Ghent's little holy village
Tucked off the busy streets is the Holy Corner, a beguinage that grew up as a quiet community for women who chose a religious life without taking vows. Narrow lanes, whitewashed houses, a garden behind a door. For centuries beguines lived, worked and prayed here, independent of husbands and, in many ways, of the church hierarchy too. It still feels like a village that decided the city could wait outside. Shhh.