Tag Archives: Chaput foot prints

United Kingdom

Unique Indian restaurant in London

While we were in London, the four of us decided to look for a good Indian restaurant. We were told by our tour director to try the Masala Zone Covent Garden. We walked to the restaurant which was located not far from the Royal Opera House and the Covent Garden Market.

The front of the restaurant was unassuming and fairly normal looking, however, when you entered the restaurant it was uniquely decorated. Inside the restaurant, they had different types of dolls on display.

Dolls on display inside the Masala Zone Covent Garden Restaurant

Even on the ceiling and some of the walls, there were dolls on display.

Trapeze dolls on the ceiling of the restaurant

We did not have a reservation and the restaurant was fairly busy but we were fortunate that they had a table available.

Inside view of the busy Masala Zone Covent Garden restaurant

We sat at our table and enjoyed looking at the different dolls that were on display throughout the restaurant.

Dolls on display from the ceiling of the restaurant
Ray and Shelley at the Masala Zone Covent Garden Restaurant
Jim and Anne at the Masala Zone Covent Garden Restaurant

We ordered an Indian dish called “thalis” which is a traditional Indian dish you share.  The thalis dish was a mix of different foods and included curry plus little bowls of varied dishes.

Thalis dish from the Masala Zone Covent Garden restaurant

The meal and atmosphere were excellent and we really enjoyed the thalis dish. Afterward, we decided to take a walk around the area before heading back to the hotel.

We went and looked around the Covent Garden Market which is a popular spot in London.

Inside the Covent Garden Market

We explored the market and then went to the central square at the market. We came across a street performer from Canada who was doing a show.

Street Performer at Covent Garden Market in London

We stopped to watch for a while before eventually heading back to the Hotel. Overall it was a very enjoyable evening out with friends.

“Ta ta and cheerio”

United Kingdom

Imperial war museum in London

We went to the Imperial War Museum in London and spent several hours exploring the museum. There were exhibits from World War One, through to modern-day conflicts.

Ray at the entrance to the Imperial War Museum in London England

We went into the museum through a large pillar entranceway which opened up into a large interior view of the five floors of museum exhibits.

The view from inside the entrance to the Museum

There were original planes and rockets suspended in the air in the central area of the museum. One airplane that was highlighted was the “Spitfire” which is a British single-seat fighter aircraft. It was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries during World War II.

Spitfire on display in the Imperial War Museum

We walked through the museum and started with the world war one displays and worked our way to the current conflicts in the world. There was an enormous amount of information on each war and also artifacts from each period.

Tank on display in museum

We stayed in the World War two exhibits area of the museum for the longest period of time. We saw artifacts from that period and read about the WWII in detail.

We saw items from vehicles, guns, articles of propaganda to clothing and documents from the war. The overall detail of the museum was amazing.

The Iron Eagle on display was removed from the Reichstag building in the heart of Berlin by the Soviets. That afternoon Hitler committed Suicide in his bunker under the Reich Chancellery.

Iron Eagle from the Reichstag Building in Berlin 1945

There was an American airman jacket which had the B-17 Flying Fortress insignia “Leading Lady” on it. This airman was from the 364 Bombardment squadron which carried out 35 bombing missions.

An American Airman’s Jacket from World War Two

General Montgomery was in command of the Eight Army in Egypt in August 1942. He would visit him men in his Humber Staff Car.

General Montgomery’s Humber staff car 1942

We also came to a section of the museum which was focused on the Holocaust. The museum exhibit focused on the Nazi persecution and murder of Jewish people in Europe from 1933 to 1945. We walked through the exhibit and it was sad to see the belongings of Jews which were killed in concentration camps.

Shoes from the concentration camp

The horror of the war is visible in the exhibits and stirs emotions of sadness and grief.

After viewing the exhibits we went outside to admire the monuments and gardens at the museum. The front of the museum was lined with beautiful flowers.

Flowers at the Imperial War Museum

We stopped to smell the roses along the way.

Shelley admiring the roses at the museum

We came to a section of the Berlin Wall that was on the grounds of the museum. The Berlin wall was torn down in 1990 and a section was removed and brought to the museum.

Ray at a section of the Berlin Wall on display at the Imperial War Museum

We enjoyed the visit to the museum and found the exhibits very interesting and comprehensive.

“Ta ta and Cheerio”

 

Germany

Dachau Concentration Camp

We took a tour and went to the Dachau concentration camp located outside of Munich. The tour began with a train ride to Dachau which was about 20 minutes away.

