Mesdames et messieurs, votre attention s'il vous plaît...

Here's yet another wonderful thing about France - this is the send-off they give engine-drivers at their retirement.  A mass of friends and family gather at the end of the line to await the cheminot's last train, which arrives in a blaze of headlamps and flares and a deafening fanfare of horns and detonators, without a care for any unsuspecting passengers!  Here's an example (and a chance to admire the classic, and v. French, 'nez-cassé' locomotive):

And another one (skip to 2:00 to see the grand finale):

... And yet another, very cinematic, film here.

I could go on... but I think you get the picture!  It is the accomplishment of boyhood at last.

Bonne retraite à tous!