This walk leads you to the place where Ghent originated. It takes you along the water and through various parks to the St. Bavo's Abbey and the confluence of the Scheldt and Leie rivers. You continue on remarkably green paths, visit the oldest and most atmospheric beguinage of Ghent as well as a former cavalry barracks, which now houses social housing.

Directions

Start at the statue of Jacob van Artevelde heading north towards the impressive buildings "Ons Huis" and "Bond Moyson," built in eclectic style by the SV Vooruit at the end of the 19th century. Take the Waaistraat on the right corner of the square. You will pass the Edward Anseeleplein with parking and at the next intersection turn left (Krommewal). Over the Leie bridge, immediately turn right onto the sidewalk under the arcades. You now follow the "Achterleie," which continues into the Huidevetterskaai. After a while, you will see the Industrial Museum on the opposite side. Just beyond the bridge over the Leie, continue to walk along the water on the right (Blekersdijk). Where the road slightly bends left, follow the narrower path by the Leie, which turns into a footpath past the sluice complex. At the Sint-Joris bridge, turn left for a moment (zebra crossing) and immediately right to continue following the water (keeping the water on your right side). You are now at "Portus Ganda," the Ghent marina for transients. Take the next bridge to the right towards the Sint-Macharius Church. Just past the church, turn left along the ruins of St. Bavo's Abbey. This abbey is located near the confluence of the Leie and Scheldt rivers and is generally considered the foundation for the establishment of the city of Ghent (Ganda). At the end of the ruins, you arrive at the Spaanskasteelplein. After destroying the abbey, Emperor Charles had a castle built here to keep the people of Ghent in check. This castle was demolished in the 19th century. Turn right here and continue to follow the abbey wall (Oostenrijkersstraat). Where the road bends to the left, go a few meters further right through a narrow passage in the hedge and then immediately turn right into the "Groene kerk" - here, the large abbey church, which was also demolished along with the rest of the abbey, was "rebuilt" with high hornbeam hedges. You will pass the entrance gate of the abbey ruins, which are open to the public on weekends during the season and in normal circumstances. At the end of the "church," turn left towards the white gate building. Until the 1970s, there was a covered livestock market on this site. You arrive at the Voorhoutkaai at the height of the Nederschelde. Turn right here and a few meters further, turn left over the bridge. Just past the middle of the bridge, you notice on the right a "small peninsula" with benches. Here you have a beautiful view of Portus Ganda and further on, the confluence of the Leie and Scheldt, which you will pass shortly. However, you will go left, between the two branches of the Scheldt. To the right, you have the Nederschelde, and to the left, the Visserijvaart or "coupure," which was dug parallel to it in 1751 and provided a shorter and better connection with the Zeeschelde. You now walk between the two waterways. After 100 meters, bear right and follow the cobbled narrow towpath along the Nederschelde. At the next bridge, cross the street and again turn right along the towpath. On the opposite bank, after a while, you will get a beautiful view of the back of the klein Begijnhof. At a small park, take the path left and arrive at the Visserijvaart, where you cross the street and turn right. You go under the highway and come across a beautiful bicycle bridge in the Keizerpark on the territory of Ledeberg. Take a short loop left through the park. You arrive at the French Vaart and cross the bicycle bridge again. Once under the ring road, turn left. Cross the bridge over the Nederschelde and go straight to the busy Brusselsepoortstraat, which you follow right. After 300 meters, you will see an old water pump from 1837 facing an underpass on the site of the former cavalry barracks Hollain. Here, go right under the passage. Here, you can take a moment to walk around the grassy area with the beautiful wooden artwork "Wild Horses." Return to the street and turn right into the Lange Violettenstraat. Another 250 meters further, just past the remarkable Arena Van Vletingen, a former riding school, you arrive at the beautiful quiet Klein Begijnhof. Here, you turn right through the entrance gate. Take the first alley on the left and continue this further between the walled houses. Curve at the end of the alley to the right and take the first alley to the right a few meters before a gate. To the meadow, go left toward the church. Go around the back of the church, past the Godelieve Chapel, and turn right to the front of the church. Here, turn right again, and at the end, turn left at a chapel. You come again through the access gate to the street, where you turn right. At the next intersection, 150 meters further, turn right into the Tweebruggenstraat. Cross both bridges over the Nederschelde and Visserijvaart and go straight along the busy Kasteellaan. After 200 meters, take the first street on the left (Ossenstraat) and 50 meters further, again to the left, into an alley. At the end of this, turn right onto the footpath through the Queen Astrid Park. Keep to the right and circle around the central pond. After the pond, turn right toward Lousbergkaai at the Visserijvaart. You pass the villa De Groote from 1793, where the city's green service is now located. You pass by St. Bavo's Abbey again and cross the bridge. Just before the Van Eyck swimming pool, with beautiful Art Deco interior, turn right along Portus Ganda (marina). This brings you to the Bavobridge for cyclists and pedestrians, right at the historic confluence of the Leie and Scheldt rivers. Due to canalization, the Leie is a lot wider than the relatively narrow arm of the Scheldt. Cross the bridge to the right along the Leie. Follow the sidewalk next to the water as much as possible. You will pass under the Sint-Joris bridge and after a while, you will arrive at the Baudelopark, which you enter to the left. After 75 meters, you will notice on your left the city brewery Gruut with a consumption hall. However, you continue straight until you reach the Baudelostraat, which you follow to the left. After 100 meters, you will pass the old Baudelokapel on your right, the former chapel of the abbey, now set up as an event location. In 1795, Mozart played here on the organ. You arrive at the roundabout opposite the beautiful Sint-Jacobskerk, the oldest (partially) Romanesque church in Belgium. Here, turn right into the Ottogracht. At the next intersection, turn right into the Baudelostraat. On your right, you will see the houses built in eclectic style at the beginning of the 20th century with many ornaments and sometimes special sayings. At the end of the street, you arrive again at the starting point at the Vrijdagmarkt, with the statue of Jacob Van Artevelde in the center.