the Essex Farm Cemetery, the Passchendaele Memorial Museum, the Tyne Cot Cemetery, the Last Post at Menin Gate, and some yummy food at both De Oude Kaasmakerij (The Old Cheese Factory) and Les Halles Marktcafe!
Thanks to Visit Flanders for helping to coordinate our trip and here are some of our photos from our visit to Ypres that I shared on Instagram:
We also did a Hotel Hangout video where we discussed corporate involvement in Pride festivals so be sure to check that out as well and if you’re new to my content subscribe to my YouTube channel to see more videos from the destinations we visit, geared toward LGBTQ travelers like us!
We felt that this was a particularly special place for us to visit and a significant one, especially for Canadians, as we pass the 100th anniversary of the end of the great war. It’s important to remember that so many of the rights and privileges we enjoy today are in place because of the sacrifices that so many made back then to protect our freedoms!