- Messages
- 633
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Impolite people, yobbish behaviour, pretentious people.
Thank you, Keesha. It was a time of great cruelty and it is sad that the sacrifices of so many were necessary to put an end to such abominations. What I cannot understand is why so many children had to be murdered. I’ve always thought that the absolute duty of any human being was to protect the young, no matter their age, their race or religion. When we were in Jerusalem some years ago we went to the Children’s Memorial which I was dreading because I become enraged about cruelty to children. But it was an uplifting experience, almost ethereal, with a candle burning for each child who died in the Holocaust. But to see so many small flames, thousands upon thousands of them, will break your heart.
The tour continued and we set off walking while our guide gave us a stream of information about the areas we were walking through. Then at one point he stopped on a small square and started talking about Hitler’s rise to power. We stood and listened but I was taken somewhat aback as he began with Hitler’s election as Chancellor of Germany in 1933 with the assistance of the German president Hindenberg, who thought that rather than battling the emerging Nazi Party Hitler could be controlled.
Let me interrupt here and state that as you get older, legs, knees, hips, and muscles become rather rebellious. Walking isn’t so bad if you keep to a steady pace, but standing still for a long period becomes a painful experience. I could see from Jackie’s face that standing there was hurting her badly. She won’t complain, simply tolerate the discomfort, but when I saw her sit down at a pavement cafe’s table and was shortly joined by several others from our group I knew I had to speak up.
I walked up to our guide and explained that I had no wish to be rude but I felt I should point out that we were all of a similar age and that the events leading to Hitler becoming Chancellor and the reign of terror that ensued were familiar to us. I also explained that standing still for long periods led to discomfort and outright pain. Moreover, the owners of the cafe where many of our group were sitting were going to get pretty irate if they occupied the facilities without buying so much as a coffee.
He took the messsage in and we moved on as he explained more about Heydrich himself. I saw a film just before we departed on our cruise called “The Man with the Iron Heart”, with Rosamond Pike as Heydrich’s wife, Lina, who was responsible for his joining the Nazis and his subsequent rise within the Party, until he became commander of the SS and the Gestapo and Reich Protektor, (protector of the Reich). The film is made from part of a novelized biography of Heydrich.
We visited several areas where events in the lead up to the attack happened, where memorials to those who had taken part are situated and finished the tour at the church where the Czech agents had taken refuge from the Nazi pursuers.
It is possible to visit the crypt where Gabcik and Kubis died. There is still evidence from the siege as hordes of Nazi troops gathered outside. There is a small window in the crypt looking out onto the street and it was here that the Nazis began their attempts to wipe out the Czechs. They concentrated their fire on the window and you can still see the bullet holes in the brick that surround the window. In the crypt there are many more, as the gunfire poured in and ricocheted around the interior. Clearly this didn’t work so the fire brigade was called in to flood the crypt, another tactic that didn’t work. Eventually the Czech freedom fighters realised that they had no hope of escaping. When the Nazis finally blasted their way into the crypt using high explosive charges they found the Czechs had shot themselves rather than fall into the hands of one of history’s cruellest regimes.
The crypt is now a memorial with bronze busts of Gabcik and Kubis. There were fresh flowers in front of the busts and poppies and wreaths were laid around.
In the previous post I said that Gabcik and Kubis moved down to the crypt, but I have discovered that Kubis had been killed in the prayer loft in the initial battle and Gabcik and three others took refuge in the crypt. However, one thing is certain - these men’s bravery and sacrifices will never be forgotten.
We spent the rest of the evening in a somewhat sober mood, but our whole time spent cruising the Rhine and the Danube as well as our visit to Prague would have been impossible without the determination of these people, and many, many more like them. My life and Jackie’s would have been vastly different without them, and the free and open Europe that we enjoy today would not be possible. We owe every person who fought the Nazis a debt that we can never repay. Every male in my family who was old enough served in the British armed services. I’m sure that many people on this site can say the same thing.
