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Newsletter #43 - April 9 to 15, 1960 |
| NewsLetter #43 April 9-15, 1960 Germany, Netherlands & Belgium Mailed Amsterdam 4/21/60 Recd. Philadelphia 4/25/60 Guten Tag, Heute (Hello Today, in German): Our second trip up the beautiful Rhine was just about like our first trip in February except the trees were in blossom in the orchards and many of the German farmers were working in their vineyards. The day was cloudy and a heavy mist or smog seemed to lay on the lovely hills on either side of the Rhine River. Today [April 9] we continued along the Rhine beyond Coblenz and went on into Bonn, a very beautiful city, and the capitol of the Federal Republic of Germany. Bonn is Important as a commercial and Industrial city and has a very picturesque area along the Rhine plus being the birthplace of Beethoven. Here we saw many magnificent buildings including a Romanesque Cathedral, the House of Parliament, the Old City Hall (Rathaus), the Poppelsdorf Castle, which today houses the University, as well as the many other lovely traditional buildings and homes which date back to Roman times. Bonn as well as almost all German towns and villages has lovely promenades and parks which are lined with trees and well-kept shrubbery. From Bonn we still drove along the Rhine to Cologne, an ancient cathedral city which was founded by the Romans in 32 B.C. Much of Cologne is rebuilt as it was badly damaged during the war, but one famous building, the Cologne Cathedral, which is the largest Gothic edifice in the world, was kept intact. This colossal building's foundation dates from 1248 and the interior with its many wonderful wood carvings is really a cathedral which should not be missed. Several other churches such as St. Pantaleon, St. Ursula, St. Gereon and St. Severin, are in this large city and are all quite immense. (Forgot to mention we drove through the city of Remagen, at which place the Remagen Bridge was blown up during World War II, but not until a sufficient number of men and equipment got across, which speeded up the success of the Rhine crossing.) We also drove through another large city called Dusseldorf, which is another bustling metropolis in the North Rhine region and from here we found a hotel in a town nearby called Krefeld, which is very near to the frontier of Holland. (We had delicious dinners tonight, which included Holsteiner, Schnitzels, and the trimmings.) This A.M. [April 10] it was lovely for about an hour and then it clouded up for the remainder of the day, so again no photography, We had our first major difficulty with customs officers today when two Dutch customs men made us open the trunk and show what we had in several cartons and, of course, asked what was in many of the boxes we have in the back seat of the car, since we really are as full as we can get. The first city of any size in Holland today was Nijmegan, an old imperial city and a favorite residence of Charlemagne. The Valkhof, or Falcon's Court, was the spot chosen by Charlemagne for his palace, but only a 16-sided chapel is visible today, as a monument of his residence. We next drove to Eindhoven, an industrial center which is dominated by the Philips Electric Lamp Works, and from Eindhoven we drove to Roermond, |
NewsLetter #43 an interesting city whose Norman Cathedral seems to dominate the entire landscape. The city of Maastricht, the capitol of Llmburg Province, was our next stop and this southern Holland city seems to be wedged between Belgium and Germany so the residents use three languages and seem to have unique, multiple customs. Tonight [April 10] we are staying near Maastricht in a very popular holiday resort area called Valkenburg, which is only a small town but it sure is jam-packed with charm and beauty. It is the home of the famous Valkenburg Grotto as well as the restored castle stronghold of Mylords of Fanquemont. Prom Valkenburg we drove to Margraten, where the only American Military Cemetery in Netherlands is situated, and it was a shame the sun was not shining, as it was a beautiful place to behold with its many headstones set in long graceful curves and the wide tree-flanked mall which led to the flagstaff which crowned the entire area. We next returned to Valkenburg and wandered about its streets before returning to our hotel for dinner. Tonight [April 11] we are in the wonderful city of Brussels after spending a very wet and rainy day wandering over beautiful panoramic views of the Belgium Ardennes. We left Holland this A.M. and first went to the city of Liege, a leading industrial center on the banks of the River Meuse. From here we drove toward Aachen to the Henri Chapelle Cemetery in Belgium, where the lovely white marble crosses are arranged In gentle arcs sweeping across a broad green lawn sloping gently downhill. The chapel and museum with its long colonnades forms a beautiful picture overlooking the burial area. On the pylons of the colonnades the state seals of the states are carved and the names of 450 of the Missing who gave their lives, but sleep in unknown graves. The site of this cemetery is truly unique as it is high on a hill which seems to afford an excellent view from any angle and even in the heavy rain the rolling Belgian countryside Is gorgeous. We drove on through the rain to Malmedy, a delightful town in the beautiful Ardennes which has some very attractive old mansions, churches and picturesque surroundings. At the junction of the Malmedy-St. Vith road we stopped to view a monument erected on the site where the Nazis massacred