Around old haunts in 21 days!

Yes! I know I'm way behind but tough! I'll take this opportunity to say that this entry will be rather like a tin of Nestle's milk - condensed!

This is Europe... three weeks in a rather lovely Renault Clio. We wanted to drive through Germany to visit our old haunts from the olden days when we loved in Nordrhein Westfalen -so we did.

The drive nowadays is pretty simple thanks to Europe's open borders. Although we saw border guards, complete with binos, they weren't even vaguely interested in us. We soared through from Poland and went from autostrada which went to old Nazi Tank Road to beautiful Autobahn. There really is very little traffic on the eastern German roads and wew enjoyed the cruising very much.

We stayed in little Gasthauses, ate wonderful food, and generally relaxed into Germany again. On our second morning all plans went awry. We had intended driving inot thje Harz Mountains, but en route we saw a magical sign - one we soimply couldn't ignore> Colditz! Yes folks! THE Colditz. Of course went for a visit and we were especially lucky as one of the group with which we went round was the daughter of a former POW there! She brought stories to the visit and we enjoyed feeling it all come alive. Visit this place if you can! WELL worth it. Unfortunately we wanted to get nearer the Harz so after a very quick snack - good old bockwurst and brot - we headed off.

In the Harz we think we found where we used to stand a look at them looking at us...etc. It's so much nicer now! Overall impressions - everything was very tidy and clean - such a pleasure to walk everywhere without the fear of stepping in something narsty!

Then towards our old stomping grounds - Paderborn, Bad Salzuflen, Herford and Bielefeld. It as magical to visit the street we used to walk when our children were little. Our old quarters were still there, the streets looked pretty much the same, but the areas were bigger of course. And it didn't take us long to find Bratties and Pommes or Kartofel Salat!!! Mmmnnnnn......

We visited Herman's Denkmal, the Frielichtsmuseum, walked in the Teutoburgerwald, had Ice-creams in the old cafe on the ridge at Bielefeld.... it was trip down memory lane! Wonderful. And so after this indulgence we wandered across to Mons to see friends again. A weekend enjoying their company, and seeing some things locally, including Van Goch's house in the swamp, was a real tonic - our livers have recovered!

Next to the Allgau! We lived there for 4 months and we always wanted to go back. It is simply beautiful. So green and pretty and the village of Weitnau where we used to ski and eat was looking terrific. The old gasthaus that we'd rented was gone - flattened and the land turned into discount shops - but we could still see the old road and the place we used to park the vehicles. Ahhhhh memories!

We also met up with very dear friends who live in the area - well, Kempten and Augsburg. We hadn't seen them for about 20 years and it was just like we'd seen them yesterday! a truly lovely time.

Next heading south towards Lorraine and Logie de France! If you haven't used them you really must. Wonderful accommodation and top quality food - MOST times. Our first place was just fabulous. An old chateau in a village with such good food and one that we really should have stayed longer! From here we visited Verdun town and the Salient. Yes - another WW1 trip.

But then - on to Alsace to sample the delights of the Rhein. Not such good Logie, but convenient for touristy things. A visit to a silver mine was the highlight. We donned the helmets, gumboots and rubber coats (!) and headed in with our French speaking guide. It was unlit so our helmet lamps were a necessity. I don't have a problem with this sort of thing, but I wouldn't recommend it if you are at all claustrophobic. It gets very narrow and there are a couple of places where you have to sit down and s-q-u-ee-z-e through very narrow gaps! How the miners could have done it day in, day out I really do not know!

OK - so to finish our trip we went into the Czech Republik. We skirted round Prague (That's for a November visit!) and went onto Kutna Hora. It's a little town that once rivaled Prague and is fascinating. We stayed in a rather good hotel this time, and walked all round the old town. The highlight here was a visit to the chapel - inside totally decorated with ----- bones! Just a tad morbid and ghoulish and we were actaully quite happy to leave!

So then..... we came back to Krakow. We knew when we'd entered Poland as the roads went to rats!

It was a fabulous trip and the next time we do this sort of thing I have only one demand - we get a car with Satnav!! It is very annoying to see one type of road signage on a map only to find it's all different on the ground. Plus.... we never did find those well known places in France Autres routes or the other one Toutes directions. :)

Gallipoli

There are no adequate words to describe a visit to Gallipoli.


The area is designated a National Park and is incredibly well looked after by the Turkish authorities. This is not just because they consider this to be their victory. The Turks, quite rightly, have responsibility for the area. After all, we must never forget that this is their country, not ours, and their battle as well as ours. They are warm and welcoming towards all visitors and while the majority of tour groups are Turkish, we did bump into other nationalities.

We were not there just to look at the Anzac areas, but to get an overall impression of the campaign. Thanks to Major and Mrs Holt's map and also to a battlefield tour guide given to us a by a friend who has guided here, we were able to walk the battles and immerse ourselves in the human as well as military atmosphere.

Some 'purists' might complain that we should have been there on Anzac Day itself - I beg to differ. Anzac Day has become a circus and there is no doubt in my mind that in order to get a feel for the ground and the hardships endured by all combatants, you can visit at any time. And what better time than a boiling hot July day? With far fewer visitors their is time to stand and stare, to feel the atmosphere, to try to understand what it must have been like for the soldiers at Gallipoli.

Experience the 30C+ heat. Just walking along the flat in the blazing sun was hard enough. Try to imagine struggling up a steep slope loaded with your pack, weapon, ammunition and rations.

Struggle through the brushwood in Shrapnel Valley whilst looking up at the Turkish positions; gaze across from Chunuk Bair to the sea, remembering that this was the only glimpse of possible victory the Kiwis saw for, oh, such a brief time; stand on the beach at Anzac Cove and look up at the Sphinx towards more Turkish positions; walk through the remains of trenches trying to understand how on earth sanity prevailed when your enemy was a stone's throw away; stand in The Nek and say you don't feel the ghosts.

Perhaps the most heart rending part is that there are so few gravestones. In each cemetery there are only a token number of stones, as most bodies were either never found or never identified. This is particularly true of The Nek. This hopeless assault on the Turkish position took place in a tennis court sized area - and it is not until you stand in it you realise that the literature was accurate on this fact.

In order to do the peninsula justice you should allow three days. We hired a car and drove to each position. The Turks have built a one-way system which is very efficient and means you follow the battles. All positions are well signed, with the exception of Beach CWGC Cemetery. We finally found it after some deductions. The CWGC sign was hidden by bushes. This is where John Simpson Kirkpatrick "The man with the donkey', is buried.

If you think that places like this must be depressing, you couldn't be more wrong. There is a wonderful feeling of peace, for despite the thousands of names on memorials, and the graves with "Believed to be buried here' or 'Known only unto God' you come away immensely humbled and grateful.

Thanks to the efforts of the CWGC and the local Turkish gardeners, every cemetery is beautifully kept - and this is very difficult in the Turkish terrain. Plants suitable for the area have been planted and whilst the rain drains away quickly, leaving the earth rock hard and in many places devoid of grass, the grounds are still manicured and lovingly cared for.

To reiterate - this is the one blog where words are inadequate. All I can say, is that if you ever have the opportunity, then go! Don't wait for April - go in July, walk the area, visit the cemeteries without the flag-waving crowds. I believe you'll have a far better understanding.