On August 23, 2017 the Mir sailing ship reached the coasts of Flanders in France and moored at the seaport of Calais.

The sailing ship will be the decoration of the city till August 26. During the mooring, an open board has been organized aboard the ship and excursions have been conducted for those who wish. The stop at Calais gives a possibility to go sightseeing of the French city and tell its residents about the Mir legendary ship. Cadets of Admiral Makarov State University of Maritime and Inland Shipping undergo training on the ship. They will tell the guests about the ship’s construction and the style of life on one of the most beautiful and fastest vessels. They also could share impressions on the sailing regatta in the Baltic Sea in which they had taken part in August. In addition to marine affairs training, the participants in the cruise will be faced with culture overload.

Calais is a comfortable port, which is rich of interesting traditions and sightseeing. It is situated on the Opal Coast of Pas-de-Calais and the port is an important transport network. Over the course of history sea service between mainland Europe and Great Britain had been made through the port of Calais.

The coast bathed by La Manche brought joy to Russian sailors by its surprising landscape scenes: beaches with the golden sand, sheer cliffs and fascinating coastal settlements.

The chief sentry – the Calais ancient lighthouse – met the ship as every person who arrived in the city by sea. Built in 1848 the lighthouse is the most popular sightseeing platform in the city. In the daytime it is impossible to muddle the Calais lighthouse with neighboring coastal lighthouses: it represents the tower with the black bell-mouth composed of white brick. Cadets could also visit the museum devoted to the history of lighthouses and other navigational signals.

The structure of Calais is rather remarkable. The canals strictly divide it into two parts – Old Calais and New Calais. The tower of Guet is the main sightseeing attraction in the city. The tower was built in the Middle Ages. This is one of the constructions that remained intact after World War II. Of course, Fort Risban will become another popular sightseeing attraction. It will be interesting for cadets of the Mir sailing ship to tour it.

Every voyage of the ship is individual and gives the unique opportunity to its participants to take power of endurance and firmness, to gain experience and acquire skills to work in the crew. Apart from receiving practical skills in open sea and navigational qualification, during the training, cadets take part in different events by visiting Russian and foreign seaports and promoting marine culture and the high level of maritime education in Russia.