The Second World War showed the true terrors of war and advanced technology and the scars it would bear across the surface of a post-war world. Heroes and villains have fought and died for their country and are commemorated in these five locations in America and Europe.
America jumped into World War II when Japan first attacked the navy troops situated in Pearl Harbor. The surprise attack had devastated thousands of lives. But America forced Japan to surrender at the end of its blade on the historic USS Missouri in 1945 -- which is still anchored in the USS Arizona Memorial in Hawaii.
The Netherlands rarely made a page of history in World War II, but the Germans held the Arnhem Bridge in the Netherlands, which still exists today, until it needed to be destroyed for the Allies to advance. What exists today is only a replica of the bridge built in 1949. According to Escape Here, the bridge is now renamed "The John Frostburg" to honor the eponymous British Commander who he and his men valiantly defended the bridge against German fire.
America's entire story of the Omaha Beach takeover -- the amphibian assault featured in "Saving Private Ryan" -- is told in the National D-Day Museum in New Orleans. According to USA Today, about 125 troop boats carried soldiers to the battle and Historian Stephen Ambrose during his time dedicated his life to make the most comprehensive museum that tells the detailed story of D-Day possible.
When in Poland, take the time to look at the factory where Nazi Party member Oskar Schindler -- the only one with a heart -- ran an enamel factory in Krakow, Poland where he used his influence to employ and protect Jews from persecution during his time. His administration building is now the Krakow Museum of Contemporary Art where his story and the lives of all he has rescued -- is told.
Going on the rarely visited sites of World War II, the ruins of Oradour-Sur-Glane in France tells the grim story of how SS officers slaughtered the entire hundreds of villagers including defenseless men, women and children. The motive was reprisal -- which was legal in the Geneva Convention of 1949 -- because of the villagers' involvement with the French Resistance group.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
