We left at lunch time for Ypres today. It took only about 30 minutes to get there by bus. Before we arrived, we stopped at Tyne Cott Cemetery, which is operated by Great Britain. More than 30,000 British soldiers are buried here, and they all died in the Battle of Paschendale in 1917. In my pictures, you see a giant cross in the cemetery-- this was the site of a German watch tower that was overrun by Australian soldiers during the battle. After the Allies gained the position, it became a tent hospital-- the dead were buried around the hospital, and that's how the cemetery came to be.
From Tyne Cott, you could see the steeples and spires of Ypres across the Belgian countryside. We took the bus into town and it dropped us off outside the famous Menin Gate. The town of Ypres is built inside a medieval moat and is surrounded by a protective wall. The gate is one of two exits from the city. During the war, soldiers would go through this gate on their way to the front lines. Now it's a memorial to all of the soldiers who went missing during WWI. The Gate has been visited by many important figures, including Mother Teresa, two Popes, King George V, and Queen Elizabeth II.
We walked through the gate and into the Grand Place of Ypres. It was pretty impressive, and is dominated by Cloth Hall, where the Flanders Fields Museum is located. Although the buildings look ancient, they original buildings were all destroyed during the war and had to be reconstructed. You can compare the picture of Cloth Hall after the War (in the post below) to Cloth Hall now.
The museum was pretty neat and took about an hour to go through. Then we went next door and got Belgian waffles with chocolate and ice cream. We finished the trip by walking through St. Nicholas Cathedral.
From Tyne Cott, you could see the steeples and spires of Ypres across the Belgian countryside. We took the bus into town and it dropped us off outside the famous Menin Gate. The town of Ypres is built inside a medieval moat and is surrounded by a protective wall. The gate is one of two exits from the city. During the war, soldiers would go through this gate on their way to the front lines. Now it's a memorial to all of the soldiers who went missing during WWI. The Gate has been visited by many important figures, including Mother Teresa, two Popes, King George V, and Queen Elizabeth II.
We walked through the gate and into the Grand Place of Ypres. It was pretty impressive, and is dominated by Cloth Hall, where the Flanders Fields Museum is located. Although the buildings look ancient, they original buildings were all destroyed during the war and had to be reconstructed. You can compare the picture of Cloth Hall after the War (in the post below) to Cloth Hall now.
The museum was pretty neat and took about an hour to go through. Then we went next door and got Belgian waffles with chocolate and ice cream. We finished the trip by walking through St. Nicholas Cathedral.
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