Teddy Bear Cafè, Lille, FRANCE

This was an unexpected choice for the main shot.  We were on our way to the house where Charles de Gaulle was born and spotted this cafè, and I wasn't the only one who shot these bears.  They made everyone smile!

We left at about 10.00 with our fingers crossed that the usual Antwerp ring traffic would be over.  It was not, but at least it was no longer that thick.  An uneventful drive.  Once in Lille, parking proved to be an issue, and some driving around finally led to an empty spot way outside the city centre.  Coffee and tea, and then we began our stroll.  Always on the lookout for AW's back.  It was actually a mercy that he agreed to come along.

First to a large square the name of which I forget, but won't any more look up, and then the old stock exchange, and on the other side of that is the Place du Generál Charles de Gaulle, or Charles de Gaulle Square.  A little further on and we saw the old castle built for the dukes of Burgundy, still standing, obviously, but repurposed.  Then a long stroll to the local cathedral, which was not old but built in the old style with some other features mixed in, being neither Gothic nor Renaissance nor Modern.  After the cathedral, another long stroll to the Rue de Princesse, to view General de Gaulle's house, but we had a warm lunch on the way.  The de Gaulle house was not particularly stylish or elegant or beautiful, but it had a very cozy, homelike atmosphere, and while his parents hadn't been exceptionally affluent (or were they?), I think he had a happy childhood.  After about an hour there, maybe a little less, a short stroll to the Citadelle, but that area has been totally repurposed into a general park and recreation space, good for the local communities.  All this walking and strolling took us very far from our car, so we did our best to hurry back to it, AW's back notwithstanding.  We'd overstayed our parking time, but I have a feeling radar control had already passed by long before the time limit.  We'd certainly done the minimum required number of steps, had we even bothered to measure.

On the way back, while passing through Belgium, a short snack and Teqla's tank was filled, then an hour (bleuh...) stuck on the Antwerp ring, and by 21.30 we were back home.  We agreed that we'd both had a good day.  AW's last visit to Lille was about 40 years ago and was work-related, so this was his first time there again as a tourist.

Extras = two shots in de Gaulle's house -- a petit coffee table, and some bathroom acoutremènts.  What a tidy place it was!  I'd long wanted to see it, having visited Lille way back in 2011, so I was thankful I finally did.

Thankful for a fine day together.  And the weather was fabulous, too.