Behind the Curtain (again) Day 14

It is going home time. This trip has been in the planning stage for over the year. Now, all that is left to do is board our plane in Frankfurt and head for Atlanta. We left Riquewihr, France and headed for Frankfurt, Germany. Our plans are to stay overnight and catch an early flight home on Monday. While the Christmas market was behind us, we had one more stop to make. We made a visit to one of the forts that make up the Maginot Line.

The Germans treated the French badly during WWI and after the war, the French decided to build a series of forts, obstacles, and weapons installations along the border between these respective countries. This work was done in the 1930's, and it was thought it would deter German aggression. The French military extolled the Line as a work of genius. They felt it would slow any invasion force of the Germans long enough for the French to mobilize its army and send the Germans back across the Rhine. We all know what happened next. We visited the Fort of Schoenbourg, near the village of Hunspach, France. The fort was the most heavily bombarded structure on the Maginot Line. The Germans fired 56 shells, each weighing more than a ton, at the fort. German planes dropped 160 tons of bombs on the fort. In spite of theses attacks, the crew of the fort fired more than 17,000 shells against the German invaders. The crew only laid down their weapons after receiving a formal order from the French High Command six days after the Armistice took effect.
The line has since become a metaphor for expensive efforts that offer a false sense of security.

After the visit we continued on to Frankfurt. Upon arrival, we got the news about the power failure in the Atlanta airport. We were just fortunate we left a day later.

This has been a great trip. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. We did not have to listen to Finebaum talk about our performance in the SEC game against Georgia, we had great food, our accommodations were first rate, and the scenery was stunning. We are looking forward to getting home and getting ready for the next trip. Join us in February as we board Air France and head for Athens, Greece.

Ciao