Despite habitually being lumped together, Nord and Pas-de-Calais are really two separate regions. Their coastline, with its two superb natural bays, faces the legendary white cliffs of Dover and over the Straits of the same name, a stretch of sea that, despite its mere 20- mile width, is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
Its Western flank—or the Côte d'Opale— is the prettiest and runs right up to the border of Belgium. It is here you will find the picture postcard images of region; pristine sand dunes, white cliffs, active fishing communities and wide open fields that make it ideal for walking, biking, horse riding and even swimming if you time your trip right. Inland to the west, the region is dotted with pretty waterways that you can see by boat and windmills, which lend the region a romantic air.
The capital of Nord is Lille, a bustling town that often gets a mere nod in the guidebooks. This is rather unfair, as a few days in Lille, especially this year when it wears the crown of European City of Culture, is highly rewarding. Once you get beyond its industrial periphery there are many delights to discovered; a rejuvenated historic centre, top notch shopping, sophisticated café culture and a heady nightlife, thanks due to the city’s 100,000 strong student population. Lille’s premier gallery, the Beaux Arts museum, is overshadowed only by the Lourves in Paris and is home to important pieces by Goya, Rodin, Delacoix and Rubens. The city’s Museum of Modern Art is no less impressive with Picasso, Modigliani, Miró and Braque in its collection. Art aside, eating is also one of the highlights of Lille and the region as a whole. Whatever you have heard about the obsession for mussels in the area believe it. Mussels and chips are available in quantities much like the ‘cod and….’ version on the other side of Straits of Dover. Home brews of beer are sold in bars and even market stalls and the local brew has even made it into the staple Lille dish: a carbonadde, or beef braised in beer.
Further inland the coastal plains give way to rolling hills, valleys and natural parks replete with hiking and cycling tracks, lakes for sailing and windsurfing and wildlife such as boar and deer. Villages are a plenty here; Arras is charming 17th Flemish village with cobbled stoned squares that host farmer’s markets during the week and St.Omar is an elegant town that features some fine 17th and 18th century architecture. It is also a good base to explore the Marais, the marshlands of the south that can be toured by boat.
The region of Nord-Pas de Calais has played a major part in numerous conflicts over the centuries and various memorials and relics help us remember the lives that were lost on its soils. From the port-town of Boulogne-sur-Mer which was used by the Roman emperor Claudius as a base for his invasion of Britain to the citadels of Lille and Arras (which also has a complicated series of underground tunnels that were used by as hiding place of allied soldiers during WWII) to the moving mass war graves, Nord-Pas de Calais is a poignant reminder of the battles that have shaped Europe as we know it today. |
