Milan

Rooftops of Milan

Ryan and I made another trip to Italy to visit Ryan’s worksites.  This trip we decided to drive instead of fly. On our return we spent a day in Milan. Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and a major world fashion and design capital. 

Duomo di Milano

  During our visit to Milan we stopped to admire the Milan Cathedral or Duomo di Milano. This cathedral is the fifth largest cathedral in the world. The Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete.  Construction began in 1386 and the cathedral was finally completed in 1965. The Cathedral is located in the Piazza del Duomo or “Cathedral Square” is the main piazza of Milan. The 14^th century piazza marks the center of the city, both in a geographic sense and because of its social importance.

Piazza del Duomo

Galleria Vittorio Emanele II

Of course while we were in the “fashion capital of the world” we had to do some window-shopping. Our first stop was the world’s oldest shopping mall the Galleria Vittorio Emanele II.  The mall is housed within a four-storey double arcade in central Milan. The 18^th century glass and iron covered gallery is home to many beautiful shops, restaurants and cafes. Prada's flagship store has been in business here since 1913. The ceiling vaults are decorated with mosaics representing Asia, Africa, Europe and America. The reliefs on the mosaic floor represent the cities of Milan, Rome, Florence and Turin. Our second stop was the “Golden Triangle”, the name given to Milan’s famous shopping streets. 

Fountain in front of Sforza Castle

 Sforza Castle was built in the 15^th century on the remains of a 14^th century fortification. The Castle was later renovated and enlarged in the 16^th and 17^th centuries making it one of the largest citadels in Europe. Today Sforza houses several of the city’s museums and art collections. After admiring the castle we spent time relaxing and enjoying the beautiful fountain in front of the castle. 

Sforza Castle

Sforza Castle

 On our way home we traveled through Switzerland and were lucky enough to find Saint Gotthard Pass open. St. Gotthard Pass is a high mountain pass in the Lepontine Alps of southern Switzerland. The pass lies at an elevation of 6,916 feet and is 16 miles long. The first road over the pass was opened in 1830. We endured the winding roads and enjoyed the spectacular views

View From St. Gotthard Pass

French Exploration

Vauban Fortress

  

I apologize for the long delay in my blog update! July was a very busy month for both Ryan and I. We made trips to both France and Italy in July; Ryan finally heard about his promotion from Lieutenant to Captain; and I became a CPR instructor for the American Red Cross. Now on to our French adventure.....

The beginning of our French adventure started with a drive across the French countryside to the Atlantic Ocean. Along the coast Ryan and I were able to visit a fortress dating back to before 1480.  The Vauban Fortress was “rebuilt” between 1480 and 1490. 

Chateau of La Roche Courbon

We spent an afternoon visiting a French Chateau. The beautiful Chateau of La Roche Courbon is a large chateau developed from a castle built around 1475. The site the castle was built on has been inhabited since prehistoric times. In the 17th century, the Courbon family, which had occupied the castle for two centuries, transformed the castle into a more comfortable residence. More alterations were made in the 18th century, and the Chateau was eventually sold in 1817 and then abandoned. The Chateau was purchased and restored in 1920. Today the Chateau is owned and inhabited by descendants. The traditional French garden behind the Chateau is listed by the French Ministry of Culture as one of the “Notable Gardens of France”. 

Traditional French Garden Behind the Chateau

La Rochelle

One of our afternoons was spent visiting the historic city of La Rochelle. This city was founded during the 10^th century and became an important harbor in the late 12^th century. This picturesque city is one of the most historically rich cities on the Atlantic coast. La Rochelle’s main attraction is the Vieux Port or Old Harbor. Three towers left from the middle Ages surround the historic harbor. Saint-Nicolas Tower is a maze of military facilities and a royal residence. The Chaine Tower was built to control access of vessels into the port. The Lanterne Tower is the only surviving medieval lighthouse on the Atlantic coast. The lighthouse was converted into a prison in the 17^th century; the walls of were covered in graffiti evidence of the many pirates and other prisoners held there.  After walking through the historic downtown we made our way to the beach where we gathered seashells and put our feet in the Atlantic Ocean. 

Lanterne Tower

Disneyland Paris

Arc de Triomphe

On our way home we took two days one where we went to Disneyland Paris and the second where we took the train into Paris. Our first stop in Paris was the Arc de Triomphe. This arch honors those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. The names of all the French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces and beneath the Arc lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from WWI. The monument stands 164 feet tall, 148 feet wide and 72 feet deep. 

