Afghan refugees at the Port of Calais

Afghan refugees at the Port of Calais, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

One of my reasons for coming to Calais was wanting to see the condition of the Afghan refugees for myself. I have seen several news items about them before I left Canada. They are mostly educated young men trying to escape the horror that the west has turned their country into. Their plight is being ignored by the U.S. and the other countries that followed George Bush and destroyed there homeland and murdered millions of innocent people. They are at the Port of Calais trying to get into England to claim refugee status and of course England and France are doing everything possible to stop this. I went over and talked with a small group of four or five young men in their 20's. They spoke English as well as I do and said they were living on this little bit of grass. I could see where the city of Calais had put three portable toilets on the sidewalk for them but that was all they had for accomodations. I explained that I didn't want to insult or offend them but if they would accept it I would like to give them a small gift to help with food or their other needs, they accepted graciuosly and thanked me.



I'll get off my soap box now.

I forgot to tell you a little story of something that I saw in Brussells. It was early afternoon and I was walking past a nice restaurant when a long black limo pulled up to the curb and out jumped two guys dressed in suits talking to their wrists. They did a quick inspection of the area and opened the back doors of the car. Out came a middle ages couple and a teenage boy. They went in the restaurant and the guys talking to their wrists whent in with them. I have no idea who I saw but the Royal Family lives in Brussels so it might have been some of them.

It's a beautiful day here in Calais today and I'm just back from a walk along the beach looking oput at La Manche - English Chanel which was very busy today with ferry traffic.The ferries had been on strike since before the Easter long holiday weekend and just returned to work yesterday afternoon.

I took this lighthouse photo yesterday when it was cloudy.











I leave here early in the morning for Paris, I can hardly wait.