Eisenach, Germany, Hattonchatel, France, May 13, 14

  We left Wroclaw fairly early hoping to reach Eisenach, Germany by 2 p.m. BUT - we hit the biggest traffic jam of our entire lives. We sat for 2 hours almost not moving. And, there were other traffic slow downs later and tons of construction. Luckily we got some snacks and water and went to the bathroom before we came to a standstill. We did not get our hotel until after 6 p.m. We were exhausted.

   Eisenach is only 10 kilometers from the old border with East Germany. (It was in East Germany.) Everywhere we drove was in East Germany. It was strange to drive there knowing the history and how the wall came down in our adulthoods.
   The hotel is not great, but adequate. We did not have to drive, thank heavens, for food, as a Greek restaurant is attached to the hotel. Mark had some traditional Greek food and Barbara had a Greek salad.

     Today we drove from Eisenach to Hattonchatel, France, not far from Verdun. We did not hit much traffic, but the roads around Frankfurt were intricate - thank heavens for the GPS. We, gulp, ate at a Burger King by the side of the road as we needed gas and were hungry. We never eat at those places and cannot remember a previous trip to a Burger King!

     We got to Hattonchatel around 2:30. As we drove in up some windy roads and through some very quiet and not very attractive towns, we had a sinking feeling that the chateau we were going to was going to be a dump.

     But - what a surprise! We are staying in a CASTLE! Fabian, the manager, showed us to the room we were supposed to have where we'd have to share the bathroom. For 30 Euros extra, he offered us a luxurious room in the main part of the castle with a beautiful bathroom. We did not hesitate. We have a terrific view as the castle is perched high on a hill. We overlook Lake Madine, but it is hard to see as it is a bit murky and foggy.
    The first castle here was built in 859 for the bishop of Verdun. It was destroyed on the orders of Cardinal Richelieu in the early 17th century. It was destroyed again in the Thirty Years War by the Swedes. And, it was destroyed again by the Americans and the French when it was retaken from the Germans in World War I. It was rebuilt by an American, Belle Skinner. She never saw the finished renovations because she died of pneumonia first. It was a convent from 1930-1970. It is now owned by a Danish couple. They are continuing to renovate it and add new rooms every so often. Fabian and Sophie are the managers and have been here for the 10 years that it has been run as either a Chambres des Hotes or a hotel as it is now.
     We explored some of the less visited World War One sights. We toured Verdun in the early 80s and saw the big sites. Our host pointed us to some different ones.

     We started at Montsec which has a huge monument to the American war effort situated on a high hill. It was held by the Germans during the bulk of the war. In 1918, it became one of the first offenses of the Americans who took the hill in a few days. We were the only tourists there. The memorial is beautiful and includes a relief map of the battle and the surrounding area.
    It was all part of the Salient of Saint-Mihiel. (A salient, also known as bulge, is a battlefield feature that projects into enemy territory. The salient is surrounded by the enemy on multiple sides)
     The battle was fought from September 12-15th and was the first major battle fought by the American forces under the command of General John J Pershing. It was a battle in which the air force played an important role with over 1,000 planes participating. Artillery also played a major role in taking the hill.    

    From there we drove to Saint Baussant to try to find some old trenches. We drove down a single car lane and did not find it and turned around, thinking we were in the wrong place as there were no signs at all. But, then we decided to try
again and this time we passed two walkers and we asked them in the German trenches were nearby. They told us to keep driving and we found them. They are barely marked and not kept up.

They are getting grown over which makes them, to us, even more poignant. The site is green and woodsy and the birds were singing. When we got to the trench, we found that the Germans called it the Trench of Birds. Again, it was sobering to think of the hellhole that the trenches were.

      From there we drove to Vigneulles les-Hattonchatel where there is a grocery store. We got some bread and pate and came back to the castle and ate in a room at the bottom of a tower. Unfortunately, it is not good enough weather to sit outside. Maybe tomorrow morning.