Bastogne

On Saturday a group of us travelled by bus to Bastogne for the yearly commemoration of the Battle of Bastogne. If you've seen Band of Brothers, this is the exact area it was filmed and it is a very accurate portrayal of what the men faced. We left at 0430 in the morning, quite early and very cold and dark!
Upon arrival we met with others to register and pick up maps, use the bathroom (or face the cold woods) and stretch out a bit. We had the choice of a 7km, 13km or a 20km walk. We, of course did not want to wimp out and do just 7km, but we also didn't want to spend our entire time on the 20km, so the 13km sounded just right. A.J. and Macaira Pinto, Andy and Jen Greenfield and Drew Wilson and I set off on our journey, only to discover we had misread the map! We went the wrong way and ended up at the memorial, although that was great to see:) We turned around and joined the rest of the masses as we watched the sunrise.
All along the walk there were reenactments and soldiers in authentic era uniforms. As you can see from the foxhole picture, even I got in on the fun! There were tents, foxholes, jeeps, first-aid encampments and even a chow truck set up. We also were treated to two Gluhwein stands and a hot chocolate stand, which we skipped to keep on towards our goal. About halfway through there was a large field where a parajump was done with old style round chutes. I have never parachuted myself, but I've talked to many people who have and I commend the folks who took part in this jump! It was freezing cold, extremely windy and they don't have much control. Not to mention, once they hit the ground they were at the mercy of the wind, which dragged more than one man a good distance across the field.
We finally limped our way into the city and enjoyed coffee, tea and ice cream (okay, only A.J.). Finally, we met at a small cafe and had a sandwich, then collapsed onto the bus for the ride home. I wasn't able to stay up past 9 p.m. and today my calf muscles feel like they are detached from my legs. All in all though, a wonderful experience and I look forward to next year!