approximately 87 American prisoners of war on December 17, 1944. This monument contains the names of these soldiers and a passage from Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg address, "That these men shall not have died in vain." (It was another area Meredith was very familiar with.): We then drove another 12 miles into St. Vith which is almost an entirely new city, as Meredith remembers when his outfit came through this area the town was completely destroyed. Namur, Belgium, was our next city, which is located at the junction of the rivers Sambre and Meuse and is dominated by a hill on which a beautiful citadel was built in the 11th Century. Namur is a city the size of York and has lovely parks and flower gardens and when you are above the city looking down the panoramic view of the Meuse Valley is really magnificent. Not long after leaving Namur it rained cats and dogs for about an hour until we arrived in Brussels, which from first impressions tonight seems to be a very lovely city. - 2 -
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NewsLetter #43 This A.M. [April 12] we awakened to sunshine so we hurried breakfast and began a really strenuous day of sightseeing and picture-taking in Brussels and its suburbs. Our first visit was to the Palace of Justice, a huge edifice of stone which covers about five acres and has a terrific dome and eight internal courtyards. Prom here we went to the Square of the Petit Sablon, which was laid out in 1350 in a most pleasant charming fashion. It is surrounded by a handsome iron railing in which there are 48 columns carrying bronze statues which represent the Brussels Trade Corporation. Behind this square we saw the Egmont Palace and nearby the beautiful church of Notre Dame des Victoires. We next went to the Royal Square, which is a sort of Court of Honor, in classical design and which has several houses which make a framework of the lovely park which seems to encircle this area. Nearby we saw the Palace of the Nation, which is the home of both the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies and almost opposite to this is the Theatre du Parc; nearby to this theatre are several classical-styled houses, one of which was inhabited by Lord Byron. Turning the corner we came to the Palais Royal with its two 18th Century wings and the central part dating from 1827, all of which were enlarged and transformed by Leopold II. The archway of the Cinquantenaire, which links the buildings of the Royal Museums of Art and History, was our next treat and this great triumphal arch was built in 1905 and is a vary spectacular sight. Both of the museums rank among Europe's greatest. We next came to Brussels' architectural jewel which is known as the Grand Palace. It is a huge square with handsome 17th Century buildings and a 15th Century Hotel de Ville (Town Hall). Here you see the medieval "House of the King", as well as the Guild Houses which were very powerful at one time and the merchants surely built detailed facades and were generous with their use of gold leafing. The Town Hall is topped by a superb 370 foot tower with a 16 foot Archangel Michael, which swings in the wind as a weather vane. In the center of this fabulous Grand Palace the flower market was in progress, which added to the beauty of this unique place. Nearby we visited the well-known little statue of Manneken Pis, the most popular citizen of Brussels and the one disappointing feature of Brussels, as far as I was concerned. Other places of interest which we saw and visited were the Atomium and the few remaining buildings of the Brussels World Fair held in 1958; the Centenary Palace; the Japanese Tower; The King's House; the Congress Column; the Palace of the Academies; the Museum of Modern Painting; the Museum of Natural Sciences; the Anglo-Belgian Memorial; the Basilica of the Sacred Heart; the Collegiate Church of St. Michael and St. Gudula; the Church of St. Marie; and the many monuments and statues throughout different areas of this medieval city. This city is divided into an upper and lower town, the upper part houses the Royal Palace, the splendid museums and handsome residences, while the lower town has the majority of the ancient buildings and narrow streets. It is a most interesting city with its fine parks, its tree-lined boulevards and its wide public squares and one we will always remember. Today [April 13] we left Brussels and before arriving in Holland we went through Malines or Mechelen, which is located on the River Dyle and was once the famous lace and tapestry making center, as well as the weaving of Flemish cloth. Flemish tapestries are world famous. It is also famous - 3 -
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NewsLetter #43 for its cathedral of St. Rombold with its superior carillon in its massive bell tower. A feature of the city is its unique school for carillon players. Two other cathedrals of this city have famous Rubens paintings, one the "Adoration of the Magi" and the other "The Miraculous Draft of Fishes." Going into Holland we encountered no customs difficulty as we had previously and our first town of interest was Breda, which was once an ancient stronghold. Here we saw the lovely "Groote Kerk", a church of the lath Century which is an unusual example of Gothic-Brabantine style with a belfry containing 45 bells. We then drove through the charming towns of Rosendaal with its many large aristocratic homes and then Bergen of Zoom, Goes and Middelburg, where we are staying overnight as we want to see their famous Thursday Market, when