 

Our next stop in Paris was the iconic Eiffel Tower. The iron lattice tower was erected in 1889as the entrance arch to the 1889 World’s Fair. The tower stands 1,063 feet tall or about the same height as an 81-storey building.  The Eiffel Tower is the most-visited paid monument in the world, with 7.1 million people ascending it in 2011. We did not take the time to go up the tower; instead we enjoyed the park surrounding the monument and took some fun pictures using the tower as a backdrop. 

Eiffel Tower

 

 

The Notre-Dame Cathedral was our next stop. The cathedral was constructed in several phases between 1160 and 1345. Notre-Dame is considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture and among the largest and most well known church buildings in the world. During the construction period numerous architects worked on the Cathedral, as is evidenced by the differing styles at different heights of the towers. 

Notre-Dame Cathedral

Centre Georges Pompidou

 The architecture of Centre Georges Pompidou caught Ryan’s eye. The 1977 building was designed in the style of high-tech architecture and houses the museum of modern art. The building has a very unique look with its exposed skeleton of brightly colored tubs displaying its mechanical systems.  The building is named after Georges Pompidou, the President of France from 1969 to 1974.

 

The Louvre

 We ended our day in Paris at the Louvre. This is one of the world’s largest museums containing nearly 35,000 objects from prehistory to the 21^st century. The Louvre occupies an area of 652,300 square feet and records an average of 8 million visitors each year. The museum opened in 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings. The museum itself is housed in the Louvre Palace, which began as a fortress built in the late 12^th century. The building was extended many times to form the present Louvre Palace. 

The Louvre

Memorial Weekend In Berlin

 

Berlin

Over Memorial weekend Ryan and I went to Berlin. We left late Friday morning and arrived in Berlin around 4:00. After checking into our hotel we spent the evening at Jewish Museum. Architect Daniel Libeskind who also designed the Denver Art Museum designed the museum. Ryan was very excited to check out this architectural marvel.

Inside Jewish Museum

 

Kaiser Wilhelm New Memorial Church

Saturday we left our hotel early to check out the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. The church was built in the 1890’s and was badly damaged in a bombing raid in 1943. The damaged spire of the old church has been retained and its ground floor has been made into a memorial hall. Unfortunately, the entire building is being renovated and we were not able to see it.  Instead we were able to visit the hexagonal new church. After our visit to the church we went on a four-hour walking tour of Berlin. During our walking tour we learned a lot about the history of the city. Regrettably we spent our entire walking tour in drenching rain, but we were still happy to see the city with the help of a guide.

Checkpoint Charlie

During our tour we witnessed sights such as Hitler’s underground bunker (which is now a parking lot), the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Museum Island, Brandenburg Gate, Berlin Cathedral, Checkpoint Charlie, Unter den Linden Boulevard, World War I Memorial, Reichstag (Parliament) building, what remains of the Berlin Wall, and the Nazi Air Ministry. In the afternoon following our walking tour we were tired of being in the rain and opted for an indoor activity. We spent the afternoon in the information museum, which lies under the Holocaust Memorial. The museum is devoted to those who suffered and died during the Holocaust. We found it interesting reading diary entries, letters, and last notes written during the Holocaust.

Pergamon Alter

Sunday morning it was still raining, but not as hard as most of the day Saturday. Not wanting to spend yet another day in the rain we headed over to Museum Island. This is a piece of land that is surrounded by the Spree River. There are multiple museums in this location, hence the name Museum Island. We decided to wander through the Pergamon Museum. This museum building was completed in 1930 and contains the Pergamon Alter, Market Gate of Miletus, and the Ishtar Gate of Babylon. The Roman artifacts and reconstructions housed in this museum were impressive. 

The Babylon Gate Reconstruction

The Babylon Gate reconstruction contains some original artifacts and dates back to 6^th century BC. When we left the museum we were pleasantly surprised to find it was not raining. We took the opportunity to head over to the East Side Gallery.  This is a 4,000-foot section of the Berlin Wall located near the center of Berlin. The gallery is on the east side of the wall and consists of 105 paintings by artists from all over the world. We enjoyed looking at the paintings and taking a few creative pictures of our own using the wall as a backdrop. 

