Les rues de Calais

Les rues de Calais
Originally uploaded by bdinphoenix

Calais has a casino, a lot of bars, and.......

In World War II the Germans bulked up their forces in and around Calais, France in anticipation of the allied invasion of Europe. As we all know the invasion took place much further down the French coast at Normandy. Calais was eventually isolated and taken by the Canadiens after the invasion, which had completely surprised the Germans with its location.

I have watched countless Hollywood versions of the invasion of Europe, known as D-Day and I noticed how the Germans and American always talked about Calais. From The Longest Day to D-Day the 6th of June, to Band of Brothers, Calais is consistently mentioned numerous times by both sides.

Now that I have visited Calais I can a rhetorical central question of the characters who talk about Calais. That question is, why would anyone want to go to Calais? While it is the closest place to England on the European continent, it has little else to attract anyone. There is a casino, restaurants, and countless bars.

When I was growing up in Philadelphia my parents used to make reference to the bars at the end of each block and the one in the middle of the block. In addition there would be a church between the bars. The bars and the churches both wanted your money, and neither cared much how they got it.

In Calais there are bars on the corners. There are taverns in the middle of each block and also in between the middle and the end of the block. There is also a casino and a port with a ferry that travels between Calais and England, which is just across the English Channel.

Calais has its small residential area but in my mind it will only be noted for its taverns. It has a couple of churches, but there are those pesky taverns again. I saw a small park near the town’s center but the hotel clerk warned me to be careful at night and to use the hotel bell to gain entrance because it was not safe at night. There are she said somewhat embarrassed, “A lot of bars here”.

Now that I have seen Calais, I can move on to Lille and never have to wonder what is in Calais again. Click on the photograph to see more of Calais.