On arrival on a cold day in Bruges, our bags were spirited away and we were offered seats in the sitting room which occupies most of the lobby space. Our armchairs wrapped around us, Mozart played softly nearby, a fire crackled and the ice in our bones began to melt.
This small medieval town in northern Belgium is remarkably well preserved, having escaped the bombing that destroyed so much of northern Europe during the two world wars. Cobbled streets, lazy canals, 16th century merchants' houses and tall, 300-year-old church towers still stand. This is a town of brick houses and cosy bistros. A town with a proud and significant history, and an unashamed fetish for chocolate.
The standout staff members were the husband-and-wife team that runs the dining room: Sandra and Ignace. Breakfast was a delight - scrambled eggs cooked on the Aga, sourdough toast and buttery croissants to kick-start the motors for the long day of walking and sightseeing ahead.
Small, but up at the top of the building, which meant spectacular views over the terracotta-tiled rooftops. Cute French-inspired tiled bathroom and a huge bath. On my next stay I am going to go for one of the Ralph Lauren suites, which are larger rooms featuring original Lauren fabrics and the latest designs. One even has an original Lauren mahogany bed.
No dedicated concierge, but the front desk staff know lots. The hotel uses Annick Goutal fragrances and cosmetics in the suites and has a good selection for sale. Prices are cheaper than Paris and they have fragrances for boys and girls. The receptionist was most helpful in walking us through the different ones and letting us try a few.
Europeans love the Pand. French and German accents abound. The staff are multilingual, which helps. Excellent for families too, especially the suites, some of which can accommodate several kids. A few businessmen were in the lobby one afternoon, slightly perturbed because the place did not have the five-star services of a Sheraton or Hilton. I could not stop myself from telling them: "It's Bruges, it's a family-run hotel designed for romantic couples and families enjoying leisure time. Of course there isn't a state-of-the-art business centre."
The lobby lounge and library. The collection of original Louis Vuitton suitcases that the owners, the Vanhaecke family, have amassed over the years. Also, scrambled eggs on toast, croissant and coffee each morning at breakfast tables covered with starched white tablecloths.
Smoke from someone else's room making its unstoppable way into our designated non-smoking room. On further investigation I think our neighbours (also in a non-smoking room) each finished off a packet of Gitanes that evening - probably in bed. It is very hard for hotels to order guests not to smoke, but with more and more smoking bans now coming in across Europe, it is time to get tough and charge disobedient guests a hefty cleaning fee if they break the rules.
Authentic Bruges crash pad which makes a wonderful and cosy escape. Try to get one of the Ralph Lauren suites, ideally the one overlooking the street. Also has the huge advantage of being family-owned and run. The Vanhaeckes have done a terrific job renovating this former house into a multi-award winning small hotel.
Pand Hotel, Pandreitje 16, Bruges, Belgium, +32 50 340 666. Standard double rooms start from Dh965. info@pandhotel.com @email:www.pandhotel.com
MATCH INFO
Quarter-finals
Saturday (all times UAE)
England v Australia, 11.15am
New Zealand v Ireland, 2.15pm
Sunday
Wales v France, 11.15am
Japan v South Africa, 2.15pm
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
HOW TO WATCH
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MATCH DETAILS
Juventus 2 (Bonucci 36, Ronaldo 90 6)
Genoa 1 (Kouame 40)
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Results
2.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Mezmar, Adam McLean (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
3pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 2,000m; Winner: AF Ajwad, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Gold Silver, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel.
4pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,000m; Winner: Atrash, Richard Mullen, Ana Mendez.
4.30pm: Gulf Cup Prestige (PA) Dh150,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Momtaz, Saif Al Balushi, Musabah Al Muhairi.
5pm: Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Al Mushtashar, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Section 375
Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat
Director: Ajay Bahl
Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL
Rating: 3.5/5
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Sweet%20Tooth
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COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Eco%20Way%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20December%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ivan%20Kroshnyi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Electric%20vehicles%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Bootstrapped%20with%20undisclosed%20funding.%20Looking%20to%20raise%20funds%20from%20outside%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
2021 World Triathlon Championship Series
May 15: Yokohama, Japan
June 5: Leeds, UK
June 24: Montreal, Canada
July 10: Hamburg, Germany
Aug 17-22: Edmonton, Canada (World Triathlon Championship Final)
Nov 5-6 : Abu Dhabi, UAE
Date TBC: Chengdu, China
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
