The unassuming Belgian seaside resort Ostend has attracted many visitors over the years. But of all those who have strolled along its concrete high-rise shoreline and gazed out at the cold North Sea, perhaps none has a more unexpectedly intimate relationship with the town than US soul legend Marvin Gaye. — Toerisme Oostende vzw/dpa
Of all the places in the world where someone like musician Marvin Gaye would end up, the Belgian seaside town of Ostend is towards the very bottom of the list. And yet the US soul singer was so enmeshed with the town, visitors are able to take a tour based on his experiences.
During his 18 months in Ostend in 1981, Gaye lived with a Belgian family and then later his own low-key apartment while piecing his life back together. “I am an orphan at the moment, and Ostend is my orphanage,” he says in documentary footage from that year.
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