East Side Gallery

Sony Center

Following our visit to the gallery we concluded our sightseeing for the day at the Topography of Terror Museum. The museum is located on the foundation where the Nazi SS and Gestapo HQ stood. This museum is dedicated to those who died at the hands of the SS and Gestapo. There was lots of information regarding the history, formation, crimes, and photos of the unspeakable acts these two groups committed during and before WWII. After we were finished at the museum we walked over to the Sony Center. This building was completed in 2000 and was built on what originally was the bustling city center in the early 20^th century. Most of the buildings were destroyed during WWII and from 1961 on became part of the “No Man’s Land” of the Berlin Wall. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 the square became part of a redevelopment effort for the area. After taking in the building and grabbing a bite to eat at an Australian restaurant we decided to see a movie. We can’t often say we saw a movie in Berlin. 

Original Section of Berlin Wall

Holocaust Memorial

 

Monday morning we were elated to wake up and find the sun shining in our windows. Since it was Memorial Day we took time to visit the Holocaust Memorial again. We spent time enjoying the sunshine and walking around Berlin and its parks. We walked around Tiergarten Park, which was once the Royal Hunting Grounds. In the park we walked around a Soviet War Memorial. This memorial was built to commemorate the 80,000 Soviet soldiers who fell during the Battle of Berlin in 1945. Several of these soldiers are buried in the park. After the division of the city following WWII this communist memorial ended up in West Germany. The monument was under constant guard by Soviet soldiers until 1993. Even though the weather was not idea we enjoyed our weekend in Berlin. We were able to see so many things and learn about the history of the city during WWII and the Cold War Era’s. This is a city we would like to make a return visit. 

Nazi Air Ministry Building behind the Berlin Wall and Topography of Terror Museum

Soviet War Memorial

Brandenburg Gate

 

 

Weekends in Belgium & Luxembourg

One of the Troc Stores we visited

On the weekend of May 5^th and 6^th Ryan and I made a spur of the moment weekend trip to Belgium with another couple. This was my first visit to the beautiful countryside of Belgium. We spent most of our Saturday going to Troc stores in and around the city of Liège, which is just across the German border. Liège is the third largest city in Belgium and a two-hour drive from our home. Ok…. So what is a Troc store? These are Europe’s second hand stores. You can find anything from lamps to couches and antiques to modern furniture. We found several pieces for great prices. One of our best purchases was and antique cabinet we purchased for €20 or $25 USD. 
 On Sunday we made our way over to the city of Tongeren. This is the oldest city in Belgium where we could see the old Roman wall around parts of the city. Here we walked thru an antique flea market. This flea market runs every Sunday year round. We enjoyed looking at all kinds of neat items and even made a couple of purchases. One of our purchases was an antique buffet made of solid Oak. We spent €60 or $77 USD on this piece of furniture and found it to be in excellent condition. The only problem was we found it to be too large to fit in our car. We were able to make arrangements with the seller to hold it for us until we were able to come back and pick it up.

Gate to Henri-Chapelle Cemetery

On our way back to Wiesbaden we stopped and spent sometime in the Henri-Chapelle American WWII Cemetery.  The Cemetery and Memorial spans 57 acres and has 7,992 graves of soldiers who lost their lives during WWII.  This was Ryan’s first visit to a military cemetery and a first for both of us to visit an American military cemetery on foreign soil. On the west end of the memorial we were able to enjoy an overlook with an excellent view of the rolling Belgian countryside. One would never know this countryside, now covered with lush grass and farms, was once a battlefield.

Henri-Chapelle Cemetery

Henri-Chapelle Cemetery

 

Our view of the Belgian countryside from the memorial

 On the weekend of May 11^th and 12^th we made our return trip to Tongeren to pick up our furniture. This time we took a different route and made the trip into more of a sightseeing adventure. On Saturday we drove through Luxembourg, which is a new country for both Ryan and I. Outside the capital Luxembourg City we stopped at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial. This American cemetery spans 50.5 acres with a burial area containing 5,076 soldiers whom lost their lives in the Battle of the Bulge. The city of Luxembourg served as the headquarters for General George S. Patton’s. Per his request General Patton is buried in Luxembourg Memorial Cemetery.  After visiting the American cemetery we explored a German WWII cemetery, which was in close proximity to the Luxembourg cemetery. We noticed a huge difference in the two cemeteries. The American cemetery had neatly manicured landscape and each soldier has a white cross marking his or her gravesite. In the German cemetery all of the stones are dark and military looking. The gravestones mark the graves of 4-5 German soldiers’. 

