I could tell you about the time I spent in Gent, but then I’d have to… you know how it goes. One lasting memory? Perhaps the very honourable Mr B, composer, Northener, keeling over as he gets up from his seat in Café des Arts. Says he: ‘The chair is drunk. Not me.’

As for the city, the little I’ve seen of it: small, tidy, quaint here and there and a little posh in places. And absolutely lovely service and kindness everywhere we went. Yuji, at Café des Arts, especially, put up with our whims with a smile and once he got the go ahead from above, was generous with the bottles of local spirits. Please, my Flemish friends, never let yourself be annexed or even influenced by your Northern neighbours.

I’d recommend Hotel den Yzer to both budget and more upmarket travellers, if you can give up on luxury for a minute. Almost monastic in its simplicity, its authenticity will warm you. Old world charm beats the creepy vinyl seats in the nearby Ibis hotel any day.

The music was poignant, the temperature icy. The sun shone brightly, the company was dear. Bring on Christmas.
More details at Hydragenic.com