To wolfhammer1,
It is I that would like to thank you for reading and replying to this thread. In previous threads, I had mentioned that I played jazz professionally, due to my unique work, I in turn got to travel the world over. I was a young 18 year old kid at that time.
I would like to share this story from my personal past, I had just performed at a jazz festival. As the case in hand, due to my curiosity, I used my time to walk around the city that we performed at just to get to know the people and their lifestyle.
One memory that I’ve kept and never ever shared this experience with was a odd architectural modern bridge. It looked like Spider-Man had built this wild looking bridge. Adjacent to the Spider-Man bridge was a old, ugly looking, gray colored bridge that was still in use. As I walked to the end of the Spider-Man bridge, I noticed an older gentleman that stood in front of the old bridge and cried. I immediately wanted to know if he was ok? Did he need my help? So I asked him in Dutch if I can be of service to him.
Out of the blue without missing a beat, he said that he was part of a Dutch resistance group during WWII. 50 years ago that day he was given the orders at which were to keep the SS troops from crossing over the bridge. He and approximately 50 men who were outgunned and out maned against the superior well trained and battle hardened German forces. In the end only 4 men survived. 2 men had just recently passed away while the 3rd. man had died during the final days of WWII.
There were hundreds of indentations that I immediately recognized that it was bullets that created these holes in the bridge. I finally realized his sacrifice during that period. We sat on a bench and discussed my life as well as his life. We then was about to part our ways when he mentioned that the operation was doomed from the beginning. I asked what was the operation called? The older man replied; “Operation Market Garden”. Wow, I remember watching this 3 hour movie called “A Bridge Too Far” when I was 12 years old, now here I am not only standing on a bridge but speaking to a WWII veteran who’s job was a tedious and intricate part of “Operation Market Garden”!
Upon returning to Amsterdam I went straight away to none other than the “Ann Frank House”. I could not believe that I was standing and living in a home that was a part of this operation. I had since then, come to respect the European theater during WWII. Being born in Honolulu, Hawaii, I was ignorant at the fact that on the other side of the world, the Germans were fighting against American and allied forces.
During my 5 years as a resident of the Netherlands, I walked into a very dangerous situation. Upon my arrival, I was told not to drink milk or any other dairy products and to refrain from consuming green leaf vegetables. This was due to the fact that the Nuclear Power Plant in Russia had just exploded in the city of Priyat, in Chernobyl. I also took part and played a jazz concert in Paris, France as it was the 200th anniversary of “Bastille Day”. My concerts in England, Scotland, and Ireland was cut short due to the up rising of the IRA and the terrorists attack of a Pan-Am flight of a 747 in Lockerbie, Scotland. For me, the most controversial and political issue was to play a concert in celebration of the taking down of the “Berlin Wall”!
By the way, Mrs. Toshi has won a bid on eBay of a original Monogram B-17G Visible Flying Fortress. I think I will purchase interior and exterior PE and whatever resin items that are available for the 1:48 Flyning Fortress. Once again, thank you for the read and reply.
Toshi