Members of the European Parliament traveling by express train from Brussels to the French city of Strasbourg had an unexpected view of Dinseyland Paris this Monday, when the train they were traveling on stopped at the station serving the theme park.
The surprise arrival outside the Disney park provoked a positive response from most of the hundreds of MEPs and advisers on board, who have to make the train journey every month – this is because EU law has designated Strasbourg as the official seat of Parliament. many parliamentary matters are handled in Brussels.
“‘Where magic comes to life’ – will Disney’s slogan soon be that of the European Parliament?”. tweeted a parliamentary press officer, Emmanuel Foulon, who was on the train at Marne-la-Vallée-Chessy station, near the park on the outskirts of the French capital.
Suite in the one erreur d’aiguillage in Paris Charles de Gaule, la #SNCF send it to #Disney the train that enters the European Parliaments from Brussels in Strasbourg.
“When the magic comes true”, Disney’s slogan during the European Parliament?#Eplenary pic.twitter.com/KLpUtZRuhN
– Emmanuel Foulon (@efoulon1) October 16, 2023
“A Mickey Mouse Parliament?” asked the online news site Politico.
Hundreds of MEPs and European Parliament officials boarded the train to Strasbourg today.
They ended up at Disneyland.
This is not a joke.
https://t.co/320vPRUBsU pic.twitter.com/5szMOHlQHE
– POLITICOEurope (@POLITICOEurope) October 16, 2023
Others tweeted that the error highlighted the need for EU lawmakers to simply stay in Brussels and do away with regular train journeys, which take almost four hours, to the four-day monthly plenary sessions in Strasbourg, located in eastern France, near the border. with Germany.
“Would a new Disneyland be an appropriate use for Strasbourg’s buildings?” asked Pelle Geertsen, press officer for a Danish parliamentarian, as he pondered what might happen to the buildings in Strasbourg if the European Parliament were permanently based in Brussels.
“And will this inspire a Disney movie?” he asked, suggesting a story about parliament and a convoy “wanting to go on holiday”.
However, the stopover at Disneyland Paris was too short for the Members of the European Parliament to get off and enjoy some of the park’s attractions, as the train was eventually diverted onto the appropriate high-speed track, all the way to Strasbourg.
French railway company SNCF told AFP that a signaling error on the tracks caused the train to miss a connecting line it should have followed as it approached the greater Paris region.
Source: DN
