VISITING AND SANTE!!... I met a special friend of Reggie's. Chantel. She shared her life, her story--with such compassion and humor, I LOVED listening to her! I SO wish my "french" was better so that I could have communicated directly with her. She has lived so much history.
After leaving Chantel's, we spent the day driving up the
northwest coast to CALAIS. It was a little rainy today, but beautiful. Calais is north of Wimereux just a few miles.
Visiting a special small Chapel along the coast on the way to Calais.
We also drove by the English Channel Tunnel in Coquelle, which is 4 miles west of Calais. The underwater Channel Tunnel (le tunnel sous la Manche) is 31 miles long. The terminals are unique facilities designed to transfer cars from the motorway onto the tunnel trains at a rate of 700 cars and 113 heavy vehicles per hour. The train travels up to 160 kilos per hour. Amazing.
Virtually the entire town Calais
was destroyed
by heavy
bombardments
during WWII.
Places d'Armes,
the distinctive
Town Hall
is one of the
few surviving
pre-war buildings.
Bourgeois de Calais is one of the most famous sculptures by Auguste Rodin, completed in 1889. It serves as a monument to an occurrence in 1347 during the Hundred Years War.
England's King Edward offered to spare the people in the city of Calais, if any six of its top leaders would surrender themselves to him, presumably to be executed. King Edward demanded that they walk out almost naked, wearing nooses around their necks, and carrying the keys to the city and castle. One of the wealthiest of the town leaders, Eustache de Saint Pierre, volunteered first, and five other burghers soon followed suit, stripping down to their breeches. The burghers were expected to be executed, but their lives were spared by the intervention of England's Queen, Philippa who persuaded her husband, King Edward to exercise mercy by claiming that their deaths would be a bad omen for her unborn child. Their lives were spared.
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