The train ride was emotional as we thought about the thousands of people forced into boxcars and sent to this concentration camp in the 1930’s and 40’s. It is hard to the terror they must have felt.

The train ramp at Dachau concentration camp

We arrived at Dachau and walked through a park-like trail before arriving at the main gate of the former Dachau Concentration Camp. Along the trail, there are information boards about the camp.

Trail towards Dachau Concentration Camp

We arrived at the main entrance of the camp. The entrance was through a gate arched in the centre of a building with a watchtower on the peak.

Entrance to the Dachau Concentration Camp

The iron gate which has the inscription  “Arbeit macht frei” (Work sets you free).

The iron gate bearing the notorious slogan “Arbeit macht frei” (Work sets you free)

We entered through the gate and saw a very large area which contained several buildings and large rows of rectangular gravel areas. On the right was a long building which was now used for the museum.

Museum building in Dachau Concentration camp.

Inside the museum, there were numerous rooms with displays and information about the camp.

Inside the Dachau Museum

We walked through the museum and read the information on how horrific it was. It was difficult to imagine just how much pain and suffering occurred in the building we were walking through. There were displays of images of prisoners and the living conditions they endured. It was a very emotional time walking through the museum and to see and read the terrible things that were done there.

After going through the museum we went into the yard of the concentration camp. This was also a surreal experience walking down the former rows of where the barracks were.

The gravel where the prisoner barracks were in Dachau Concentration Camp
Rows of bases of former prisoner barracks in the camp

There were rows and rows of barracks with a central road. Along the central lane were rows of trees of both sides.

Central road lined with trees between the prisoner barracks

We walked the central road and it was very long and hard to imagine the size and horror of all the barracks.

Museum image of the prisoner barracks in the 1930’s

We walked the length of the barracks then headed to a small barbwire gate which was off to one side of the camp. All along the perimeter of the camp was an area with a strip of grass and ditch before the barbwire fence which was electrified during the operation of the camp

The area along the perimeter of the concentration camp with grass, a ditch and electrified barbwire fence.

We walked through the gate to an area of the camp that was separated from the remainder of the camp.

The gate area to the separate section of the Dachau Concentration Camp

There was a brick building secluded in an area away from the remainder of the camp. This building was used to incinerate prisoners of the Nazi regime.

Building used to incinerate the bodies of people killed by the Nazi regime in the camp.

We went into the building and it was very emotional for us. The rooms were divided into a process used to remove their property, then their clothing from the victims before they were killed.

This is the room where the victims were told to disrobe to get ready for the “supposed” shower

They were then moved to the “shower” room and were gassed until they died.

Mock shower room used to gas the prisoners

They were then stacked in an another room and other prisoners would be forced to move them to the incinerators and burned. Victims were stacked three at a time in each incinerator and the ashes removed to the rear of the building and disposed of.

Incinerators of the Dachau Concentration Camp

We went outside to the rear of the building and came there were two monuments behind the building marking the thousands of victims buried in unmarked mass graves.

Incinerator room at the rear of the building

Here we saw the monuments for the thousands of victims buried in an unmarked mass graves.

Jewish monument for the thousands of dead at Dachau Concentration Camp
Monument for the thousands of dead at Dachau Concentration Camp

We then walked down a trail into a wooded area behind the building.

Trail behind the incinerator building in Dachau Concentration Camp

We saw a plaque which identified the area where the Nazi’s would use their pistols and execute prisoners.

Pistol range area in Dachau Concentration Camp where prisoners were executed

There was a wall at the other end of the pistol range where the prisoners would be killed.

Wall where prisoners would stand and be executed at Dachau Concentration Camp

The visit to the Dachau Concentration Camp was very emotional. The sheer realization that we were in the very location that this horrendous atrocity occurred gave us overwhelming feelings of sadness, heartbreak, and extreme grief. It was important to see and to remember that tyranny can happen and the high cost of freedom that has been paid.

“Auf Wiedersehen und einen schönen Tag”

Germany

A Walking tour in Munich, Germany

We took a walking tour through Munich. The tour guide “Steve” was extremely knowledgeable on world war 2 history and the tour focused on WWII.

Our tour guide Steve explaining sites in Munich

We walked along the streets looking at some of the buildings which were used by the Nazi Regime. There were a few interesting ones that stood out.

The House of Art in Munich

This Art Museum was originally Hitler’s personal shrine that condemned “Degenerate art” and he held an exhibition in July 1937 called  “The Great German Art Exhibition”.

The corridor along the exterior of the Museum with large pillars

This building was designed by Paul Ludwig Troost and it is considered to be the first monumental example of Nazi architecture.

