Somme battlefields: war in a peaceful land

Sombre at the Somme

I don't really like it when Americans and English comedians joke about how the French always surrender in a war. And until the USA or the UK have suffered as much by war and invasion as France has, I think those jokes have no basis. It's very easy to defend yourself when you live on an island, or across the ocean.

Traveling through the battlefields of Verdun, the Marne and the Somme is really a moving experience. How can this peaceful green land, with its cornfields and farms and cows have been a scene of such devastation and carnage, just a century ago?

The battlefields of the Somme are incredibly moving, with their serene military graveyards, austere monuments and acres of white crosses dotting the landscape around Péronne. Some of the memorials are incredibly beautiful, like the Canadian memorial at Vimy. A stunning man-made cliff of marble that rises up from the edge of a hill, crowned with impressive sculptures. Not just a place of memory and contemplation, but also a great work of art.

One of the first memorials I visited was the Anzac memorial near Villers-Bretonneux. And I am not ashamed to say that I had tears in my eyes, to realize just how far these young men had traveled, to die for a war that was never theirs, to protect values that were not worth protecting. What a colossal, devastating waste of human life.


And every cross, every name on the marble walls represents so much more grief. The parents, the siblings, the friends of the 'glorious dead'... each cross I counted meant maybe a dozen broken hearts. The scale of suffering completely overwhelmed me, even though the sun was shining, birds were chirping and the flowers were everywhere.

The messages on the crosses were harrowing. Mourning parents trying to make sense of the senseless killing, holding on to hollow phrases and empty prayers to a God they could no longer believe in. Meaningless words about duty, honor and glory that barely hid the immense sadness behind them.And then I saw it: a cross with a personal message from despairing parents who weren't able to come up with a brave lie or some empty platitude. 'Another life lost. Hearts broken, and for what?'

There, under the Picardie sun, I let my tears flow freely, mourning for a soldier whose name meant nothing to me, feeling the loss of parents I did not know.

I challenge everyone to travel through the battlefields of France, and come away still holding the childish notion that wars can be won, and that there is such a thing as good versus evil.

There isn't. There's just death and despair... hearts broken.
And for what...

Lens: the miracle of the North

Northern Lights: miraculous museums

Louvre Lens is an absolute masterpiece

Northern France often gets overlooked by tourists. Coming from the North -like I do- they barrel on along the Autoroute A1 until they are deep in Picardy, where the famous gothic cathedrals and impressive fortresses beckon. Or further still, in Paris. But hardly anyone pays any attention to the two northernmost departements: Nord and Pas-de-Calais.

I can't really blame anyone, because it's not exactly a pretty part of France. Large factories dominate the landscape around Calais and Dunkerque, and the urban sprawl around Lille hardly induces anyone to get out of the car. But, as so often is the case: there is a lot more to see and do in the North than you might think.

Lille, for instance, is a vibrant metropolis with a lovely old center with big Flemish squares and quirky shops. And nearby Arras boasts two of the most beautiful squares in all of Europe, elegant and harmonious.But there is also a certain drabness about the area, Belgian almost, with derelict mines and slagheaps everywhere. This is a region that has seen better days.

However: things are changing fast, and mostly for the better. Lille has, thanks to Eurostar, grown into a hi tech metropolis, the silicon valley of France. And recently, the North started putting itself on the map even more. Maybe it all started with the hugely succesful movie 'Bienvenue chez les Ch'ti', but that movie really only was seen by a French audience. The real boost came from two fantastic museums that opened in the region.

Roubaix boasts a fabulous museum in a former swimming pool, imaginatively named La Piscine. It's a pure delight to see beautiful 18th and 19th century sculptures reflected in the former pool, that still has water in it. A stroke of genius! I was reminded of emperor Hadrian's villa in Tivoli, Italy actually, with the white marble reflected in the pool. Very surprising and very worthwhile!

However, this spring saw the opening of the Louvre Lens and that's really something else. In a sleek glass and titanium building, in a beautiful garden, the Louvre created a time-machine. In one magnificent hall, you can see the whole development of European art from 4000 b.C up until the 1900's. Instead of the palace-like rooms of the Parisian Louvre, here everything is open, wide, white and spacious. In one glance, you can see the Greek and Roman sculptures, and the ones from the Renaissance they inspired. It is so exciting to see these marvellous works of art interacting, almost debating with one another. And don't think the Louvre Lens only shows stuff from the attic of the Louvre Paris. Non monsieur! It actually has some of the most important works from the collection, like the famous Delacroix revolution painting.

I conclude with a tip for all my Dutch friends: until 31 december 2013 entry to the Louvre Lens is free!