Warm & Dry on the Viking Einar
We were up by 6:30 am (to an alarm!) and after breakfast on board a mini-bus where fifteen of us joined our exceptional guide, Marshall for a 10 1/2 hour adventure to explore historic World War I (The Great War) battlefields & cemeteries, a castle, and medieval Bruges.
We drove for an hour before a break and then on to the largest cemetery in Belgium where over 12,000 allied soldiers were laid to rest following the multiple battles at Ypres. Let me tell you....I taught World History and the First World War. Did a lot of research, saw films, read books, etc. And though I knew a lot of the history, seeing where it took place and imagining what happened on this spot was truly a moving and educational experience....for everyone. We left the first cemetery and headed to a second one. Here we walked right up and into the bunker which served as John McRae's field hospital where he eventually penned the poem "In Flanders Field" and walked through the grave sites. Everyone was truly touched when we stopped at the grave side of a 15-year-old British solider who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Then it was on into the town of Ypers. The first stop was the Menin Gate which was erected as a tribute to the thousands who gave their lives and were never found. ALL the names of those missing who died in the battles here have their names engraved on the gate. Impressive. Then we walked into the town square of medieval Ypers. You'd never know looking around that this was all re-built in the 1920's. The town was just completing a five-year restoration project in 1914 when the first wave of German bombs and attacks began. The collage below shows then & now pics. We moved on to a scrump-dil-e-i-cious lunch at a local restaurant provided by Viking (big thank you!) which was highlighted by "Belgian Fries" - if you don't know this story refer to my Christmas Market trip! - and the best....THE BEST ice cream dessert of the trip. Kept thinking I'd enjoy finishing Kim's but she inhaled it all :)
Bottom L: midway through attack / Bottom R: following all bombings
After lunch we were back on the bus to head to Loppem Castle. The family had acquired the property and in 1600s destroyed the original chateau to build this castle. Only about half of the massive home is open to the public and much of it is displays of the family's gigantic, and I mean GIGANTIC collection of art, sculpture and archeological finds. Just to give you perspective of this family's wealth - they owned 130 homes - yes, one-hundred-and-thirty - and this castle was simply their "summer home." Oh.
It was just a short drive to our final stop of the day, the medieval town of Bruges. I'd been here in December with my niece on a bright sunny day (ok, so it was 20 degrees!), but today as we exited the mini-bus it began to rain/drizzle. Kim and I - oh, we are so clever - had grabbed Viking provided umbrellas before leaving the ship and were more than ready for the "liquid sunshine."
At the end of the walking tour we were met by two taxi's to take us to the mini-bus - when my niece Khloe and I were here we walked the nearly 40 minute trek back to the bus....after the 9+ hours we'd been on the move, and with the rain, we were all appreciative of the Viking-provided rides back. Had yet another wonderful meal with our great friends Gary & Claudia and were ready for bed by 10 pm. Two more days of our adventure before heading back state-side!
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