Rising 83 metres above the medieval rooftops of Bruges, the Belfry is the city's most recognisable landmark and, frankly, its heartbeat. Built between the 13th and 15th centuries, it served as the commercial and civic nerve centre of what was then one of Europe's wealthiest trading cities — the treasury was kept here, merchants conducted business in the halls below, and the carillon of 47 bells called the city to order. That carillon still rings out today, and hearing it echo across the Markt square is one of those unexpectedly moving travel experiences that no photograph quite captures.
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