The Ravel'd Sleave

Gent is a wonderful city. But there are some things about it that confuse us. The month-long carnival, for example (though we don't mind at all -- we can't hear it, and it provides a dozen kinds of sausages, fresh frites, and Liege waffles at any hour of the day or night).

The fact that no matter what, we get lost.

The Wednesday night bar-hopping, public singing, and puking tradition. Here, students do their main partying on Wednesday. Yes, many go home for the weekend. But why not get drunk on Thursday? Why Wednesday?

And now, the knitting.

We went downtown this week and noticed that many public buildings, monuments, and bridges were adorned with knitting.

It's very colorful. It keeps the buildings warm, I'm sure. But...WHY?

If any of our Belgian readers have the answer, please tell...