Stephen and Elaine Biddulph

10 - 17 MAY 2015

On Tuesday mornings we hold an early release meeting to discuss missionaries who might be candidates for early release from missionary service due to physical and mental health reasons. We held our meeting this week in Munzenberg at the old Roman castle ruins. Munzenberg is a small farming community about a 45 minute drive northeast of Frankfurt and was at one time a Roman stronghold. We climbed up the huge tower and took pictures of the surrounding farmland that looked like a checkerboard of green and brilliant yellow grape seed.

Munzenberg Roman Fortress

On Wednesday we had our first doctors appointments at the American Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl near Kaiserlautern and Ramstein Air Force Base. We stopped off at the PX and the commissary to get a few U.S. items that you can't find in German stores. Landstuhl is about 1.5 hours south of Frankfurt. The countryside is so beautiful once you get away from Frankfurt. Getting home was a different story with bumper-to-bumper traffic. It turned into an entire day outing.

Thursday was a German holiday, and with the offices closed, most senior couples traveled. We took Steve and Liz Edmunds (Elaine's cousin) on a 2-day trip to Bastogne, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Trier along the Moselle Valley. We drove to Koblenz, then, cut west across the Ardennes to Belgium and Bastogne where the Battle of the Bulge (WW2) was fought in December 1944. This was Hitler's last attempt to break through the advancing Allies front and disrupt its supply line. It ultimately failed and culminated with the arrival of

Battle of Bulge War Memorial - Bastogne

Patton and elements of his 3rd Army. We stayed overnight in Bastogne, visited the war museum and war memorial, and walked the streets of Bastogne. It is a busy place with lots of visitors. The war museum was very informative and interestingly done, following the lives of a little boy, a young school teacher, a German soldier, and an American soldier. It tells their story of this battle and puts a human face on the war.

Friday morning, we set off and were soon (1 hour drive) to Luxembourg. It is a very interesting city with mixture of old and new. We visited a building that the Church is

Roman Portal Nigra at Trier

considering purchasing, at least the first floor for a meeting house for members of the Church in Luxembourg. We just missed seeing the American war cemetery where thousands of WW2 dead are buried, including General George Patton, Jr, but we'll get back to see that on a later trip to Paris. Patton died in Heidelberg after the war as a result of a car accident and was buried with his troops in Luxembourg.

A short distance out of Luxembourg we visited the city of Trier, Germany on the Moselle River. The Moselle River is a beautiful river, and the Moselle Valley (Tal) is famous for growing grapes and wine. Trier is supposed to be the oldest city in Germany, founded first by Julius Caesar and expanded by Emperor Augustus and then Constantine the Great. At one time, it was only second to Rome in size and importance as the seat of government for all of Europe and Britain. Constantine built a huge basilica and throne in Tier, and he had an arena and

Plaque at Karl Marx Home

amphitheater built for shows and entertainment. The French (Napoleon) also conquered Trier, and Napoleon visited here, calling it "little Paris." The city has distinctive architecture from Roman, German, and French influence. The old Roman gate (Portal Nigra) to the city still stands, as does the basilica and throne. Quite amazing architecture. The apostle Mathias (chosen to replace one of the original apostles selected by Jesus) is buried in Trier. It is also the birth place of Karl Marx (5 May 1818). We walked around and saw all of the sights, then, headed home, following the Moselle Valley up to Koblenz and back to Frankfurt.

Saturday we walked in the cemetery, caught up on some phone calls with missionaries, and attended a piano concert (Klavierkonzert) in the Offenbach branch building performed by two of our sisters: Irena Obst (from Russia) and Sabrina Nau (German). It was titled: "Eine Musikalische Reise Durch Zeit" (A Musical Trip Through Time) and included music from several of the famous composers, including Chopin, Mozart, Bach, Schubert, Schumann, etc). Very nice. Sunday was another good day to worship our Savior and renew our covenants that we have made to obey and follow him. It is amazing how fast the weeks go by! I've added some pictures of our trip.