BeTraveler

Traveling by train is my greatest pleasure. It always has been like that. And just listen to the lyrics of this song by the Nits, it takes me back to those interRail days...

THE TRAIN

Have you ever been to the Dutch Mountains? Maybe you think they don't exist, but I live right next to them. On the border between Germany, Belgium and The Netherlands lies the highest point of the Netherlands : The Vaalserberg, 322 metres high.

IN THE DUTCH MOUNTAINS

In South-West Germany, not far from Trier, lies the wonderful village of Traben-Trarbach. Famous as a wine region and a great place to go trekking, this town also offers another remarkable point of interest: one of the largest fortifications ever build: The Mont Royal Fortress.

In support of her range of fortifications and the domination of the
Rhineland, France built the Mont Royal fortress in 1687.

Under the supervision of the famous Vauban it was, at times, built by,
up to 8.000 enforced labourers. Millions of French public funds and
German compulsory reparations were spent. With a diameter of 5 kilometres it covered the whole of the plateau with the main fortress extending over a length of 1,6 kilometres and width of 750 metres, bordered by the left bank of the Moselle all around the peninsula. The main keep with an area of 123 acres and a height of 200 metres, formed the very heart of the whole fortress and was surrounded by a main wall of 2,92 kilometres in length and 30 metres in height with 5 bastions and 3 fortified towers. In additon 3 ramparts, 5 outer walls, moats with inner walls (the so-called curtain-walls), outer works, galeries and various other stoneworks protected this fortified town. South of it there was the "Große Königliche Hauptquartier" (Grand Royal Headquarters), a fortified camp and operations centre for the Rhenish troops; with a citizenry of its own, stables for 3000 horses and barracks for 12.000 men.

Under its governor, the Earl of Montal, this gigantic works had a combat complement of 14 regiments with 8.450 men, 155 heavy ordnances
and enormous supplies, e.g. 504.000 gallons of wine. The whole installation was twice as powerful as its supporting fortresses of Saarlouis, Luxembourg and Rhinefels together.

In the long run, however, France was not able to maintain such an unrealistically expensive fortress, 100 kilometres inland of the militarized Rhineland, against a startled Europe.

The Netherlands and England alike tried to negotiate for Mont Royal
undemolished. France, however, was reluctant to let her adversaries
have her model fortification and prefered to have it dismantled after the Peace of Ryswick in 1698.

In The Thirties of this century, the local historian Ernst Willen Spies Ph.D., supervised and conducted excavations on Mont Royal by means of original plans from archives in Paris. A local history association was formed in 1930 which enthusiastically aimed at excavating the fortifications and opening up this unique attraction for tourism. The main excavations were performed during the years 1929-1937. Without exception they were merely intended for tourism. During the war years from 1939-1945, time once more spread the veil of oblivion over the ruins causing further decay. More important tasks were to be done in the post-war period. It was not until the Sixties that a flourishing tourism brought this unique site in the West of Germany back into promenance and recently steps have been taken to make Mont Royal accessible to tourism again.

Another great travel song from the Nits. It reminds me of all those trips i took with my InterRail pass.

ADIEU SWEET BAHNHOF

Waterloo in Belgium is a unique place: there you can see the battlefield exactly like it was on June the 18th, 1815 when Wellington faced Napoleon for an ultimate battle that changed Europe's face forever. Visit the Lion Hamlet and experience the new animation : Battlefield Tour

From 1st July until 31st August there will be every weekend – cavalry, infantry and artillery fire demonstrations.
Only those who have smelled the cannon powder and seen a cavalry charge can truly understand what the Battle of Waterloo was like. Every weekend in the months of July and August, at the same site as Napoleon’s final battle, you can re-live this key event in History.

You can also discover the battlefield of Waterloo on a mountain bike! Visit the British gun positions and the key points of the battle for yourself and trace the movements of the French cavalry.

Take a bicycle tour of Waterloo Battlefield on your own bike or on one of the 50 mountain bikes available for hire at the location. Cycle along trails and discover the many monuments and commemorative stones dotting the site of the famous battle that raged here on 18 June 1815.

Two routes have been designed and laid out for cyclists, and in addition to this exciting new way of visiting the battlefield there are many other outdoor activities for families to enjoy at Lion's Hamlet.

A detailed map of the routes is available at the bicycle hire office along with a leaflet providing information on each monument. Bicycle trailers are available for toddlers as well as children’s bikes, and helmets are provided free with every bike hired.

You can find more info on the Waterloo 1815 website