Loading...
The Wingham Advance-Times, 1965-03-25, Page 2Page 2 - Wingham Advance -Times, Thursday, Mar. 25, 1965 Western Europe Presents Appearance To Visitors Arriving from Canada By Barry Wenger Last week I told you of the place our Canadian soldiers and airmen occupy in the defence program carried out by NATO in northwestern Europe. This week I will try to tell you some- thing of the trip itself, and the interesting places I visited while abroad. The party of some 20 weekly newspapermen from across Can- ada, of which I was a member, was invited to visit the Cana- dian forces in Europe as a part of the policy of keeping the Canadian public informed about the role of our armed forces. We were flown from Trenton, Ontario, to Marville, in north- ern France,by the RCAF's transport command in one of their giant Yukon turbo -prop aircraft, along with over 100 service personnel, their wives and children, most of them about to commence three or four years of life in France or Germany. After a short stop -over at Marville the same aircraft took us on to Dusseldorf in north- western Germany, where we stayed until the following noon. This brief visit to a large Ger- man city was extremely inter- esting, for it is an outstanding example of the results which have been achieved by German efficiency and ambition. Dusseldorf was one of the prime targets of the Allied air attacks toward the end of the war and 85% of the city was destroyed. Today it presents a most attractive appearance. The entire centre of the city has been carefully planned and the gleaming new buildings and wide streets provide a shopping and business area which could well be the envy of Toronto or Montreal. BUSINESS THRIVES Stores in all the German towns and cities we visited are packed with the most attract- ive merchandise we have ever seen anywhere. Homes and busi- ness places alike are spotlessly clean and the Germans are faultlessly courteous. Since the area I visited is well acquainted with Canadians through our ser- vice personnel, we were well received. In fact, I found that in France and England, as well as in Ger- many, it was advisable to let it be known that I was Canadian, rather than American, for which one can readily be mistaken in Europe. Americans seem to be falling heir to some of the re- sentment which was formerly accorded to the British in those areas of the world where their money and military might pre- dominated. CARNIVAL SEASON Our party arrived in Germany at a most interesting time --the week -end previous to Ash Wed- nesday and the beginning of Lent. A centuried-old celebra- tion was in progress --the carni- val time called fasching. It is celebrated in much the same spirit as mardi gras in the Latin countries and appears to be a time for letting one's hair down in a forthright fashion. The celebration, as far as the adults are concerned, centres around the beer and wine es- tablishments. In these places the grown-ups foregather in costume to drink beer, play harmless stunts and above all to sing. They sing in the beer halls, they sing in the hotels, and they sing in the streets. It is interesting to note here that though beers, wines and spirits are freely accessible to all in the European countries, I saw only one person drunk in the entire trip --and he was a Canadian. An interesting trip by bus through the German countryside brought us to the city of Soest- - a place which has changed lit- tle since the Middle Ages. Around this comparatively small community (32, 000) are group- ed the various permanent camps of the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade Group. I found Soest a fascinating place. Its main square is front- ed by half-timbered buildings dating back 350 years and more. Untouched by war damage, the centre part of the city is a maze of twisting streets, some so narrow that vehicles have little room to spare when they meet. The building next to our hotel was called the "Monkshof' and is believed to have been built over 1, 000 years ago by a group of monks. It is an inn to- day, and a popular gathering place. The interiors of many of these old places would drive an antique collector wild, for they contain the furnishings with which they were originally pro- vided. The fireplaces are big enough to hold a small car with ease. Ancient candle lanterns hang from 24 -inch oak beams but now are fitted with electric bulbs. Priceless pewter and sil- ver and copper vessels adorn the bars and ceilings. The oldest church in Soest has looked down on the human scene since the 800's --more than eleven hundred years. To Canadian eyes, accustomed to seeing anything more than 100 HIGH JINKS were in full swing in the city of Dusseldorf, West Germany, when A -T Editor Barry Wenger visited that city on a recent trip to Europe. A photographer from Berlin snapped this picture on the street. Hundreds of children romped about the streets in costume, many of them dressed as cowboys or Indians. years old as an antiquity, these ties with the Middle Ages seem fantastic. CRAZY BEDS Beds in all German hotels are an adventure to say the least. When you first enter your room and glance at the bed you automatically conclude that the chamber maid has not com- pleted her job, for neatly plac-, ed on top of the mattress and lower sheet is a full-length fea- ther tick, and nothing more. No blankets, no bedspread -- just a feather tick in a spotless cover of white sheeting. At bedtime you realize the girl is not coming back, so you do what the host intended; crawl in under the feather tick. Under ideal conditions this is a great way to sleep. The tick is soft and warm and ex- tremely light. Trouble comes when you find yourself too hot. There are no half -way mea- sures. Either stay under the tick or take it off and freeze in the unheated room. (A wee whiff of heat enters the rads at 8 a.m.) MET JOURNALISTS A most enjoyable experience