My trip to Deutschland

[James Tainton]

So I have my ticket booked for a 6 week trip to Germany. It'll be from the first week of April. Anyone who may feel like helping me get the most out of the trip there please let me know. I plan on being in the Minden (http://www.minden.de/) area the majority of the time but will be venturing out to any and all museums and sites that I can, relating to my interest in German armour of W.W.II. I could really use some help from any natives who can help me in my quest. I am also seriously considering side trips to Samur and Bovington, again can anyone offer to be my guide with this??? ;)
I have been to Germany few times before but this time I will be focusing on getting as much first hand reference as possible to bring back. Plus I will have the use of a car and will be able to go far and wide....Last time I was there Munster was closed for the winter season and though I did make it to Koblenz, I only had the old style of film camera with me so the images caught were limited. This time I plan to be loaded for bear and photo taking will be the prime mission. I will post some of them here I imagine :)

http://www.minden.de/sites/tourismus/panoramen.html

[sam_dwyer]

Oh yeah! Well done James!

We did a similar trip in 2003, did Bovvy, IWM, Duxford in the UK, Saumur, Calais, and Bayeux musee in France, as well as Normandy. Saumur is a good 6 hours south of Calais, quite a hike, but worth it. Take the toll roads, expensive, but worth every penny! Stay in a town called Vive, about 5 minutes out of Saumur. There is a hotel there (sorry, name escapes me now, but ill look it up for you). This place has the best steaks and creme brulee ive ever had, and cheap rates.

In Germany, obviously, there is Koblenz, Munster and Sinshein. There are actually 2 Munsters in Germany, the one you want is the northern one, which is home to the school of armor. Going to bed at night to the boom of 120mm tank fire and the rattle of MG3 fire is something, I tell you. Also in Germany is the Bad Oeyhausen Car & Motorcycle Museum. Its located at Weserstrasse 225, 32549 Bad Oeynhausen, Germany. Dont let the name fool you, there is a mountain of armor in there, and all sorts of war relics. The car park adjacent is also interesting, with a pile of Warsaw Pact 'stuff' - hinds, AN2 Colts, BTRs and BRDMs, you name it.

If I also may suggest, if you can stretch it, go to the Brussels Military Museum in, well, Brussels. Its brilliant, covering suits of armor right up to modern pieces, including aircraft. Their WW1 collection is first rate too.

I'd love to come as your guide, but I think I left my airfare in my other pants!

If youre interested, ill dig out our accomodation info, all good, all cheap.


Hope all this helps, and enjoy your trip.

Sam

[James Tainton]

Thanks, Sam.
I was hoping you would take the time to share some of your experience as I did see from previous posts that you had been over on a similar pilgrimage as what I plan. If it's not asking too much- could you dig out any of the accomodation info you mention? Perhaps post it here for the general good. Also a thought that came into my head was that it would be a great help for me to have a clear idea of the possibilities if you could maybe, if you can find the spare time, take a map of the areas you went to and mark the trails and destinations that you experienced. I'm sure others beside me can use this info? Thanks for the info in any case. Where I am staying, in Minden, is only a couple of hours away from Munster. (The other Munster has an umlaute.)
Minden is in the lower left of the map- not far from Munster at all :)

http://www.kitpic.com/is.php?i=23317&img=kar100.jpg

[The Mango Kid]

Hi James, if you have the time, I really recommend that you pay the army museum in Diekirch (Dikirch, Luxembourg) a visit, it's totally amazing !
I've been to Munster and Koblenz and the likes, they were really good, but there are only two museums that stuck in my mind and that is the Historie 1944 in La Gleize, Belgium, and the Diekirch museum...

I hope that you will have a great time over there !

HTH,
Kris in Sweden