The Giant Duck (Crow?) of Chehalis, Washington (Abandoned Films 14)

They grow them big in Washington State. Sadly, I think this big fellow does not host visitors any more nor quack or caw. 

The Yard Birds Swap Meet was a staple of the Centralia-Chehalis community for decades. According to the Yard Birds web page, which, as of May 2024, was still online,

Welcome to the �most unique� Yard Birds Mall! Seven acres of shopping under one giant roof! Yard Birds has a rich history of being a one stop shopping destination, and this reputation holds true today. With over 60 independent merchants on both floors selling everything from antiques, toys, clothes, video games, music, furniture, jewelry, steampunk accessories, as well as services such as hair styling, auto repair, custom stone countertops, and guitar lessons. We�re more than a Mall, we�re a family of merchants. Whatever you�re looking for, chances are you�ll find it at Yard Birds!

The last tenants and businesses were evicted from Yard Birds mall in November of 2022. Since then, it is unclear what the owners of the property have been doing or renovating.

Later, I will post some black and white pictures from Chehalis. 

I took these photographs on my Hasselblad 501CM camera with the 50mm ƒ/4 Distagon lens using long-expired Fujicolor NPS160 film. It had been in my freezer for over 20 years, but certainly was not fresh. I gave it extra exposure and used EI=80. A polarizing filter emphasized the blue of the brilliant clear sky. 

 

On the Boat to Dover - from the Archives, 1979

On 20-21 March of 1969, I completed my train trip across Europe, taking the sleeper from Munich to London. The train left at dusk, and I slept through Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Köln, and other German cities, awakening in Belgium. My companion in the compartment was an American anthropologist en route to USA. He had hominid teeth in a briefcase that was hand-cuffed to his wrist. I can't recall if he slept with his teeth, but he took them to Abendessen und Frühstück. In Ostend, we boarded a ferry boat for a comfortable and remarkably warm crossing of the English Channel to Dover.

White Cliffs of Dover (Tri-X film, Nikkormat FTn camera, 105mm ƒ/2.5 Nikkor lens, orange filter)

The winter light was spectacular, and I recall the White Cliffs of Dover glowing in the morning sun. The cliffs are composed of Late Cretaceous chalk streaked with lenses of flint. I used an orange filter to enhance the clouds and glowing cliffs. 

Approaching Dover

The English Channel

Today, most travelers take the Channel Tunnel (Chunnel) with no need to change trains. It may be direct, quick, and efficient, but you lose there romance of the sea crossing.  

We finished our journey with the train into London St. Pancras station. I checked into a cheap hotel (note the repeated theme of cheap) and spent two days exploring London. In James Park, a flying duck deposited a dump on my wool coat. I bought a couple of souvenirs at Selfridges. 

When it was time to leave, I bought a TWA ticket to Boston for $63. That was the period when TWA and Pan Am were matching (trying to destroy) Sir Freddie Laker's no frills Laker Airways with cheap cross-Atlantic flights. In 1982, Laker went into bankruptcy, and Pan Am and TWA promptly raised their ticket prices. 

To buy the cheap TWA ticket, you had to go to the downtown ticket office and check if one of the bargain seats was available. It was mid-week in winter, so I ended up with three seats to myself. It was modestly civilized to fly in that era, although people smoked onboard. Thus ended my seven months in Europe. 

Thank you, Dear Readers, for riding along.

Where Evil Reigned: the Bürgerbräukeller and Dachau (Munich) - from the Archives 1979

The Bürgerbräukeller

Bürgerbräukeller (no longer extant)

In 1923, Adolf Hitler and his closest followers and cronies gathered in the Bürgerbräukeller, a huge beer hall in the Haidhausen district of Munich. It had been one of the main gathering places of the Nazi Party in the early 1920s. On 8-9 November of 1923, he and his closest followers marched to the Bürgerbräukeller and declared a putsch, or a coup d'état, to overthrow the Bavarian government. The march to the beer hall was inspired by Mussolini's March to Rome. The police were ready and crushed the putsch, resulting in 19 deaths among the police and putschists. Adolf Hitler was arrested two days later and tried for treason. 

Hitler brilliantly used the trial as a propaganda mouthpiece rather than a defense of his actions. He claimed he was being persecuted, that the judges were corrupt, and that he was a German patriot. The trial thrust this minor figure and his evil Nazi party into the country's consciousness. The rest is gruesome history. Compare with a certain trial that recently ended in Manhattan for another demagog, who claims he is being politically persecuted.