the quaint charm of this town the size of Red Lion is heightened, as native costumes are worn by some of the rural inhabitants. This town is the capitol of the province of Zeeland, located on the island of Walcheren and it has scarcely changed in the last 300 years, although it was badly damaged during the war. Today [April 14] was sunny, so we went to the market in Middelburg and saw quite a few women dressed in their local costumes, which is an outfit very similar to what the Lancaster County Amish women wear, except their hats are quite unusual. I tried to purchase one in the town but they are not sold as the women make their own and we would have had to pay at least $20 U.S. money. (They really are unusual.) I figured they would be about $5 but I realized after looking them over more critically that they are made of an exquisite cutout work, like Italian outwork or eyelet. The only type Dutch hat you can purchase is the Volendam style, but thus far we've seen at least twelve different types of headdress depending upon the province. We left this market town about noon and drove through the city of Goes which is the center of a rich fruit growing area. In this town we saw some women in their native costumes and most of them wore the traditional wooden shoes called Klompen. (All the farmers work in their Klompen and in front of farm houses you often see several pairs standing on the doorsteps.) We next drove to Gouda, which is a city famous for its cheese as well as its candles and pipes. This city contains some interesting ancient architecture as well as an abundance of natural beauty. Here we saw the famous church of St. John, the interesting town hall and the Weighing House, which is used on Thursday for the cheese market. From Gouda we drove to Rotterdam where we plan to stay for a few days as we want to go to the International Flower Show, which is continuous from March 25 to September 25, 1960. Rotterdam is certainly a very interesting city which is practically entirely rebuilt as it was destroyed in 1940. It is Holland's second largest city and the largest port in Europe which has at least 150 shipping lines which link Rotterdam with foreign lands and is the gateway to Germany along the Rhine. As a result of the bombing in May 1940 only the City Hall, the Central Post Office and the Exchange Building escaped complete destruction, while 24,978 homes; 2,393 shops, and stores; 1,483 offices; 1,212 factories; 675 warehouses; 26 hotels,; 21 churches; 12 cinemas and other buildings were destroyed. (I mention these from an article I read which sounds almost unbelievable.) The city is still being - 4 -
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NewsLetter #43 reconstructed but there are so many lovely boulevards, stores, office buildings, etc., of the most modern Dutch architecture and engineering that it hardly seems possible they could have rebuilt it so soon. It surely is a symbol of the heart, courage and industriousness of the Dutch people. We visited all the new, very modern monuments: "The Monument for a Devastated City"; "The Ship's Bow", a monument to the men of the Dutch Merchant Marine who died in World War II, the War Memorial near the City Hall; "Mister John', "The Woman Athlete" and many others suitably placed in different sections of this city of 726,200 people. We saw the Waalhaven Dock, the Wholesalers Building, which is the largest building in Western Europe, as well as the "Floriade", the International Flower Show, which was spectacular. We walked among flowers and lovely gardens for hours and visited Gardens of different Nations which were set up and contributed by different countries — U.S. being one. It is similar to our last New York World's Fair with cars to take you about the grounds and a "Euromast" as the central feature, which is a tall tower structure built in the shape of a ship's mast. The top will accommodate 900 people at a time and from its height you get fantastic views of the entire "Floriade" as well as of Rotterdam and its terrific harbor. Besides the many acres of tulip, hyacinths, daffodils, etc. and the magnificent fountains, lakes and gardens, there is a huge building display of arrangements and every type of plant in the world, plus flowers and plants from the Bible. I cannot begin to mention the many displays, but I can tell you the entire city has the theme "Flowers" and it is like a Garden of Eden, with every vacant spot arranged with color and flowers in an artistic manner. Today [April 15] was "Good Friday" and we must admit it's the most beauty we've ever seen on any "Good Friday" in our entire lives. This also happens to be the end of another newsletter week with only nine more newsletters to write. Wish I could elaborate on everything we've been fortunate enough to view in the past ten months, but it would give me writer's cramp and more hours of time each night, which I really need to rest my eyes, as they seem to run from right to left on the road each day like I was watching a tennis match. (By the way, we had another flat tire today, which makes our sixth.) We are still fine and have as much enthusiasm and pep as when we started last June, since lately we get at least a few hours of sunshine each day, which seems to give us more real incentive. Until we write again tomorrow, Our regards and best wishes to all, Meredith and Charlotte P.S.: Thanks one and all for the many lovely Easter Greetings, as well as the batch of letters we received in Brussels this past week, M&C - 5 -
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