France-Belgium : feel the difference.
by lucas dewaele
Menen (B) – Halluin (F), a 10 minutes walk.
Lucas Dewaele, dagboek
Over fotografie en leven.
Menen (B) – Halluin (F), a 10 minutes walk.
mooie reeks en verhaal erachter. Herkenbaar of cliché
Dank, het verschik in de franco-belge sfeer is werkelijk onwerkelijk…
I love the possibility of crossing a border by foot, without even a “gendarme” around. I’ve only done it once, in Leticia, in the Amazon, walking from Leticia, Colombia to Brazil and back. Weird. Dankje wel for the walk.
Thanks for your comment. The idea of crossing a border (even without obstacles in our so called borderless Schengen area ) is a metaphor of emotional transition. When the contrast between two communities is so immanent (the way I showed it truely) this crossing becomes even painful.
Hmmm. What do you mean by “immanent”, unperceptible? Same happened crossing to Brazil, same dirt streets, plank houses, just the language switched from spanish to portuguese. In a matter of yards. And may I ask: why “painful”? 🙂
‘Immanent’ means ‘inherent’, to the Flemish and French communities. ‘Painful’ : the contrast is so undeniable. I became aware of the warmth we are missing (and which is within reach in a few yards..) and which is also the result of choices in the past and the present. In the case of this frontier town it’s clear that political choices have been fundamental for this contrast: the complete lack of warmth at our site and the opposite a few yards further…
It’s a pity.
Shame indeed. (And contradictory that the french side be warmer! Now, the people in the North of France, the so-called “Chtimis” are very friendly people. One of my long-time freinds is from Lille)
France is so much more colorful, it seems! 🙂
Within a few yards, across the border, one feels completely at ease. It seems holidays at once…