Hitler was convicted to five years in the Landsberg prison, of which he served five months. There, he wrote his infamous political autobiography, Mein Kampf (“My Struggle”), which later became obligatory reading for Germans. Compare and contrast with "Agenda 47" and the Heritage Foundation's "Project 2025," both radical blueprints to reshape American government and society. They clearly outline how they plan to impose authoritative government and eliminate many of the checks and balances of our current political system.. 

My friends took me to the  Bürgerbräukeller on Saturday evening, a good way to get a taste of authentic Bavarian beer hall culture. The crowd was mellow, and the obligatory stein of beer was 1-litre. After two of them, I was buzzy. The pretzels and sausages were similarly ponderous. The cig smoke rose to the ceiling, adding to the fog of stale air and aroma of spilled beer. The entertainment early in the evening was very Bavarian. Strong gents tried to pull each other over using rings attached to one finger. They also carried big rocks around the stage using a rope in their teeth. Finally, pretty Bavarian ladies sang ballads and high-stepped.  

The Bürgerbräukeller no longer exists. It was demolished in 1979 as part of a redevelopment program in Munich. I am glad I had the opportunity to see the infamous beer hall.

Dachau

The National Socialist (Nazi) government established the Dachau concentration camp in March 1933 at an old munitions plant in the town of Dachau, about 10 miles northwest of Munich. The camp remained in operation during the entire time of the Nazi government. American troops finally liberated the camp on April 29, 1945. 

 "Arbeit macht frei" ("work sets you free") gate

This infamous gate was stolen in 2014 and recovered near Bergen, Norway, in 2016. The mysterious thieves were never found. This slogan is one of the more cynical and cruel examples of Nazi propaganda. Most prisoners found freedom in death.

Dachau was ominous and horrifying, especially on a gloomy March day. I had never been to a site like this before. How could this happen? A few months before, I read William Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, possibly the definitive record of the 20th century's darkest years. But this monumental record of the dark years does not give answers.

Long-term readers may remember I visited Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland. Please click the link to see these pictures. 

This ended my short visit to Munich. Next: the train ride to London. 

Winter Stopover in Munich, Germany - from the Archives 1979

En route to the UK and my eventual flight back to USA, my next stop after Salzburg was Munich, Germany. I had visited Munich many times when I was a child, but do not remember much from these earlier trips. A childhood friend lived in Munich, but his apartment was too cramped to accommodate me, so I booked a modest (= cheap) room in a pension. Winter travel in Europe was very convenient in this way in the old days. 

The Munich Haupbanhof is a bustling transportation center with trains coming and going all day and through much of the night. You can catch a train to almost any city in even the furthest corner of Europe, although connections into the Balkans can be a bit sketchy. The bahnhof is a mixture of add-ons and reconstructions, without a coordinated architectural look. I do not know if the main platforms still look like my 1979 photograph.

If World War II had resulted in a different outcome, we might have seen a totally different station and rail network. Adolf Hitler envisioned an incredibly ambitious Breitspurbahn (broad-gauge railway) network using 3,000 mm (9 ft 10⅛ in) track. The system would connect the far reaches of the Reich, with lines leading to India (!), Baku (= oil), and even to Fairbanks. The railroad stations for these new super trains would be enormous ornate domed buildings, with gigantism being the overall motif, similar to the plans to rebuild Berlin. The double decker rail cars would be equipped with lounges, a cinema, and luxury restaurants (similar to ocean liners). Railroad engineers and economists knew the plan was utterly hopeless, but nevertheless, some 200 engineers and officials worked on plans during the war. They were the lucky ones, because this job kept them out of the Eastern Front. 

View from the Rathaus of the Frauenkirche (Nikkor 28mm ƒ/3.5 lens with orange filter)

Marienplatz

Whenever I visit an unfamiliar city, I try to find a high tower or hill from which to see the setting. Marienplatz is the historic center of Munich, a gathering place since Henry the Lion founded the city in 1158. I love visiting cities where history engulfs you. Most tourists come to Marienplatz when they first arrive.

Marienplatz

Chilling out at the Rathaus

A nice day in the sun. As I recall, old ladies in Germany always wore thick heavy coats, even on comfortable days with sun.

Unhappy Greeks wondering what happened to their bodies

Leo von Klenze (1784–1864), architect to the court of Ludwig I, built the Munich Glyptothek. Unhappy Greek, Roman and Etruscan heads and bodies hang around. Will these guys will ever return to their original homes? Are their bodies still back home?

Chinesischer Turm at the Englischer Garten. 1-litre beer steins?

Angel of Peace (Friedensengel)

One could spend weeks in Munich taking in the art, architecture, and culture. Well, that applies to most of Europe. Definitely go there - watch, absorb, eat, enjoy, live life.

To be continued next week.