CANFRANC
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Canfranc/F ? International railway station
Directly on the Spanish-French border at an altitude of 1,200 meters there is the giant International railway station of Canfranc. Built on an artificial plateau in neo-classical style, 241 meters long, the building has got more than 75 double doors on each side and hundreds of windows. This ensemble is completed by a small hospital and the ?Hotel International?. This is because the train travellers should stay overnight after the arrival on one side and continue their journey the next day on the other side and on another gauge. These pretentious plans have never become reality.
The railway station has been empty for decades and has become a monstrous ruin. In 1997 we concern ourselves with the bad planning and document this architectural jewel.
Canfranc ? a limiting case of a European utopia that seems surrealistic. |
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