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bodybastogne
At the Bastogne Historical Center.
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-- Bastogne & Foy --
( 21 March 2008 )
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For as long as I can remember, I've had an interest in the Battle of the Bulge. Not a quest for tactical knowledge, nor a desire to know about the weaponry. From the first time that I saw a documentary with film footage during that bitter winter of fighting, I knew that the soldiers who endured were special. It's the soldiers' plight - their suffering and their heroics, that I was most amazed with. How would I have held up if forced to experience those same conditions? Frankly, I'm not entirely sure. That's why my wife and I took a side trip to Bastogne while enroute to Brussels for the weekend.
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Driving to Bastogne was fairly simple. Any decent map will get you there. At most, it's a 2-hour drive from where I was stationed at Baumholder, Germany.
Bastogne is not a large city, as I had once thought. So, after arriving at the center of town, we took some photos of the displayed tank and monument. We then went inside the information booth / gift shop next door. Then we travelled a couple of kilometers out of town to the place where I really wanted to go.
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A tribute to the 10th Armored Division.
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Mannekins dressed in Nazi uniforms.
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The Bastogne Historical Center is located just outside of town on Mardasson Hill, where the Belgium people erected the massive Mardasson Monument. Underneath the monument, a crypt was built with three altars. One for Catholic, the second for Protestant, and the third for Jewish faith
Inside the center, you'll find a large selection of mannekins wearing uniforms, both US and German. Vehicles, weapons, photos, and even a short film are all available for viewing I don't think the story of the Battle of the Bulge could be brought to life from any other museum than this one.
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The HBO mini-series, The Band of Brothers, had an impact on me. The series was about real people, not fictional characters. So, the next stop was just a couple of kilometers from the musuem, to the outskirts of Foy. I wanted to pay respect to the men who had fought and died here, so I thought that if I walked the same ground, I might gain a greater appreciation for their struggle.
When I saw the memorial, I knew that I had reached the spot. Also, I had been hoping for snow all day, and was graciously rewarded. After reviewing the names listed on the monument, some of which I recognized, I proceeded to the forest.
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In the forest near Foy.
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As I walked into the Bois Jacques woods, which is part of the larger Ardennes Forest region, I quickly felt as though I had been transported back to that time. It was a somewhat eerie feeling, and somewhat saddening, as though those men were there with me in spirit. With that, I knew that I had received what I had went there to find, and knew something that I had been wondering. No, I don't think I could have endured as well as those men did. They were special.
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Bastogne Historical Center
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The Bois Jacques woods near Foy
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