When walking along the Antwerp riverbanks, I couldn't help but noticing the way Antwerp disregards the people who liberated this city way back in 1944: the men from the US, Canadian and Polish forces. Most of the tiny remembrance statues are hidden among forgotten old military vessels or just invisible between the countless parked cars. Many of these forgotten men gave their life for our freedom, a fact most of us no longer seem to care for. It's a real shame.
Below: my recent pics showing the expensive upscale Antwerp riverbanks residential area, with old military vessels and forgotten statues dating back to the end of WW II.
[Antwerp, Belgium: WWII vessels, the tiny WWII USA memorial with expensive riverside lofts in the background, June 17, 2006]
This blog is not affiliated with or endorsed by the city of Antwerp, Belgium.
Every year, the Belgian government donates an enormous Christmas tree to be displayed inside the American Embassy in Brussels. It is taken from the blood-soaked battlefield of the Ardennes and is one of those pines that’s distinctive to that area, not a typical type for a Christmas tree. The fact that it’s unusual gains notice and always leads to conversations about the 70,000 Americans who died in the Battle of the Bulge on December.
It’s humbling what Europe faced, what the Allies accomplished, and what everyone sacrificed. I can’t visit battlefields in America or here because the loss overwhelms me. The numbers are truly staggering…the reality behind them, more than I can comprehend.
Comment by V-Grrrl — May 29, 2007 @ 7:27 am