Page 27 - PBCOctober2022

Pickwick Bicycle Club Magazine olume 19 No.2 October 2022

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Mr Pickwick Goes to France …..Returns in 2022

Courtesy of The King of The Goblins precise organisation, a small gathering of members and
guests left our shores to pursue the Tour de France once again. The King of the Goblins
takes up the story………..

After a three year hiatus brought on by the Covid pandemic, the annual event bringing Club
members and guests together as spectators of Le Tour de France was successfully reinstated
after negotiating the problems of changing international travel restrictions and UK rail
strikes. The first three stages of the 2022 race took place in Denmark before moving on to
France. Stage 4 with its finish in Calais was the preferred target, but was ruled out with none
but the most expensive hotels in the area available for a group booking.

The stage 5 start was from the centre of Lille, our next best option, so on Monday July 4th
our, albeit smaller than usual group, met up in the St. Pancras Eurostar departure lounge. The
group was made up of Alfred Jingle with family friend Alan Brown, Jackson with wife Jackie,
and King of the Goblins with wife Celia.

Old Stock Exchange Lille

On arrival in Lille, we transferred to the Holiday Inn Dinner at La Paix
Express hotel, conveniently located just a 15 minute stroll
from Le Grand Place, giving access to the old town with its
many restaurants, bars, and shops. Lille is a beautiful city with much to recommend it
including the Museum of Fine Arts rated second only to the Louvre and conveniently just
around the corner from our hotel. It is worth noting that all museums in France are closed
onTuesdays. Unfortunately we didn’t know this at the time, so missed out!