Surrounding the town and palace is the Forest of Compi gne , where the 1918 Armistice was signed, and which has been a hunting ground for the aristocracy for hundreds of years - a wander through its dark and tranquil interior is an exceptionally pleasant experience. The ch teau of Chantilly now houses the Mus e Cond and there are impressive Baroque gardens to walk around, as well as a 17th-century stable with a 'live' Horse Museum. The port of Calais , of great strategic importance in the Middle Ages, is today noted for the manufacture of tulle and lace, as well as being a busy cross-Channel ferry terminus. Nearby, the village of Sangatte has become a significant site, being the channel tunnel entrance on the French mainland. The further north one goes, the more beer is drunk and used in the kitchen, especially in soup and rago ts .
Wild rabbit is cooked with prunes or grapes.
There is also a thick Flemish soup called hochepot which has virtually everything in it but the kitchen sink. Shellfish known as coques , 'the poor man's oyster', are popular too. The marolles cheese from Picardy is made from whole milk, salted and washed down with beer. Flanders, although it has a very short coastline, has many herring dishes, croquelots or bouffis , which are lightly salted and smoked.