65th Anniversary of Dutch Liberation


May 3-8th 2010
Normandy Veterans Association
Wiltshire Branch

Dover, Dunkirk, Arnhem-Velp, Holten Canadian Cemetery, British Cemetery Oosterbreek, John Frost BridgeArnhem, Jonkerbos, sutphen, Nijmegen, Military Tattoo Voorthuizen, Dunkirk, Dover
Story by Helen Playford , in the company of Normandy Veteran Bill Price, L d’Hon

Monday morning Bank holiday 3rd of May, and we head off to Dover. Met the coach of Wiltshire Veterans with Richard and Jenny as the group co-ordinators for a group of nineteen in a Hatts Travel Coach. Richard (who is a Police Safety Co-Ordinator) is tall and jovial, and Jenny, his wife, is very considerate and helpful. Our hotel in Holland is the Gold Tulip in Arhem-Velp. It is a modern and located on a edge of a lake. Outside our window variety of geese and chicks, graze on the grass, and in the evening the road lights twinkled on the other side of the poplar tree lined lake. In the evening, local fishing enthusiasts camp on the damp grass for a evening of fishing, while we sip our wine and discuss the cold weather.

Holland commemorates the first day of their Liberation.

Tuesday 4th of May and drive through a forest to arrive at lines of coaches arriving at the Canadian Cemetery in Holten. The air is chilly, but the atmosphere is a buzz with bag pipes, and uniforms of various colours. After many speeches and music, and being showered by poppies from red helicopters, we leave for the British Cemetery in Oosterbeek. A small informal service is conducted by Richard, and attended by the veterans, giving thanks and appreciation to the ones who did not return.

Holland celebrates the second day of their Liberation.

Wednesday 5th of May, a visit to the Airbourne Museum ‘Hatenstein’ http://www.aibornemuseum.nl/ , in Arnhem followed by a air display at the the John Frost Bridge in Arnhem. The Museum was a mansion that acted as headquarters/hospital for the co-ordination of the allied airbourne troops. Photo: Bill with the two Dutch brothers Harm and Hans Kuijper who co-ordinated the British Normandy Veterans in Holland.

Thursday 6th May and a stroll through the medival town Zutphen prior to a march and thanksgiving service and medal presentation at Walburgiskirk.


We are greeted by the Dutch brothers Harm and Hans Kuiper http://www.nvafriends.nl/ and Peter Hodge the principal organisers. The town is bursting with Normandy Veterans around the cathedral, and miliary vehicles parked near the entrance. The locals are enjoying a sunny and pleasant market day lining the narrows streets. Riding their bicycles or sipping coffee while doing their morning market shopping. The haunting music of Canadian bagpipes and drumming soon fill the air.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MaIe9O2n-EAt 2pm Veterans march around the side of the cathedral. After the service over 400 Normandy Veterans received a medal in appreciation from the town of Zutphen. A drive past of military vehicles with veteran passengers waved by the locals concludes the afternoon activity.

Friday 7th May and a chilly misty morning in Nijmegen, a city in the east of the Netherlands near the German border. It is considered to be the oldest city in the Netherlands and celebrated its 2000th year of existence in 2005. As the weather was wet, we decided to have morning coffee at the Airbourne Museum coffee shop.
In the afternoon we travelled to see the Voorthuiszen Military Tattoo. It was very colourful with military drumming, bag pipes and lots of men and women in uniform doing performance marches while playing musical instraments. Bands had travelled from Trinidad, France, England, Scotland and Wales. As the weather looked constantly threatening, the numbers in the audience were reduced from the expected numbers.

The evening meal, was delicious as was all the meals, and presentation speeches giving thanks were made. A local Dutch diner was so moved to express his appreciation to all the veterans, he invited all the Veterans at the hotel to a drink with his compliments.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5X7Ok24ATY

Marriage Celebration in May 2010

Wedding in May

May is a beautiful time of year in England and what better than to celebrate a wedding in the blossom filled countryside of Kent. From Hampshire we travelled 3 hours to Kent following the winding country roads bursting with leaf buds from their winter shut down. Villages and country lanes celebrated Spring and welcomed us with tree blossoms, daffs, tulips, magnolias, and the soon to be seen blue bells nodding in the road edges. The trees are replacing their stark twiggy look by delicate shades of green and lime twinkling in the sun.

We were on our way to the Priory Inn in Larkfield which itself has a historic appearance, with a conservatory for cheerful breakfasts overlooking the gardens.

The wedding celebrations were for Stuart and Kelly King who recently were married and decided to do ‘something different’ and married in Las Vegas USA, 'The White Wedding Chapel' visiting the land of casinos and grand hotels.
http://www.alittlewhitechapel.com/
Joined by family they had a wonderful sunlit week and the photos were part of a slide show at the reception area at Bradbourne Houswhich is close to their planned future home.
  Stuart manages his own fashion publication http://www.instore-london.com/ which gives up to the minute shopping guides to the fashionists in London. Kelly is a Design Tech teacher for young designers.

Stuarts’s brother Graham is a world musical production manager (previously a dancer) for various stage productions, and at the moment is working on ‘Singing in the Rain’ with Hollywood star Debbie Reynolds. They are related to Bill through his sister Alice who lives in Kent.

The walled orchard garden was in full bloom, and was a remarkable sight, with avenues of trees in full bloom, almost to good to be believed as ‘natures gifts’, I was overwhelmed.

The guests arrived at 7.30pm and after drinks and wonderful eats danced the night away to Disco music until about 2pm. Bill and myself arrived with his sister Grace, her son John with about 150 guests, family and friends to celebrate.

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Bradbourne House http://www.bradbournehousekent.co.uk/ is a beautiful grade one listed building set in 20 acres of parkland, close to the village of East Malling in Kent. The house was originally built in Tudor times but was extended and altered in the early 18th century . The house was owned by the Twisden family until 1937 and portraits of the family remain in the house, charting the chequered 400 year old history of this fascinating family. Visitors to the walled orchard garden can see the garden's 47 varieties of apple, 28 varieties of pear and individuals of medlar, nectarine, peach and fig trees. in the garden - which was originally planted in 1945 and inspired by the fruit plantings in Louis XIV kitchen garden at Versailles.

Reflections on Life
Lives are like delicate pencils If you push them too hard they're gonna break
And people are like paper dolls Paper dolls and people, they're a similar shape
Love is like a roll of tape It's real good for making two things one
But just like that roll of tape Love sometimes breaks off before you were done
Another way that love is similar to tape
Is sometimes it's hard to see the end
You search on the roll........