Trouble in Bruges
When tourists say they wish they could take a piece of their favorite place home with them, sometimes they mean it a bit too literally.
Belgium’s picturesque city of Bruges has issued a request that tourists stop stealing cobblestones from its UNESCO-recognized medieval streets.
Local politician Franky Demon says an estimated 50 to 70 cobblestones disappear per month — even more during peak season — and it costs 200 euros (about $225) per square meter to replace them and fix the damage.
Personal note: when I lived in Bruges I saw many roadworks. They break open a historic road, and leave all the historic cobblestones in one big pile, to close it up when done.
Maybe they shouldn’t be leaving anything with historic value in a neat pile for everyone to grab.
Possible, but still, those fuckers are heavy, you don’t want to transport them further than you need to. I totally understand the road workers and not so much the thieves.
