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Friday March 27. Arras.

 A fast train got me back to Arras, a town near where I left off on my walk on the Via Francigena last fall.  The large Canadian cemetery and memorial of Vimy is 12 kilometres or so from here.  Last fall I approached Vimy from the north, and now I am just to the south of it.

To treat myself, I had booked a hotel from Canada for April 27 in Arras.  Keen proofreading eyes anyone?  They were very gracious to change the date when I got here. And to essentially give me a free lunch of leftover breakfast croissants - I must have looked rather needy.  Here is my hotel - it is as nice inside as out.


According to the hotel write-up, it is the oldest building in Arras, dating from1467. Its stepped gable is typical of Flemish architecture of the 15th and 16th centuries.  All through this area brick is the most usual material - a striking change from the stone of Paris.

Arras has seen a lot of war and destruction. Here is a very incomplete list of regime changes, usually accompanied by death and destruction: Iron Age peoples conquered by Romans in first century, who were overtaken by northern tribes in the 5th, by the Flemish in the 9th, by the Bourguignons and then the French King in the 15th, followed by the Spanish in the 16th and back to the French in the 17th. In World War l Arras was 10 km from that deadly stalemate at the front and by the end the town was 80% destroyed.  The historic centre was faithfully rebuilt after the war (homeowners had been obliged at one point to give the local government detailed house plans, for tax purposes I think, which greatly facilitated the process.) World War II brought more destruction.

Two beautiful squares show the prosperity of earlier days when Arras hosted large regional fairs.



After wandering around, I got my hair cut, bought salad and yoghurt in a grocery store for supper, and lazed in my hotel room to gather energy to start back on the path.



Comments

  1. RitaMarch 28, 2026 at 5:57 AM

    Congrats on starting the last leg of your pilgrimage, Celia. Arras reminds me so much of Brussels, esp. La Grande Place. Good luck with the first few days of long walks!

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