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Brit tourist locked in French town hall overnight
Why name a building "hôtel" if it's not really a hotel?That's what a British tourist ended up thinking after she popped into the hôtel de ville in Dannemarie, France on Friday night.
Unfortunately, she hadn't realized that "hôtel de ville" translates to "town hall."
Just when she might think it's her lucky day to find a bathroom before checking in, the day proved her wrong. At that same moment, officials in the building wrapped up a meeting and exited, locking the doors shut.
She called for help. She flicked the lights on and off. But she couldn't get the attention of anybody on the outside--until Saturday morning.
She did it by posting a note on the inside of a window, which caught the eye of someone on the outside. The British woman couldn't speak fluent French, but she got her message across. Her note said: "Je suis fermer ici. Est ce possible moi la porte ouvrir?" (I am to close here. Is it possible me the door to open?)
Even when she was a free woman on Saturday, she wasn't entirely lucky. As a town of only 2,500 people, Dannemarie's hotels were booked and the only rooms available on Saturday night were in neighboring towns.
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Filed under: Europe, France, Hotels and Accommodations, News
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
parrotsrnuts Aug 25th 2009 11:07AM
FRENCH PEOPLE ARE THE WORST.....!
Judy Aug 25th 2009 12:09PM
Disagree totally. I have been to France at least 5 times and have never been treated poorly there - in fact, it's quite the opposite. Everyone has always been very cordial and nice to me and my husband and even my small dog who was with us. What you send out it what you get back, I firmly believe that
Rose Aug 26th 2009 12:17AM
The moral of this story, "don't travel alone". Take a friend with you.Two heads are better than one. The important thing is that at least she was able to get some help
in 24 Hours. For those of you just getting ready to throw stones. At least she was able to get freed with limited french. Many americans cannot speak a second language, so you would still be locked in.
Ron Aug 25th 2009 2:50PM
I would not still be locked in. I may not be able to speak french but I know how to break a window.
chuckles Aug 25th 2009 12:41PM
So, I guess you're pretty much screwed in the event of a fire in France, huh? No panic bars on the doors? No emergency exits? I thought that they would have retro-fitted their public buildings by now. That's why they call it "Old World Charm," I guess.
John S Aug 25th 2009 1:55PM
That's one reason I have never had any desire to travel abroad. The US and Canada has been the extent of my travels.
Romain Aug 27th 2009 8:05PM
So... the reason why you're not traveling abroad is because you're afraid you might end up mistakenly taking a foreign town hall for a hotel ? that's pretty random, but fair enough...