Chateau Thierry - devoted to Rudy Schuver

Took a 45 minute drive to Chateau Thierry today. It's a major site for World War I and has memorials and cemetaries dedicated to the Americans that fought in WWI and helped the French to hold back the Germans. The kids got another history lesson from their tour director, Uncle Rod. 

The Chateau Thierry American Monument (Under construction and with scaffolding on this side.). 

The kids decided it was more fun to play in the recently cut grass than to observe the monument. 

We went for a walk through vineyards and around the monument after a bit. 

Maija's selfie. 

Then the kids spent time trying to smash green horse chestnuts. Kai desperately wanted to play conquers (a game only known to Brits, that Kai wants to complete before he's 11 3/4.)

Then we journeyed over to the American cemetery a few miles away. 

It took a bit of convincing with the kids that this wasn't a fabulous place to run and scream. 

We hiked up behind the cemetery to see the trees riddled with bullets that no lumberyard wants because it ruins their saw blades as well as trenches and WWI leftovers. Unfortunately, we weren't able to actually get to the trenches because it was closed. 

Then we went to find a restaurant because we didn't want to be bothered with making lunches again, only to discover that every restaurant closed at 2pm and we had just missed the lunch hour. So it was off to the market and then picnic lunch on a bench beside the river. 

Followed by feeding swans. 

Then we hiked up the ruins of Thierry castle.  They have converted the castle that was built in the 900's to a park. Here's a view after climbing up some steep stairs. 

And then we drove home (happily on the right side of the road again) singing 99 bottles of beer on the wall. And for the first time in my life, I made it through the entire song.