May 31, 2003

In Flanders Fields the Poppies Blow...
Iepers, Belgium

On Saturday, we all got up and drove out to the town of Iepers in western Belgium. It was a bitcrowded in our little car, but it was survivable given that it was only a  1 hour drive. Although the medieval center of Iepers (known as "wipers" in English :) was destroyed in world war one, it has been authentically restored with it's original beauty.

Upon reflection, one of the things that I find most interesting about Europe is how different countries, or indeed areas, have their own unique feel. You can see the similarities between German towns as compared to Dutch towns or Belgian towns. Amazing to us yanks who are used to living on a continent that has so much similarity throughout. (Can you say strip mall? )

Anyhow, our primary destination in Iepers was the Flanders Field Museum and the Menen gate to catch up on war history. The museum was well done but not excellent. Mark and I agreed that perhaps it was a bit of sensory overload and I could have done with some more pre-war history on how the war started and what all the causes were, etc. The gate, on the other hand, is impressive and absolutely massive. Of course, it's horrible and beautiful all at once. You can't visit Iepers without seeing a cemetery, they are literally everywhere -- along the side of highways, in the center of town, etc. And the Poppies were in bloom while we where there... just poking their heads up from the side of the road or wherever the seeds have found soil.

Before heading home, we enjoyed a wonderful Belgian meal in a local restaurant. Belgium is truly one of Europe's least appreciated about treasures and I hope we enjoy many more trips there in the future.

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This Page was last update: Friday, November 12, 2004 at 1:33:00 AM
This page was originally posted: 2/24/2004; 3:45:23 PM.
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