Ypres, Belgium

In the heart of Flanders is the city of Ypres. Ypres was a strategic position during World War I because it stood in the path of Germany's planned sweep across the rest of Belgium and into France from the North. Germany's invasion of Belgium brought the British Empire into the war. The German army surrounded the city on three sides, bombarding it throughout much of the war. The town was all but rubble by the end. Howard talked to one man who said that 60% of Ypres residents left after the war because of the mass destruction of their city. However, a few years later that same determination from the Belgians that held back the Germans kicked in again, and within only a few years the city had been rebuilt and restored.
Looking at buildings like this, it's hard to fathom that this small city had once been reduced to rubble.




The famous Menin Gate the soldiers would pass through leaving Ypres on their way to battle.Every evening at 8:00, a ceremonial Last Post is still held underneath this gate. The traffic is stopped and the gate fills with people. The night we were there, a band from Australia was playing. Australian soldiers played a large part in the battles around Ypres. It was a very moving ceremony as the band played, "Abide with Me"" and "Be Still My Soul". Wreaths were laid by several different groups and a bugle fanfare was also played. There were easily 500 people there.
The walls are lined with the names of almost 55,000 men of the Commonwealth forces who have no known graves.



A great uniform.
You've gotta love those socks!