Luxembourg Cemetery

General Patton's grave

German WWII Cemetery

Gravestone marking several German Soldiers

After leaving the cemeteries we headed for a city named Dinant, Belgium. The city’s landmark is the Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame with foundations dating back to 1227. In the city of Dinant we toured the Leffe abbey, which was, founded 1152. Like many monasteries across Europe, the monks of the abbey brewed ale. Using knowledge passed from generation to generation and ingredients found in the wild near the abbey, a unique ale developed and brewed only at the abbey. We enjoyed learning the history of the abbey. On Sunday we made our way back to the Tongeren flea market to pick up our furniture. After spending some time at the flea market we made our way back home.

Leffe Abbey and Brewery

Dinant Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame

Our Belgian Purchases

Visit to Observation Point Alpha

On Wednesday, May 1^st  Ryan and I went with the group of soldiers to Observation Point Alpha. OP Alpha was a Cold War observation post between what was East and WestGermany. The Post overlooked the “Fulda Gap” which would have been a prime invasion route for Soviet forces had the Cold War erupted into actual warfare.  In 1965 Responsibility for border surveillance at OP Alpha was turned over from the German BGS to the US Army. The Post was abandoned by US military troops in 1991 and today a memorial commemorates its 40-year existence.

Looking into the "Fulda Gap" (East Germany)

OP Alpha sits atop a 411-meter hill, lying in the center of that section of the NATO defense line. US troops kept 24-hour monitoring of activity on the roads leading into the town of Geisa. At the first sign of an invasion the OP Alpha crew would have withdrawn. Due to its exposed position this observation point was referred to as “the hottest spot of the cold war.”

US OP Alpha Tower

In 1968 the first observation tower made of wood was established, replaced in 1982 with a steel tower and again in 1985 with the current concrete structure. This location also became the base of the US 14th Armored Cavalry Regiment. In 1972 the US 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment or "Blackhorse Regiment" assumed the post. Approximately 40 soldiers were stationed for 4 weeks at OP Alpha.

Model showing the fence and "dead zone"

One of the East German border fences.

GDR Watch Tower

We learned that it was not just a fence built between East and West Germany, but a series of fortifications. The complexity of the border system increased steadily until it reached its full extent in the early 1980s. When trying to escape from East to West Germany one would first reach the edge of the “restricted zone”. This was a closely controlled strip of land 3 miles wide, running parallel with the border. The signal fence was about 500-1,000 meters from the actual border and was lined with low-voltage electrified barbed wire. This wire activated alarms when touched or cut. Beyond the signal fence was the “protective strip” lit by floodlights and lined with guard towers, bunkers, and dog runs. Next the escapee would come to a control strip often referred to as the “death strip”. Tripwire-activated flare launchers were situated at various points to help the border guards to pinpoint the location of an escape attempt. The last and most formidable obstacle was the outer fencing. In some places there were multiple parallel rows of fences, each up to several meters high, with minefields in between. These fences not electrified but were booby-trapped with directional anti-personnel mines at intervals of 10 meters. Finally, the escapee had to cross whatever natural obstacles were on the western side of the border fence as well as navigating a strip of cleared ground that was up to 500 meters wide. While crossing this outer strip, the escapee would appear in clear view and shooting range of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) border guards before reaching the safety of West German territory.

Anti-tank ditch used to keep cars from escaping East Germany

During our visit to OP Alpha we were lead through a museum by an English-speaking guide who grew up in West Germany during the time Point Alpha was in operation. Following some lunch we went on a 10K hike through hills and along various points along the boarder. Our guide took us to a farm that was built on the boarder and separated by the wall.

WWIII medals created by the Soviets. This shows how close to WWIII we really came. 

Looking toward GDR Tower from OP Alpha

Enjoying our view from the OP Tower.

Border marker

The actual borderline between West and East Germany was marked by granite border stones 20 centimeters square with the letters “DDR” carved on the west-facing edge. Our Tour guide took us to a farm divided by the border. Half of the farm was in West Germany and the other half (including the well) was in East Germany. The GDR refused to move the border around the farm. Soon after the wall was built the GDR destroyed the section of the farm built on East German land. The family soon abandoned the remaining buildings on West German land due to the constant surveillance and fear of the GDR.

Remaining foundation of farm in East Germany

Other Half of farm in West Germany