on our final evening in Soest was an old-fashioned beer- feste with ten or twelve Ger- man journalists, who had been invited to our hotel by our in- terpreter, Herr Reichel. We sat down to beer, beer, dinner, beer and beer at about 5 o'clock and were still going strong at 10. The beer, I might add, is light and only slightly alcohol- ic and there is little question of remaining a teetotaler after solemn warnings that visitors are usually adversely affected by the local water. The German newspapermen were an interesting group of people indeed; all extremely well educated before starting to serve a demanding appren- ticeship as writers. They had hundreds of questions about Canada, our economics and way of life .in general, and of course we Canadians had an equal number of queries about life in post-war Germany. Well-educated Germans are reluctant to talk about Hitler and the Nazi party, although they do speak freely about the war in general and its conse- quences in their country. DOWN THE RHINE Our journey by train from West Germany to northern France took about six hours and gave us an excellent chance to observe the masterful effic- iency of the German transporta- tion system, as well as a close look at some of the most fa- mous landscapes in the civiliz- ed world. The first stage of the trip was along the floor of the Ruhr Valley, in which is located the gigantic German steel industry. This area, the home of the Krupps and other munitions manufacturers, was bombed to utter destruction in the latter years of the war, but one would scarcely know that today. In the 20 years since the war the cities have been completely rebuilt and the steel mills and factories are pouring out a vari- ety of peace -time products which go to every corner of the world. The only signs of war devas- tation are occasional stretches on the outskirts of the large cities which are now overgrown with scrubby trees and dotted with tiny shacks --the first crude shelters thrown up by the popu- lace as it emerged from the Cattlemen who know use dependable FRANKLIN 2cc Small Dose CCS BACTERIN for protection against BLACKLEG and MALIGNANT EDEMA. Franklin's small dose speeds handling of Targe numbers of tattle, saves time and labor, minimizes tissue damage — assures dependable, reliable pro- tection for your livestock. Be prepared for the grazing season ahead — BRANDING IRONS - EAR TAGS - EAR NOTCHERS DE -HORNING EQUIPMENT — COMPLETE LINE OF VETERINARY SUPPLIES VANCE'S DRUG STORE DIAL 357-2170 - WINGHAM YOUR COMPLETE ANIMAL HEALTH HEADQUARTERS ruins of its dwellings when the bombs ceased to fall. BUSY THOROUGHFARE Turning into the Rhine Val- ley, the rail line follows that famous river for several hours and provides views of spectacu- lar scenery. Frequently I spot- ted the gaunt remains of old castles on the tops of the high river banks. These old places were built in the early ages by robber barons who were mon- archs in their own territories and preyed on the river traffic. The Rhine is a teeming thoroughfare, with barges four and five abreast plowing up and down the swift current, loaded with merchandise of all possible description. The most breath -taking sight on the entire journey was the soaring beauty of the cathe- dral in Cologne as we crossed the long bridge over the Rhine. The exterior of the most beau- tiful of all Gothic churches is still cobwebbed with scaffold- ing,for the long job of repair- ing bomb damage continues as it has ever since the war. There is no mistaking, however, the majesty of the architecture and it fills one with awe to know that workmen of a thousand years ago, with neither slide rules nor electric cranes to help them solve their problems, were able to build a structure so magnificent. SAVED BY AIRMEN• The sight of the great church also brings to mind another all but miraculous fact. Cologne is one of the most important THE F-104 AIRCRAFT is used by the RCAF in Europe on regular patrols of the NATO defence area immediately west of the Iron Curtain of East Germany. The aircraft is capable of speeds up to 1400 miles per hour under full thrust. With its tiny wings, it is really a one-man rocket. railway divisional points in Germany and it was vital to Allied strategy to permanently disrupt traffic through this point. The railway station lies immediately below the walls of the cathedral, so Allied air- men were given orders to bomb the rail lines week after week -- but to avoid direct hits on the cathedral if at all possible. How they managed to mount massive air raids time after time without hitting the great church is impossible to compre- hend --but they did it. The building was damaged consider- ably by side -blasts from the bombs, but its main structure fit. was not seriously damaged. The route from Cologne took us further up the Rhine to the ancient city of Koblenz and while waiting for a change of trains we had an opportunity to study a fortress built into the top of a high point of rock im- mediately back of the station platform. Though the castle was built in the early middle ages it is still such a strong point from the military aspect that the retreating Germans holed up in it during the great retreat in 1945 and it took a tremendous effort to dislodge them. The walls of red rock Please turn to Page Three au1' Cburdilx (ANGLICAN) ingbam 1 r Rev. C. F. Johnson, L.Th. - Rector Mrs.. Gordon Davidson - Organist 4th SUNDAY IN LENT — MARCH 28 9:45 a.m.—Sunday- School. 11:00 a.m.—Morning Prayer. Wed., March 31—Lenten Study, Parish Room, 7:30. Thurs., Apr. 1—Thankoffering Meeting, W.A. Guild, Parish Room, 3 o'clock. R WINGHAM FIGURE SKATING CLUB PRESENTS ITS ANNUAL CARNIVAL SPACE CAPADES FRIDAY, APR. 2, 1965 — Guest Skaters — KIM ROBERTS and BRUCE BRADY PRESTON F.S.C. LYNNE GODWIN and WILFRED POCOCK , GALT F.S.C. WESTERN ONTARIO SECTION COMPETITORS BARBARA and KERRY LEITCH, Pros SANCTIONED BY C.F.S.A. 1 K 4