Small Town France

Between Paris and Brussels, there was one week that was dedicated solely to creative and physical endeavors. I spent that week in Lille, which is a small city relatively close to the border between France and Belgium. Oddly enough, this is the birthplace of Charles De Gaulle, something I was unaware of despite taking European history in high school. There were hostels in the older part of the city, which is where I stayed, but Lille had two distinct parts to it, making one capable of experiencing the older and recent French lifestyles. All in all, I understand why the majority of Black people would prefer to live in bigger cities rather than rural areas.

Getting there by bus, I saw that most of Lille was more suburban, making it more car-centric than a bigger city. There were no major employers, and while I do not believe in putting huge employers in the middle of small towns, I also see no incentive to be in a smaller town without much employment. If I have been interested in migration, I would have needed a larger employer that would give me a remote job, therefore making a reliable income. The older part of town, where I stayed, was a particularly tourist-friendly area, and there was very little other than retail and restaurants. The library was relatively close, but I missed it based on focusing on my other projects, including this blog.

Fall is a more unique time to travel because there are fewer people based on the weather that changes the leaves, but also cools. Around me, I saw several older white tourists who were around my age, some of whom engaged with others at the hostel, while others like myself were pleasantly independent. Most of the younger people were on their way out when I arrived on September 30, and there were a few stragglers to the beginning of school. Traveling later means either job flexibility or disposable income, so there were more people working than simply traveling.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was not alone as a Black person, because that is usually never a good thing. However, I was one of the more isolated Black people amidst everyone else. There were very few Black people of leisure, and most of them were not staying at the hostel for more than one or two nights, confirming some of the discomfort in being in a predominantly white space. On the whole, I avoided feeling overly conscious of my race because I was either out exercising or working on my project in my room. I spent a total of one evening people-watching and eating at the downstairs pub.

My experience with smaller towns comes from the United States, so I undoubtedly have a number of biases, but I was also only there working for a short amount of time. I saw the birth house of Charles De Gaulle and the Musee de l’Hospice Comtesse, and heard all of the “hard work” and “strong leader” propaganda that goes with such places. Most of my time was spent exercising and writing. Smaller towns are good places to get projects done, but I would not necessarily recommend them for a living.