France: Verdun

After the delights of wine tasting, it was back to visiting some of the dark history of Europe of which this continent is sadly riddled with. Verdun, of course, was one of the bloodiest, most devastating battles on the Western Front of WW1. We went to the Verdun memorial which showed how the war played out in this area from both the Allied and the German perspectives. Once again, one is reminded of the senselessness of war - particularly this war- and the high losses of human life. This area was so heavily shelled by artillery fire, that the village of Fleury-devant-Duoumont (which changed hands between the allies and the Germans no less than 16 times!) Was completely flattened! All that remained of the village were stone markers indicating what used to stand in its place eg baker, blacksmith etc. The artillery fire was so heavy in this area, that the landscape is still pockmarked like a spotty teenagers face. And this is after 105 years since the war ended!
We also visited Fort Duoumont which was one of the strategic strongholds for the area as well as the memorial cemetery. All so sad once again to see the tragic loss of life.
On a happier note, we stayed in a lovely Airbnb in the town where Odile, our elderly host, was super accomodating and we had a lovely chat via a translating app with her over breakfast. She really confirmed the friendliness of the French as what we had experienced on our trip thus far.Read more