You are now standing in the courtyard of the Gruuthuse Palace. Take a look around at the tall brick walls and the elegant windows of this grand home that belonged to one of Bruges’s most powerful families. Do you know that the Gruuthuse family rose from merchants to nobility because they controlled the trade of gruit? This was a medieval blend of herbs used in brewing before hops became widely available. Want to know a fun fact? Some of these herbs, like henbane or belladonna, were mildly hallucinogenic. And that’s not all. The favourite ingredient for the beer was mouldy rye infected with ergot, which also causes hallucinations. No wonder people in those days believed that they saw angels hovering, witches flying, and strange figures in the night. My guess is, it was just the beer talking. The Gruuthuse was transformed into a palace in the fifteenth century, and is a proud reminder of the wealth that flowed from that trade. A lot of work on it was completed by Louis of Gruuthuse, the most famous of all the lords. Do you see a carved shield with two unicorns above the archway that leads into the courtyard? If you take a closer look at the shield, you will see a golden fleece necklace with a sheep hanging below it. The unicorns are symbolic of the good relations that Louis had with Scotland. Now, Scotland was at war with England, whose symbol is the lion. And, a unicorn is the only animal that can kill a lion. Get the gist? Louis also adopted the motto “Plus est en vous”, which means “There is more in you than you think”. How motivating! You can see this on the façade of the Gruuthuse Palace, carved under an equestrian figure under an ornate canopy, surrounded by decorative tracery. As Louis expanded the palace by adding beautiful rooms, he also created a private oratory that connects the palace to the Church of Our Lady. You saw this when you were at the Church. If you are a booklover, you will be interested to know that he had one of the largest libraries in northern Europe. Today, the building is home to the Gruuthuse Museum. You can step inside if you want to see the grand halls, tapestries, weapons, and carefully restored rooms that show how wealthy citizens lived in medieval Bruges. However, you will need to buy a ticket for this. Before leaving, here is a cheerful anecdote. The Gruuthuse story is closely tied to beer, and Bruges still celebrates that heritage. The word gruit survives in local brewing traditions. The famous Bruges Fool beer is produced by the De Halve Maan brewery, and the same brewery also makes a beer called Gruut that uses a herbal mix much like the old medieval recipe. We will be heading toward that brewery later in the tour. There is one final tale that adds a touch of mystery. Some locals enjoy telling a story about a secret tunnel running from this palace all the way to the distant Adornes Domain in the Saint Anne quarter. There is no evidence that such a passage ever existed. Bruges is a city of canals rather than tunnels. Still, legends like this give a little extra charm to places like this courtyard.