Recent discussion in a number of countries about the impact of rising tourism have overlooked the question of visitors from outer space and their impact on travel—except for one French town that's re-stated its historic ban on flying saucers and their crews.
Chateauneuf-du-Pape, in Provence, has had the ban in effect since a widely-reported spate of 'flying saucer' sightings in 1954. The local mayor, Lucien Young, issues a decree that "Any aircraft, known as flying saucer or flying cigar, which should land on the territory of the community will be immediately held in custody."
The town, far better known for its wines than for space invaders, still has the ban on the books, and the present mayor, Claude Avril, has refused to cancel it, saying "It spices things up a bit. It creates a harmless kind of buzz and no one is getting tricked."
That little frisson of excitement may have been behind the original ban, according to the son of the former mayor. "At that time, people were talking a lot about extra-terrestrials and the unknown, it was in fashion, and there were loads of stories circulating. He wanted to make a bit of an advertisement for Châteauneuf. It was an excellent publicity stunt... and free."
Photo: Aa77zz/Wikimedia
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