Getting to the World War 1 Battle Fields

TGV train in Paris
The last few posts were on my experiences on the battlefields of the Somme, and I got a bit carried away with the descriptions of the battles. This is, after all a travel blog and not a history blog, so I need to give you some information on getting to the battlefields.

I was attending the World Veterinary Poultry Association congress which was held in Nantes in France in 2013. There was a group of students who were attending the congress with me as well and we first flew to Paris on my favourite airline (Emirates). This trip was my first upgrade on Emirates on the Dubai to Paris leg of the flight. This was also my first time flying on the A380 and to get an upgrade to the second floor was amazing. I was particularly tickled with the bar at the back of the plane.
Upstairs in the A380
Bar area on the flight

Anyway, I degrees again. So after attending the WVPA congress in Nantes, we all took the TGV back to Paris. The students were all doing their own thing in Paris for a few more days before getting the flight home. I took another TGV from Paris to Arras. For those of you who do not know what the TGV is, this is France's high speed rail service. I have travelled on the TGV a few times and it is quite an experience. The train travels at around 300 km/hour. This pretty much means that you can easily get to any part of France which is on a TVG line in under 3 hours.

Paris Metro
I was particularly interested to go to Arras, as I believe this was were my grandfather was during his time in the First World War.  You can find prices and book your ticket on www.raileurope.co.za. It is a 55 mins train ride and will cost about R500.00 at today's exchange rate. The TGV for Arras departs From Paris Nord. There are 4 main train stations in Paris, so make sure that you know which station you need to be at to get your TGV. The Train to Arras departs at Gare du Nord. The other main stations are Gare Saint-Lazare, Gare Montparnasse, Gare d'Austerlitz and Gare de Lyon. There is also an excellent Metro in Paris. Much better than the London underground. You need to look at the end station on each line and get the correct direction. You should also ask for a "carnet" - this is a pack of 10 single use tickets. Much cheaper then buying single tickets. You can also buy Metro passes.
Holiday Inn Express Arras

In Arras, I stayed at the Holiday Inn which was right at the train station. I nice good hotel which was really convenient. I did not have much time in Arras as my main objective was to visit the battlefields. However, I did walk around a bit and there is a beautiful square which interesting old building. Most are now restaurants. This is pretty much off the main tourist route, so a did of French will be quite helpful. It was really interesting to think that my grandfather probably walked around the same square in 1917, although it would have looked quite different!
Square in Arras in 1917 - obviously not my photo

Arras Square in 2013

I arranged my tour with  Bob Findley (motcom@aol.com or http://www.visitflanders.com/en/things-to-do/events/tours/ww1-battlefields-alive.jsp) This is a different web address to what I have. www.ww1-battlefields-alive.com, but this link appears not be working. He was really great. Has a fantastic knowledge of the battlefields.
Part of the Vimy Ridge memorial - not my photo. Still need to go there.

If I ever go again - and I would really like to go again, I think it would be interesting to do your own thing in the area. Rent a car and explore. What I did notice when I was there was that the main sites are very well sign-posted. A basic understanding of the war and the battle would be needed, but there is a lot of information available at the different sites. There are also some other interesting battlefields in the area (or quite close by) Which I would like to visit. These include the memorial to the Canadians at Vimy Ridge (which is close to Arras) and Flanders fields in Belgium and the memorial at Passchendaele close to Ypres. This was a battlefield in the 3rd battle of Ypres. There are a number of small villages (many of which were totally destroyed during the war) when one could stay in the area. I guess at least some basic French would be needed. As I do have some very basic French, I guess that I would be OK. A trip to plan!
Vimy Ridge memorial - for next trip!



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