Headed down to the metro for 2 stops to the dreaded Chatelet station and then on to the RER B for the airport. Train came immediately so was at the airport by 7:00am. Amazingly, the airport has seen some improvement since the Olympics and for the first time ever there was not a long and slow line for passport stamping. They still have only one person doing it, but the machine takes care of the actual computer part and then you just wait to get the stamp. Anyway, smooth flight on Air France, with 2 empty seats next to me (adjust your seating a day or so before flight if you want this). Global Entry continues to be good with no wait at all to get through Seattle customs and immigration.

So, thinking about the trip, visiting London was interesting and the transit etc. is really good there, just scan your Apple Pay or credit card and when you have done a certain amount of trips per day the rest are free. Yes, things are expensive, but I had a free ticket, using points, and a free Hyatt room using points so it was reasonable for me. Bruges was lovely and I would highly recommend a few days there. Using the Eurostar was very easy and much preferable to dealing with an airport. About 2:15 to Brussels and then a local train that left immediately to Bruges included in the ticket price. Lovely old town, mostly car free, lots to see and do and good restaurants.

Lille was not as interesting to me, nice old town, surrounded by more modern things. Partly might be that the weather was very cold and grey. I would not feel a need to revisit.

Paris is always a good idea, to borrow a quote. As a regular I’m now free from the tourist musts, and can just be a flaneur and also revisit my favorite spots. Food wise, it continues to be a bit of a challenge with almost all French restaurants having exactly the same items on the menu. There is a surge of ethnic places that are quite good so some variety is possible, but getting a quick meal if you are Gluten Free is very challenging. Spent some time looking at Apartments to purchase and did not find anything I really liked, but it does reinforce how good the Fractional in which I own a share is. The location, layout and condition of the apartment are all excellent and the expenses low since they are shared 12 ways, but, the schedule is fixed so that is a limitation. All in all an excellent trip with no major mishaps! Stay tuned for the next one!