The 12th century was one of the darkest, most violent periods in the history of the Low Countries…read more The constant wars and invasions took a huge toll on the male population who fought in them and led directly to a dramatic decrease in the availability of marriageable men. The resulting surplus of women led to the founding of the Béguines, a Christian sect devoted to rescuing single women from a life of penury and immorality. The women were housed in Béguinages, rows of small houses built around a church and courtyard and protected from the outside world by a high brick wall. The women did not take religious orders, but they were expected to perform community services. These good deeds made the Béguinages very popular until the 17th century, when a drift into mysticism put them on a collision course with the Pope. The last Beguine of Belgium, one Sister Marcella, died in 2008, at age 88. But the Béguinages, even though still occupied, had long ceased to perform their function. in 1998, UNESCO added the Flemish Béguinages as a group to its list of World Heritage Sites. By far the largest Béguinage was built in Ghent, but at one time nearly every sizeable Belgian town had a community. The Béguinage in Lier is one of the better preserved. Most of the homes remain occupied, so there is a limit to how much you can see. But if you arrive here around sunset, when the church bells toll for evening prayers, you wll see the gorgeous houses empty their aging occupants (male and female) onto the street.

I love a Begiunage and this is the best one in the country, even better than the one in Bruges…read more Lier is an amazing little Flemish town - it's like Bruges without the tourists - and wandering around this one was awesome. There was a local artist who had an exhibition in one of the houses, he explained how the place works: the town owns all of the buildings inside; they rent them out to tenants, and you can make approved renovations, and deduct the costs of them from your rent. There are two small churches inside that are open irregularly. The doors close 10pm-7am.

What an awe-inspiring church. The altar itself is something to marvel at alone…read more St. Carolus Borromeus kerk (church) seems to have had several incidents with fire and the elements which stole 39 irreplaceable ceiling paintings, however the ceiling painting toward the altar was spared and gives a glimpse of what once was. The altar alone could be studied for hours. It's ornate and finely detailed with baroque artwork and architecture that is common to a lot of Belgium's churches and buildings. The painting at the altar also is capable of being changed using the original mechanism set in place. St. Carolus is hard to miss if you walk up onto it as the outside of the church is very ornate, as well, utilizing the gold embellishments and certainly a nice stop to study art history and architecture. The inside of this church has been one of my more favorite to have visited thus far. When we visited, the church interior was under construction which seems to be a trend for a lot of churches and cathedrals in the area, but it was nice to just get out of the cold rain and look at beautiful architecture.