I was amazed when arriving at the main square in Arras, the capital of the French department
Pas-de-Calais. The main square (called so many names: the
Grande Place, the
Place des Héros, also called the
Petite Place) was bathing in autumn sunshine. On the background of blue sky and white clouds the buildings appeared just so perfectly lined up and beautiful...At the one end of it, the 77m-high-bell tower overlooked the city from the top of the Gothic town hall.
The "Beffroi d`Arras" (the bell tower) is on the UNESCO World heritage list since 2005. It was built between the XIVth and the XVth century, but was almost completely distroyed during the WW1. The bell tower is classified historical monument of France already in 1840! Inside the town hall (Hotel de Ville) the typical local costumes (of Picardy area) "in huge size" are on display.
If you are curious to see how Arras did look like some 50-60 years ago, please click
here. A great selection of old post cards is shown!
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