PANGAEA'S VISIT TO YPRES

Why limit yourself to the well-known places to visit? One less popular, but not less attractive, destination is Ypres (Ieper). Ypres is not as widely recognized as Ghent or Bruges, nor Brussels or Antwerp. However, it is one of the Belgian cities that will impress any visitor -conjuring a variety of feelings in his soul and leaving lasting impressions in his mind. For these reasons Pangaea organizes a yearly trip to Ypres that remains popular among students.

Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in West Flanders. It is an ancient town, famous for its cloth industry. It gained notoriety during World War I due to its strategic location and the use of chlorine gas, also called Yperite.

The trip organized by Pangaea took one day and started by visiting the In Flanders Fields Museum. The IFFM presents itself as “a war museum with a message of peace. It helps us remember the past”. It could be added: Remember and relive, as the museum presents sound effects and audiovisual evocations, a unique artistic vision on the phenomenon of war. Personal booths allow each visitor to choose one individual and follow his history from the start of the war until the end of his life. In 2000 the museum was awarded the prestigious Council of Europe Award for its innovative and human-based approach to the horrors of war. It is also called the inside-outside museum, as it is designed to establish connections between sections of the museum and points of interest in the Ypres Salient.

The trip also visits a number of cemeteries and memorials of the Ieper Salient, including the Essex Farm cemetery, the Langemark cemetery and the Tyne Cot cemetery. They all are similar in their function, but different in design and the nationality of soldiers who are buried there. There are soldiers from Great Britain, France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany,... Thousands and thousands of young men, many of them as young as most of us are now, who gave their life for peace.

There are several terms worth knowing in regards to Ypres:

• In Flanders Fields: A poem written by a Canadian army physician and poet. It became one of the most popular poems of the World War I and eternalized the tragic beauty of poppies blowing in the fields of battle.
• The Ieper Salient: An arc of defensive lines, with Ypres at its heart, which was formed in 1914 after the First Battle of Ypres between the German forces and the Allies.
• Tyne Cot Cemetery: The largest Commonwealth cemetery in the world. Every year over 180.000 visitors from all over the world come to this cemetery

This visit, as well as all visits organized by Pangea was arranged perfectly and for a more than reasonable price. We would advice you to follow the announcements on other future events and trips organized by Pangea. |