Count Baldwin IV of
Flanders Game: The Lille, France Touring Game
Created by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget
Introduction:
The
City of Lille (France) is known as the Capital of Flanders, which has Flemish
speakers in both France and Belgium.
Lille is in both France and Belgium.
Lille is in the region of France called the Nord – Pas de Calais.
History:
The
Flemish Count Baldwin IV (Baudoin le Barbu in French or Baudewijn met de Bard in
Flemish – born c. 980 – May 30, 1035).
Baldwin IV notably defeated the Holy Roman Emperor Henry II and won the following
territories for France:
-Valenciennes
(France)
-Ghent
(Belgium)
-Zeeland
(Netherlands)
Industries:
Today,
the Lille-Tourcoing-Roubaix-Villeneuve d’Ascq conurbation produces:
-fruit
juices
-freeze-dried
coffee
-instant
foods
-soybean
and cottonseed oil
There
are also service industries in Lille linked to trade with the above industries:
-banking
-insurance
-logistics
(rail, port, and highway)
How to Get to Lille
from Paris, France
Lille
is about 1 hour away from Paris by Eurostar TGV, connecting London (UK) and
Brussels (Belgium), which makes a weekend trip from Paris a fun option for
shopping, dining, and sightseeing.
Festivals in Lille
Check
out websites for Lille for tourism information.
Two
festivals that might interest tourists visiting Lille for the first time
include:
-“Festival
Bal” – a Flemish and Belgian-Flemish beer festival
-Christmas
Market – runs from the end of November to the end of December. The Christmas Market sells nativity
figurines, Christmas decorations, and Christmas foods
The
various websites have maps and city guides you can download.
Tours
The
City of Lille is adding tours of breweries, walking tours, and battlefield
tours to its website.
One
tour that may be of interest to Americans of English and Australian descent is
a tour of the Fromelles Battlefield.
The
Germans defeated British and Australian troops on July 19 and July 20, 1916 at
Fromelles. The battleground here did not
have trenches. It used a “breastwork” or
temporary fortification instead of trenches.
Notable Flemish Cuisine
and Beer
-Carbonnade
flamande – Flemish beef and vegetables stewed in beer
-Belgian
fish and chips (fries) dunked in mayonnaise
-Belgian-Flemish
beer – I tasted one of my favorite Belgian-Flemish beers in Arras
(France). It is called Affligem
(Afflighem) and is from the Flemish province of Brabant outside Brussels, Belgium.
Final Note:
Lille
can be a weekend trip from Paris or a detour on the way to Brussels, Belgium on
the Eurostar TGV (speed train).
By
Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
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