Today I started off by visiting Lille, which is in France and just over the border. Why Lille…? I wanted to look at the architecture – and wasn’t disappointed. Lille like any city has a sprawling modern suburbs, but in the centre it was definitely old world charm. Right in the centre of Lille is a big park where the Lille Citadel is situated. After Louis XIV conquered the city on 1667 he ordered that a citadel should be build to fortify the town. It was a monumental construction, one of the biggest in Europe at that time, and is built in a five cornered star configuration. It was built on swampy land near the town to make use of the water as a defensive asset. It is truly massive and inside the citadel it was like a small town, self contained and impervious to siege – but this was never put to the test and over the years some of the the gigantic and extensive outer walls were dismantled and many of the nearby houses were built using those bricks. The citadel is not open to visitors as it is an active HQ for NATO forces. I know that because I was told off for trying to take a picture…
The old town is still the same as it was from the 1700’s, and walking around the town centre you will see dates on the houses from the early 1700’s, with many of them using bricks that look suspiciously like those form the Citadel. The buildings are typically French in every way with the terraced streets containing houses of all sizes ranging from grand to rather quaint, indications that that Lille must have been a very prosperous town back in the 1700’s.
Then I went back into Belgium to visit Tournai, as I wanted to visit the cathedral there as well. You can also see the Dutch influence with the buildings around the town centre square. A mission was created in Tournai in the year 300 and on the same site, a Cathedral was built in the 1200’s, with the town springing up around the Cathedral. The Notre-Dame Cathedral is very old, and you can see that when you walk around the outside when looking at the crumbling statues and edging – but after 800 years its still standing which is a testament to the builders of the day. The town square, like most Belgian towns is surrounded by eateries and the square is mostly original. At one end of the square is a statue of Philippe-Christine de Lalaing, who was the wife of the town’s governor. When he was away fighting a war, the Spanish attacked the town in 1581 because they believed the town was turning away from Catholicism towards Calvinism. She led the towns forces to put up a spirited resistance. After a lengthy siege they had to eventually surrender and since then she has always been regarded as a hero of the town.
Well, that’s my cultural bit done for the day. Tomorrow it’s a lift-and-shift day as I’m heading into Holland. I was going to head down to Caen and then meander back up to Holland but although the days are really sunny and hot, the nights are a little too chilly for comfort. Also, looking at my weather app, I can see that the weather near Caen isn’t too good so I’ve decided to start heading home. But, I’m going to Holland for a few days first – as there are a few places I want to visit and definitely some things to see.
