Finally catching up! Our second LCC trip started on Saturday, because the glass work shop on Friday was canceled unfortunately. We went to the Cathedral in Metz, and for the first time I actually got to see inside. We were accompanied with an English speaking tour guide, a very sweet woman, of whom I could see being related to Madame Serafin. We learned a lot about what the architecture tells us about the history of the church.
It is truly interesting how one building
can tell so many things about the past! The cathedral itself plays significant symbolism as to cultural change over the years.
These pillars, for example, are completely different. This is the section of the church where it was connected with the church that used to be across the street. The Cathedral needed to expand at the time but on the west was a hill, on the north there was already the alter section that would be to expensive to replace, and there were houses on the east. So they unite congregations.
The color difference shows the results of "cleaning" the stone. Unfortunately the job could not be finished due to lack of funding. Churches no longer receive the financial attention as they used to, which is why refurbishments are never finished, and scaffolds are usually accompanying a section of cathedrals. The jobs are never done.
The stained glass is another remarkable feature of the Cathedral. When construction began, glass was very expensive and difficult to make. Originally churches only had small windows such as these:
The alternatives for interior decor were paintings that have been less successful in enduring the wears of time.
Over the years of construction technology allowed for the ability to install larger stained glass windows, but the art itself created tension, and showed contradiction of culture within the church. This art is abstract, it was like jazz in the 20s or rock and roll in the 50s. It was new and not appreciated by tradition holders.
The difference between abstract and more Renaissance art is great. On these windows, the artist began to experiment with depth. A very difficult task to accomplish at this time on 2-dimensional objects.
For what they lacked in painting depth, they made up in the other areas of hand crafted decor, and in the Godly music orchestrated on the organs that still work today!
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Our tour guide brought us to the museum down the street as well, I am considering going back myself, but my time here is ending quickly!
The weather put me in a
really delightful mood and I seemed to appreciate learning about the
history and meaning of artifacts more than usual. Our tour guide (name of which I can't remember- I'll use Alice) made a good
point... "Why should we learn about the history of architecture? It doesn’t mean anything to us
directly, but it did once mean a lot to other people, and all of it can
be put together to create a better understanding of where we are today."
Even if our lives could go on just as easily without having known about
some of these things, knowledge should never be turned away as useless. Until we can predict the future, we will never know exactly what might be useful to know later in our lives!
Roman baths found all the way up in Metz, for example, emphasizes just how extensive the empire was. If historians could not grasp that the Roman Empire was so huge, it would not play as such a significant example of how powerful empires fall because they become spread to thin and begin lack strong internal support.
Perhaps if it weren't for the fact that our faces create our image, many sculptures would have been completely destroyed and for times where written records were less permanent, we would never have known about the individuals of the past. In attempting to destroy sculptures the heads would fall off first naturally due to the weaker section above the shoulders... and the rest of the sculpture would be left alone.
Urns and preserving remains has been in human culture since we had any sense of belief in religion and afterlives. Keeping memories of the past with tangible objects is a unique psychological feature of the human species. We do it even for the smallest things. Pictures for example.
Art has not been preserved perfectly from the past, but luckily not all work is original, and many times there will be the same story told elsewhere, and perhaps it was better preserved on that occasion or consists of missing parts.
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| This is an Egyptian sculpture discovered in the area around Metz- evidence of social interaction that created cultural ties even then, |
Once again art on wood does not withstand the wears of time as well. But this room demonstrated mythological creatures, and the imagination that animals with the head of one thing, and the tali of another.Perhaps it was a form of ridicule, or simple creativity.
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| I will resist the urge to provide adjectives to each as one would the seven dwarfs! |
The
Maginot Line: We had some time to waste so here are some of my classmates, and Professor.
"Do not go wondering off anywhere." ...So I snuck a few shots.
So did Caroline. But we were just following Ronnie's example :)
I wasn't lying, the weather was really nice- guys thought so too!
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| "So we are going to throw the apple at the trash can and see who can make it in." |
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| "At least I can't completely lose if she doesn't make it either" (added commentary- false dialogue) |
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| I wonder how good of ventilation the chefs had. Otherwise- a lot of pressure not to burn something- or break a rotten egg. |
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| If I borrowed my Dad's bike I could replicate how comfortable it would be to do a 16 mile bike ride with these! | | <3 Love you Dad. |
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| I'm not sure if this is supposed to indicate location (which should be somewhere near Thionville) or some form of German graffiti to express how life was when everyone caught the flu. |
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| Guns on display! |
What was culture like during WWII? Music was still present, some propaganda of course.
And gas masks. Lots of them.
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| This picture just isn't right. |
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|
I can't help but to feel a sunken
feeling for the French who went through all this effort to build this
fortification, when the Germans could just go around it, take it over, and then use it for their own benefit! This construction has certainly impressed me with the
careful consideration of little things, like turning the routes so
missiles can’t go straight through, and the safety precautions for
possible explosions within it. I’m sure the fortress indirectly helped
make it more difficult to invade France.
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| We got to ride the train cars, and I realize this now, Caroline: why are you not wearing a jacket? It was truly freezing with the cold air blowing past us on the train. |
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| Bottom half of the turret |
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| The top half! |
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| On the next floor up we could see where they actually loaded the ammo. |
There certainly was a very efficient system set up for this machine! It's a shame that in the end the Maginot Line gave Germany the advantage when the United States army
showed up to liberate Europe.
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| Nuclear plants in the distance. |
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| A lot of maintenance to upkeep these machines- that's for sure! |
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| Reminded some of us of Mario |
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| The door through which I heard an old telephone ringing. Creepy. |
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| As you can see we bombed the crap out of it. Between the cement, and metal wiring, yeah it was very effective! |
Ah so the phone really did exist!
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Struthof Concentration Camp:
*
*
*
*
Le ravine de la mort:
mm 
The
concentration camp was an overall moving experience. I have previously read and learned a lot about
this time period, but never had I imagined it to be anything like it was today. The most stunning thing was the beauty of the location.
"This is it?" The area seemed so harmless.
Though many years have passed
since the camp has been used, I expected there to be a more immediate sensation of somberness, rather then a feeling of awe. I can't imagine being so confined
somewhere so open and free.
As I was walking down to the base of the camp I realized this place is almost worse than being located somewhere without the constant reminder of freedom. What's worse than living in chains at death's mercy and constantly seeing the world that people were meant to live freely in. It sickens me to think of the
way people were discriminated in WWII. I do hope people continue to mature and grow without reverting to the misconception that power gives people the right to be blatantly ignorant with no consideration for their own lack of intelligence.
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| Memorial location where the many ashes were thrown. |
The Bunker Cell Quarters. A bunker accompanied all deportation camps. This one comprised of 20 cells and 8 solitary confinement cells. The deported crowded into these cells received the harshest punishments for futile reasons. First Degree: 3 days wood bunk; bread and water. Second Degree: up to 42 days; wood bunk bread and water. Third Degree: until execution bread and water. Rights to sit or lie down are revoked the last 3 days before they are executed. The 8 solitary confinement cells were never heated, and those imprisoned were forced to remain curled up- an action that would often result in their death.
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| Exterior walls were cheaply reinforced by a mix of bamboo. |
Operation, experimentation, and autopsy rooms. The experiments were performed on a number of deportees leading to their death. An autopsy is performed on the dissection table, then cremated in the ovens in the next rooms over.
Funeral Urn Room; the urns were designed to contained the ashes of executed German convicts, bought for 60 to 100 Reichmarks by their families in order retrieve their relative, but they were never even sure if they were the right ashes. This urn for example contains ashes from a hair cut. Hair was also sent to Germany felt hat factories. Discrepancies noted.
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| Shoes were valuable and removed of course before the burning. |
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| Names of those cremated. |
Bodies were burned in mobile furnaces that were placed close to the gas chambers outside the camps until 1943. After that they were burned here in the Crematorium; the bodies brought up of from the mortuary in the basement. The heat released was used for hot water.
*
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| Your posture offended the officer, who then shoved him over the line of which you would then be shot. |
Daily life of the deported (n): Brutality, diseases, and death.
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On a much lighter note of history!
The Medieval Castle: Chateau du Haut-Koenigsburg: Fantastic, great view, well restored, and good tour guide. He knew a lot and perfected eye contact, but it would have been nice to wonder around a little on our own. It was also fascinating to see technology evolve over the centuries!
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| Castles have remarkable dynamics. |
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| Blacksmith's |
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Tikki tikki tembo-no sa rembo-
chari bari ruchi-pip peri pembo |
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| Old fire extinguishers- still pass inspection? |
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| Ah! Now it's a party. |
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| A jade furnace |
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| In the times of illiteracy, Lord's names were accompanied by an animal. |
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| Hunting Trophies |
The Good Stuff:
The tour guide did tell us properly how to kill cavalry. Snag, slice, stab.
The stained glass is another remarkable feature of the Cathedral. When construction began, glass was very expensive and difficult to make. Originally churches only had small windows such as these:
The alternatives for interior decor were paintings that have been less successful in enduring the wears of time. 
Over the years of construction technology allowed for the ability to install larger stained glass windows, but the art itself created tension, and showed contradiction of culture within the church. This art is abstract, it was like jazz in the 20s or rock and roll in the 50s. It was new and not appreciated by tradition holders. 
Our tour guide brought us to the museum down the street as well, I am considering going back myself, but my time here is ending quickly! The weather put me in a
really delightful mood and I seemed to appreciate learning about the
history and meaning of artifacts more than usual. Our tour guide (name of which I can't remember- I'll use Alice) made a good
point... "Why should we learn about the history of architecture? It doesn’t mean anything to us
directly, but it did once mean a lot to other people, and all of it can
be put together to create a better understanding of where we are today."
Even if our lives could go on just as easily without having known about
some of these things, knowledge should never be turned away as useless. Until we can predict the future, we will never know exactly what might be useful to know later in our lives! 
Roman baths found all the way up in Metz, for example, emphasizes just how extensive the empire was. If historians could not grasp that the Roman Empire was so huge, it would not play as such a significant example of how powerful empires fall because they become spread to thin and begin lack strong internal support. 
Urns and preserving remains has been in human culture since we had any sense of belief in religion and afterlives. Keeping memories of the past with tangible objects is a unique psychological feature of the human species. We do it even for the smallest things. Pictures for example. 
Once again art on wood does not withstand the wears of time as well. But this room demonstrated mythological creatures, and the imagination that animals with the head of one thing, and the tali of another.Perhaps it was a form of ridicule, or simple creativity. 
This door is bent. The story behind it: Germans took over the Maginot
line and used to to store and transport their own war technology. The
door frame was removed to allow for a wider doorway, but at one point an
explosion went off causing this safety door to slam shut as it had been
designed to do in order to protect the soldiers in their living
quarters. Without a proper door frame however, this thick iron door
caved slightly, but still served its purpose receiving little more than a
dent. Richard on the other hand suffered slightly more from the shock. I
kid :) 
Though many years have passed
since the camp has been used, I expected there to be a more immediate sensation of somberness, rather then a feeling of awe. I can't imagine being so confined
somewhere so open and free. 
The Bunker Cell Quarters. A bunker accompanied all deportation camps. This one comprised of 20 cells and 8 solitary confinement cells. The deported crowded into these cells received the harshest punishments for futile reasons. First Degree: 3 days wood bunk; bread and water. Second Degree: up to 42 days; wood bunk bread and water. Third Degree: until execution bread and water. Rights to sit or lie down are revoked the last 3 days before they are executed. The 8 solitary confinement cells were never heated, and those imprisoned were forced to remain curled up- an action that would often result in their death. 
Operation, experimentation, and autopsy rooms. The experiments were performed on a number of deportees leading to their death. An autopsy is performed on the dissection table, then cremated in the ovens in the next rooms over.
Funeral Urn Room; the urns were designed to contained the ashes of executed German convicts, bought for 60 to 100 Reichmarks by their families in order retrieve their relative, but they were never even sure if they were the right ashes. This urn for example contains ashes from a hair cut. Hair was also sent to Germany felt hat factories. Discrepancies noted. 
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