12/29.- Oostende: the Estacade

Before the Channel Tunnel was dug, Oostende used to be the port from which ferries left for Dover and other destinations in England, just across the English Channel. Today, most people bound for Britain take the Eurostar, the bullet train which takes only a few hours to reach London via the Chunnel.  But some ferries still shuttle back and forth between Oostende and English harbours.  The jetty protecting the entry to the port, called Estacade, is not a commercial pier -- it sports just one tavern where Belgian beer and chips are served --  but a popular place for tourists to take a walk nevertheless, regardless of the weather.

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