Thursday, 5 June 2014

A fabulous trip to The Charente , France..

I had a wonderful opportunity to visit this area,
when my good friend Diane and her husband ,
 kindly invited me to spend time with them.
 
The Charente is a beautiful area of France, and
one which I have never visited before.
 
Diane has a fabulous blog (she has 3 actually )
 Great write ups and
fabulous photos so do visit her blogs.

PhotoDiary

My Life in the Charente

My Life before Charente

♥♥♥♥♥

So my journey started by Eurostar from St Pancras
to Lille Europe (Yep not Paris this time) and then
to walk the 10 minutes to  Gare de Lille Flandres to catch
the TGV to Angouleme.


View Larger Map

Lille Flandres is the main railway station of Lille, capital city of the French Flanders and it opened in 1842 as Lille station (Gare du Lille) and was renamed Flandres in 1993 when Lille Europe station opened. There is a 500m walking distance between the two stations,


The Station front is the old front from Paris' Gare du Nord which was dismantled then reassembled in Lille at the end of the 19th century; an extra storey, as well as a large clock, were added to the original design.
 
Source of Information :- Wikipedia.
 
Geographically and historically, Lille is located in Flanders (French Flanders, that is). The region has strong historical and cultural connections with Belgium.
 
 
After making sure I knew exactly where to go, I took a walk outside the station
 
 



I did not have time to go in , but I am sure it is wonderful , judging by
the architecture of the outside.
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Maurice,_Lille



Just a few photos as we journeyed through France in the
Double Decker TGV  and I was upstairs , and amazing
trip, nothing like what we have to put up with in the UK .









 Well I think I am up and running again . Lots more to see.

BIG THANKS to DIANE and Nigel for the invite.
 
 
 ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
 

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20 comments:

  1. Trubes5 June 2014 at 19:11

    I'm hooked already Anne,
    Lille looks a very interesting place to visit, oh and travelling on the upper deck of TGV....
    As you know we're off to Anglesey tomorrow but will be taking PC and Tablet etc so will be in
    touch with the outside world, (only if weather is too bad ),
    Speak soon, love di..xxx

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire5 June 2014 at 19:26

      Thanks Trubes. Oh yes upper deck of TGV was super , it fact I hope to do it again one day . Have a super time in Anglesey , I hope the weather is super , don't you want on the PC/tablet too much .

      I would love to go back to Lille as there is so much more to see . I have a friend that has been , so I will pick her brains for info. speak soon love Anne xx

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  2. GaynorB5 June 2014 at 19:27

    I'm looking forward to reading more about your trip with some wonderful photographs.

    When the kids were younger we had some great holidays with our caravan at Bignac, just north of Angouleme. We'd turn up, park the van and leave nearly six weeks later!!

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire5 June 2014 at 19:51

      Hello Gaynor , thank you for calling in. I have lots to show you , but have been busy with work , and a bit despondent about being back in the UK ,, I am happy to bring back good memories for you. How great to stay in this area for 6 weeks. I was staying about half and hour or so away , but we did go to Angouleme too.

      Delete
  3. Rhodesia5 June 2014 at 20:36

    Anne so pleased that you enjoyed your holiday, just sad that the weather was not better! Looks like you had a great trip down, love your photos. Take care Diane xox

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  4. Paulita 5 June 2014 at 21:13

    What a great trip. Love the shots from Flanders.

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    Replies
    1. Lucia9 June 2014 at 14:31

      great shots Anne, love the 4 pm shot!!! My favourite time during the week.

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    2. Anne in Oxfordshire10 June 2014 at 17:57

      Thank you Paulita and Lucy. I have never been to Lille before , and had time to have a little look round :-)

      Lucy .. I never noticed the time .. glad it is your favourite time :-) .. Vino time maybe.

      Delete
  5. Mystica6 June 2014 at 07:10

    Thank you for beautiful pictures. The possibility of my visiting any place in France is very remote so I do enjoy the photographs and write ups.

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire6 June 2014 at 15:58

      Hello Mystica , how wonderful to see a new reader, and so happy that you enjoy these photos. Ah so sorry that you think you will not be able to visit France ,, I will be posting a lot more . Thank you once again.

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  6. My Castle in Spain6 June 2014 at 10:43

    Hello Anne,
    Glad you enjoyed your trip to France, in spite of the weather ! You visited quite a lot...from Lille to Charente and Tours ? Me too, I like the double decker TGV..i was under the impression you have the same in UK but may be i got confused with buses :-)
    xo Lala

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire6 June 2014 at 16:01

      Hello Lala

      I had a fabulous trip and I have lots and lots to write about and photos to show you all. No such luck of the UK having double decker trains , cannot stand the trains here now. Crammed and horrible toilets too. and No buffet room , just a little trolly that tries to squeeze itself down the aisle and very expensive too. Sometimes even if you book you don't get your seat ... Not a very good picture but that is how it is ... Yes we do have double decker buses :-) xo anne

      Delete
  7. Leslie:6 June 2014 at 23:41

    Je suis jalousie! Alors, un jour je vais revenir! J'aime tous les photo!

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire10 June 2014 at 17:53

      Hi Leslie , I do hope that you get back to France one day .. and that you love the photos too , thanks my dear friend.More to come. xx

      Delete
  8. Leslie:6 June 2014 at 23:41

    ACK! "jalouse"

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  9. Gina8 June 2014 at 11:24

    It looks like you had a wonderful time Anne!

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire10 June 2014 at 17:54

      Had a wonderful time Gina , so much to see too. Thank you x

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  10. CherryPie9 June 2014 at 18:06

    I sounds like you had a wonderful time. I am looking forward to seeing your photos. Your pictures of Lille have brought back memories of a long weekend that I spent there.

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    Replies
    1. Anne in Oxfordshire10 June 2014 at 17:55

      A wonderful time CherryPie, I hope they were happy memories that came came to you . I am having a bit of a blogging block , but hopefully back on track soon.

      Delete
  11. Barb19 June 2014 at 09:30

    Anne,
    Thanks for taking everyone on your trip. I feel like like I am sitting next to you!
    I have never been to Lille. But, there is CDG airport and St Pierre des Corps (next door to Tours).
    I think that the last photo is outside of St Pierre des Corps, along the Loire river. I like the mirrored images of the buildings in the water. xox

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Thank you to everyone for commenting, it certainly makes my day. A pleasure to see everyone of you. Old and New.. Blogging not only opens up the world but gives us new friends.

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