This is the only building in Munich which still has swastikas visible on the building.

Ceiling on exterior corridor of the Museum

At first, they are not noticeable but after a closer look, they are clearly visible.

Tiles in ceiling corridor of Museum with swastika pattern

We walked through several areas where the Nazi Regime confiscated buildings and converted them for their own use.

Munich Germany
Munich Germany
National Opera House in Munich

The Gestapo headquarters was destroyed during WWII. The new building on that location has a small monument and display identifying the history of the building location.

Location of original Gestapo headquarters in Munich

We walked a fair amount during the tour and eventually arrived in the Marienplatz in the center of Munich at the Rathaus-Glockenspiel.

The Rathaus-Glockenspiel in Marienplatz Munich

Our final stop was near the Hofbrauhaus, a beer hall. This was where Hitler started speaking in October of 1919 and eventually founded the SS in the basement.

The Hofbrauhaus Beer Hall in Munich
Hofbrauhaus in Munich

The tour was enjoyable and we saw some historic buildings and monuments along the way.

“Auf wiedersehen und einen schonen tag”

Germany

The Eagles Nest at Berchtesgaden Germany

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We took a tour bus from Munich to go and see the “Kehlsteinhaus” known as the Eagles Nest in Berchtesgaden Germany.

Anne, Jim, Shelley, and Ray getting ready to board the tour bus.

The two-hour drive from Munich to Berchtesgaden was very enjoyable with great views of the countryside.

View from the tour bus on the way to Berchtesgaden

We arrived near the base of the mountain and exited the bus. At this point, only designated special buses are used to shuttle people to the entrance of the Eagles Nest.

Special bus used for going to the entrance of Eagles Nest

We boarded the special bus and began our trip up the steep treacherous road which was cut into the mountain. The road was very narrow with many winding turns near the edge of deep gorges.

Edge of the roadway with steep gorges on the way to the Eagles Nest

When we reached the entrance area of the Eagles Nest we could see a large tunnel opening.

Tunnel opening at the base of the Eagles Nest entrance area.

We headed into the tunnel which is 131 meters (430 feet) into the mountain before reaching the base of the elevator shaft.

Tunnel leading to the elevator inside the mountain

When we reached the elevator we were amazed at the size of the elevator. It could hold up to 40 people and was the original elevator when the Eagles Nest was built.

Entrance into elevator at Eagles Nest

The inside of the elevator was very large and ornate with polished brass and gold throughout. The original phone and clock were still in the elevator and functional.

Inside of the elevator of the Eagles Nest
Original clock and phone from the Eagles Nest elevator

The elevator ascends a total of 140 meters (460 feet) to the inside of the Eagles Nest. When we stepped out of the elevator it felt like stepping into a different world.

The Eagles Nest is located near the summit of the Kehlstein mountain and is 1,834 m (6,017 ft) high. The building which was constructed as a gift for Hitler’s 50th birthday was made to impress and represent power.

Today the Eagles Nest is a restaurant with beautiful views of the mountains and a great outdoor patio. We went into the reception hall which has a large marble fireplace.

The reception hall, with marble fireplace
The reception hall, with marble fireplace

The marble fireplace was a birthday gift to Hitler from the dictator Benito Mussolini.

Italian Marble fireplace in the Eagles Nest

After the war, some of the marble was chipped off the fireplace by souvenir seekers. You can see damage where the marble was chipped away.

Damaged section of the marble fireplace

The large windows provided great views of the surrounding mountains.

A view from one of the windows in the Eagles Nest

There was a set of stairs which lead to a wooden paneled room off of the main conference room.

Panel room off of the main conference room

The panel room had two large windows which gave great views of the mountains as well.

Panel room in Eagles Nest
view from the panel room window

We then headed outside to the patio area to explore the outside area. The views were breathtaking, everywhere you looked the views were spectacular.

There was a path that went to the peak of the mountain. We walked up the trail admiring the views along the way. We stopped quite often to just take in the views.

Ray at Eagles Nest
Shelley at Eagles Nest
Ray and Shelley admiring the views at the Eagles Nest

We went to the top of the mountain and looked back at the Eagles Nest.

View of the Eagles Nest from the top of the mountain

To say that the Eagles Nest was amazing would be an understatement. The views were spectacular and our pictures do not do it justice. We enjoyed the experience however it is hard to express the emotions we felt while there. The idea that this was a symbol of power for the Nazi regime and decisions were made here that caused mass murder is disturbing.


“Auf Wiedersehen und einen guten Tag”