I woke up to the sound of hard rain. How ironic, I came from
dry sunny days in equatorial Africa just to find heavy rain in the north of France . Then
again, it could be horribly hot and oppressive like in the southeast of France , which
is experiencing “la canicule”. I wonder if Sicily will also be hot and dry? (I just
checked, and in the next five days the midday temperatures will be between 93
and 96 degrees Fahrenheit (33 to 35 degrees centigrade. It is going to be
miserably hot L)
Anyway, I have reserved today to visit Lille , and in particular the old part of the
city, or Vieux Lille, so off I go. I managed to get close to Vieux Lille,
parked, and walked the rest of the way. Lille ,
like so many French cities, has modern and very impressive high rises in the
commercial areas, comfortable neighborhoods where the normal people live, and
fascinating old neighborhoods, squares, churches, and palaces for the delight
of the tourists. I don’t know much about the history of the city, but I suspect
many of the “old buildings were reconstructed after World War II. They certainly
did a fine job at it!
On the northeast of the city there is a large green area,
surrounding La Citadel. This vast fortress was constructed in the late 1600’s,
after Louis XIV wrestled the city from the Flanders (Lille was then called Rijsel and was the
capital of French Flanders). The architects of the Sun King gave it the form of
a large star, and today it is the general quarters of the Quick-Response
Military Forces (and thus out of limits to the public, who is happy enough to
use the many paths around it to jog or take the family on a bike ride.
I don’t have the time, nor the inclination, to visit the
many museums that are found in every European city, but I try to visit at least
one, and this time the choice was the Museum of Natural History, which is
described as typical of the Art Nouveau movement, when architects discovered
steel as a great material to span wide spaces. In Mexico the old Museo del
Chopo was built in this style, and I have fond memories of going through its
immense halls, looking at glass cabinets loaded with thousands upon thousands
of animals of every type (mammals, birds, insects, reptiles), the skeletons of
whales and dinosaurs, and a collection of “monsters” like a two headed calf.
The museum closed when I was about 15, but me and my friend Paco wriggled our
way in a couple of years later, and found the place still filled with the dust
covered cabinets, the enormous steel and glass vault of the ceiling dim with
grime. An owl flew down on us, screeching, and gave us both the biggest freight
of our lives and the amazing thrill of having entered a lost world.
The Lille Natural History Museum did not disappoint me,
although it is a lot smaller than the Museo del Chopo. The cabinets were
completely overloaded with stuffed animals, but great care had been taken to
maintain the cabinets dust free and well illuminated. There were the obligatory
skeletons of whales and dolphins, plus a few of varied species to explain
evolution, and how most vertebrates share the same body plan. There was also a
nice section on fossils, a couple of large models of dinosaurs, and a second
floor with displays of minerals and rocks. Overall a nice museum, but to me a
way to live again one of the adventures of my youth J
After walking through the charming streets of Vieux Lille
and visiting la Citadel I went into a supermarket, bought a baguette, five
slices of Jamon Serrano, and a beer, and had my dream lunch in a small park.
C’est ci bon!
To complete the day I got back in my car and drove south of
the city, to the area of Saint-Amand-les-Eaux and the Parc Naturel Regional
Scarpe-Escaur. The name of the park suggested to me that there was a big fault
scarp, or maybe a deep fluvial canyon to admire, but I was wrong. It is a
beautiful area, and I enjoyed the drive through the countryside, but it is
absolutely flat with no scarp to be seen. Still, I took this prime opportunity
to hike through the forest, trying to imagine the many events that it has seen
over the last 500 years.
Tomorrow I need to leave Lille
at 3 am to be at the Charles de Gaulle airport at 5 am, return the rental car,
and board my 8 am flight to Palermo ,
where I will meet my dear friends Christine and Gustav for four days of serious
R&R.
No comments:
Post a Comment