The next day we flew from Prague airport to Luxembourg, the final flight on what had been at times an exhilarating and fun experience. It also gave us food for thought with the hatred and racism that Brexit seems to have unleashed, the takeover by the extreme right wing of the Conservative Party and the emergence of right wing parties all over the world.
The tour continued and we set off walking while our guide gave us a stream of information about the areas we were walking through. Then at one point he stopped on a small square and started talking about Hitler’s rise to power. We stood and listened but I was taken somewhat aback as he began with Hitler’s election as Chancellor of Germany in 1933 with the assistance of the German president Hindenberg, who thought that rather than battling the emerging Nazi Party Hitler could be controlled.
Let me interrupt here and state that as you get older, legs, knees, hips, and muscles become rather rebellious. Walking isn’t so bad if you keep to a steady pace, but standing still for a long period becomes a painful experience. I could see from Jackie’s face that standing there was hurting her badly. She won’t complain, simply tolerate the discomfort, but when I saw her sit down at a pavement cafe’s table and was shortly joined by several others from our group I knew I had to speak up.
I walked up to our guide and explained that I had no wish to be rude but I felt I should point out that we were all of a similar age and that the events leading to Hitler becoming Chancellor and the reign of terror that ensued were familiar to us. I also explained that standing still for long periods led to discomfort and outright pain. Moreover, the owners of the cafe where many of our group were sitting were going to get pretty irate if they occupied the facilities without buying so much as a coffee.
He took the messsage in and we moved on as he explained more about Heydrich himself. I saw a film just before we departed on our cruise called “The Man with the Iron Heart”, with Rosamond Pike as Heydrich’s wife, Lina, who was responsible for his joining the Nazis and his subsequent rise within the Party, until he became commander of the SS and the Gestapo and Reich Protektor, (protector of the Reich). The film is made from part of a novelized biography of Heydrich.
We visited several areas where events in the lead up to the attack happened, where memorials to those who had taken part are situated and finished the tour at the church where the Czech agents had taken refuge from the Nazi pursuers.
It is possible to visit the crypt where Gabcik and Kubis died. There is still evidence from the siege as hordes of Nazi troops gathered outside. There is a small window in the crypt looking out onto the street and it was here that the Nazis began their attempts to wipe out the Czechs. They concentrated their fire on the window and you can still see the bullet holes in the brick that surround the window. In the crypt there are many more, as the gunfire poured in and ricocheted around the interior. Clearly this didn’t work so the fire brigade was called in to flood the crypt, another tactic that didn’t work. Eventually the Czech freedom fighters realised that they had no hope of escaping. When the Nazis finally blasted their way into the crypt using high explosive charges they found the Czechs had shot themselves rather than fall into the hands of one of history’s cruellest regimes.
The crypt is now a memorial with bronze busts of Gabcik and Kubis. There were fresh flowers in front of the busts and poppies and wreaths were laid around.
In the previous post I said that Gabcik and Kubis moved down to the crypt, but I have discovered that Kubis had been killed in the prayer loft in the initial battle and Gabcik and three others took refuge in the crypt. However, one thing is certain - these men’s bravery and sacrifices will never be forgotten.
We spent the rest of the evening in a somewhat sober mood, but our whole time spent cruising the Rhine and the Danube as well as our visit to Prague would have been impossible without the determination of these people, and many, many more like them. My life and Jackie’s would have been vastly different without them, and the free and open Europe that we enjoy today would not be possible. We owe every person who fought the Nazis a debt that we can never repay. Every male in my family who was old enough served in the British armed services. I’m sure that many people on this site can say the same thing.
The next day we flew from Prague airport to Luxembourg, the final flight on what had been at times an exhilarating and fun experience. It also gave us food for thought with the hatred and racism that Brexit seems to have unleashed, the takeover by the extreme right wing of the Conservative Party and the emergence of right wing parties all over the world.
Last edited: