General Discussions
This is the place to discuss general issues related to the U-boat war or the war at sea in WWII.
RE: U-boat trip
Posted by:
Craig McLean
()
Date: November 30, 2000 03:49AM
<HTML>Hi, Fin! I\'m glad to be back with all my sea mates here at the forum! What a perflectly splendid trip I had! I told many of the new German friends I made that it was my \"U-boat Besuch\" (U-boat Visit)...as most everything I did was centered around the Archiv and U-boats. (And I even used my very poor German during perhaps 80% of my trip! Some even said my admitted weak German was \"trotzdem sehr gut\"!) But U-boat research and U-boat sight-seeing, etc., was the plan....
At the Archiv, I had the opportunity of meeting for the first time Horst Bredow and his wife Annemarie, Horst Schwenk (the very important right-hand man at the Archiv), Anna (the very nice Spanish woman who looks after the daily upkeep there), Peter Brandt (who comes in from Nord Holz to help with paperwork as often as possible), and I also met Jochen Finke and his son Johannes (who drive in from Weimar to work on the computer---yes, the Archiv has a computer, but the two Horst\'s don\'t use it, and I believe it is not connected to the internet in any account). For forum readers who get the English language copy of Das Archiv, I also met Kevin Matthews, his wife, and two fine children, who came in the day before I left. Kevin is connected with Jak Showell and the British side of the support for the Archiv overall, and is a great chap (and also a smoker---Herr Bredow had continuously reminded me of the down-side of smoking [and he is right, of course]---but I joked on the evening before my return flight, \"Ein Raucher geht...aber noch ein kommt\" [One smoker leaves...but another comes]).
I was awed at the depth of the records compiled at the Archiv in Altenbruch (about a DM 18 ride by taxi from the Cuxhaven train station---I was clueless upon arrival in Cux. how to use the public phones, which seem to all be operated by phone cards these days in Germany, as opposed to simple coins, as was the case when I was last in Germany 17 years ago---although I had my own phone card before I left). KTBs, records compiled by boat number, extensive photo libraries, etc., etc. It is all VERY amazing. How Herr Bredow has had the energy to do what he has done there is simply beyond words! He is a dedicated and tireless man, but has a quick wit and good sense of humor. When the postman came one day and needed his signature for a package, he laughed that his signature couldn\'t be worth so very much. But it is! He is a unique man---and the Archiv would not exist today if it weren\'t for him. And many books and films would not be as authorotative today except for his work.
Being interested in U-boats can have many outlets. Lots of great books out there. Many great documentaries as well. And there are many collectables on the market. But for me, I had to make this trip personally. I was stationed in Germany long before I became particularlly interested in U-boats and the brave men who served aboard them, and so then missed a perfect opportunity to experience much of this first-hand earlier. Now I have done it! But there is still a lot available to make future visits inviting to me also.
Well, I didn\'t plan this long a message, and will be back in a few days with more.
________________
By the way, Fin....my mailing address:
Craig McLean
PO Box 3017
Junction City, KS 66441
USA
________________
Best as always,
Craig
</HTML>
At the Archiv, I had the opportunity of meeting for the first time Horst Bredow and his wife Annemarie, Horst Schwenk (the very important right-hand man at the Archiv), Anna (the very nice Spanish woman who looks after the daily upkeep there), Peter Brandt (who comes in from Nord Holz to help with paperwork as often as possible), and I also met Jochen Finke and his son Johannes (who drive in from Weimar to work on the computer---yes, the Archiv has a computer, but the two Horst\'s don\'t use it, and I believe it is not connected to the internet in any account). For forum readers who get the English language copy of Das Archiv, I also met Kevin Matthews, his wife, and two fine children, who came in the day before I left. Kevin is connected with Jak Showell and the British side of the support for the Archiv overall, and is a great chap (and also a smoker---Herr Bredow had continuously reminded me of the down-side of smoking [and he is right, of course]---but I joked on the evening before my return flight, \"Ein Raucher geht...aber noch ein kommt\" [One smoker leaves...but another comes]).
I was awed at the depth of the records compiled at the Archiv in Altenbruch (about a DM 18 ride by taxi from the Cuxhaven train station---I was clueless upon arrival in Cux. how to use the public phones, which seem to all be operated by phone cards these days in Germany, as opposed to simple coins, as was the case when I was last in Germany 17 years ago---although I had my own phone card before I left). KTBs, records compiled by boat number, extensive photo libraries, etc., etc. It is all VERY amazing. How Herr Bredow has had the energy to do what he has done there is simply beyond words! He is a dedicated and tireless man, but has a quick wit and good sense of humor. When the postman came one day and needed his signature for a package, he laughed that his signature couldn\'t be worth so very much. But it is! He is a unique man---and the Archiv would not exist today if it weren\'t for him. And many books and films would not be as authorotative today except for his work.
Being interested in U-boats can have many outlets. Lots of great books out there. Many great documentaries as well. And there are many collectables on the market. But for me, I had to make this trip personally. I was stationed in Germany long before I became particularlly interested in U-boats and the brave men who served aboard them, and so then missed a perfect opportunity to experience much of this first-hand earlier. Now I have done it! But there is still a lot available to make future visits inviting to me also.
Well, I didn\'t plan this long a message, and will be back in a few days with more.
________________
By the way, Fin....my mailing address:
Craig McLean
PO Box 3017
Junction City, KS 66441
USA
________________
Best as always,
Craig
</HTML>
| Subject | Written By | Posted |
|---|---|---|
U-boat trip
|
Craig McLean | 11/29/2000 07:55PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Rick Mann | 11/29/2000 08:27PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Craig McLean | 11/29/2000 08:44PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Ricky.S | 11/29/2000 08:47PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Craig McLean | 11/30/2000 01:25AM |
|
RE: Welcome back Craig
|
MPC | 11/29/2000 11:03PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Fin Bonset | 11/30/2000 01:23AM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Craig McLean | 11/30/2000 03:49AM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Fin Bonset | 11/30/2000 12:34PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Ricky.S | 12/02/2000 09:22PM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Ying | 11/30/2000 04:39AM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
William Engel | 11/30/2000 10:25AM |
|
RE: U-boat trip
|
Robert Eno | 11/30/2000 04:29PM |