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Those were the days ....
bgadenmp
#1 Posted : Wednesday, January 7, 2004 11:13:07 AM
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Dave


Thanks so much for the wonderful article about some of your Bgaden stay.  I to was a MP in Bgaden from Nov 62 until August 63 with the 508th out of Munich and like you enjoyed every minute of it.  I was glad to hear you speak of Kurt Engler, he was also our deck interputer when I was there along with Pete Brandenburg but he might have retired before you got there.  I lived at Strub and did the same things you did as a MP on duty the as I called them money runs to the hotels the Bellevue, Hof  and the Walker.  There was a group of dancers called the Delray's in town most of the time while I was there and I got engaged to one of them by the name of Valerie Roberts but once again they were probably gone by your time.  Our Sgt was Bailey and he had a girl off post so we didn't see much of him unless we had a incident and unlike you we had some incidents, one I remember of my own was to apprehend the oldest deserter from WWII at the Salzburg check point one winter night, quite a story then we had some dependant General's kids beating up and robbing widows  at the local cemetery alot of bar fights with soldiers from other outfits on R & R.  The MP station was like you said a toll booth with the huge radio on the back wall, was it still there, we would get calls all night long from around Europe for weather reports in the ski area.  Thanks for the memories Dave and i would love to chat with you more on the web.


My email is wayne6637@msn.com


Thanks again and i hope you are well


Wayne Fitzpatrick 


 


 


 

lodge258
#2 Posted : Friday, February 13, 2004 9:11:54 AM
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Wayne,


Can do  on the  chat  thing and  exchange  memories and  other  details.  Who  knows  where  all this will  lead,  and  let's  hope  that  others  join in  as  well.  But I hvae a  retaining  wall to  build  right  now.  Work  first,  and then play.   I  will  try  and  give  you  a more detailed layout of  the  mp  station later.


My  best


Dave

lodge258
#3 Posted : Sunday, March 13, 2005 4:39:01 PM
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As I   travel down  memory  lane  and allow  my  mind to  wander  through  the  past  events,  what strikes  me  as   probably  the  most  inspiring and  lasting impression of  my stay   at  Berchtesgaden , would be  the  people  that  I   made contact with  from  January  ’66-Early  April ’67.  As I   ponder  those  days  gone  by,  I   look into  my  reflection  and  I  see  nothing  but  greatness within all  that  I  encountered.  From  the  medics, the  ski patrol,  life guards,  Chaplin’s, all military staff,  those  wonderful and colorful ski bums, the  MPs ( I was  one of them), German employees and  last  but  not  least  the inhabitants  of  Berchtesdagen itself.  Those  were the  lasting  impressions and  treasured  memories.


 


Where  does one  start to  bring  the  ship  back  on course.   In writing   of  that  time  in  my  life  from   66-67, my  mind is  like a down  hill racer.  Grab  a  beer, don  your   bundhosen, crease  the  bird shit  hat,  unlace   the  hiking  boots and   hopefully  this  will  entice and  warm your  memories  as  well.


 


              “..As  you stand  in  a  stream of  water …  it  will move  on….”---Indian  prayer


 


At this  point,  a  few things  that  I  think  might  be missing  from all the written  postings, timeline  contributions etc etc are  images  and reflections  that   were/are important to me.   If  I  should be  wrong or  missed some  of  the  key elements,   I  must  have been  drunk. I  am  adding  information as I  recall it   And  for  those    that   were there during my time, I  hope  you readers  may   fill in  some of  the  missing  pieces.


 


Yes,  I saw and   appreciated  the tailor that  worked  in the basement  of  Strub Kaserne.  What  a   kind    person.  And he  appreciated the  Commissary coffee I  gave  him  from time to time.   The  German workers who   had  meals in the  Kantine  over the  EM Club at   Strub as well.   The  German  Dr. at the clinic  with  the  scars  on  his face.   He  removed a wart from  my  arm  and   a  cyst from  my  ear.  I think   he   came in  2nd  place on the  Saber  dance.  Herr Michael Mueller, who  was  the  putzfrau at  the  Hdqtrs and  MP  station.  What a  gentlemen.  He  was  a  guard  at some  location during  the  war as some location  near   the  ‘Gaden.   I  visited  him and  his family, after  his retirement,  near  Schaffhausen Falls in  Sept ’66 on a  swing by on a  return leave trip  from  France.  He lived  in a  military   building  between  the Berchtesgadner Hof and  the  theater.  He told  me  that  right after  the  war  ended,  that   it  was sort of  like  starving time for  him and  his  wife.   So  he donned his  Bavarian outfit and  posed  for  photos and  the  $$$$$ poured in  from occupying  troops of  Berchtesgaden.   He   stated that is  how   he  survived.  One other person of  special note  was  our  interpreter at the  MP  station, Kurt Engler.   When I returned to  B’Gaden in  July   ’99 with  my  soon to  be  wife,  I  looked  him  up and  had quite a  visit.  His take  in particular, on the absence of the American forces  and  how  it  had  impacted the   area.   And   now  the  influx of as he  put  it,  so  many  Eastern European   tourists.  Not  that  he was  disgruntled,  but  the   quality and absence  of   manners and  their attitude.  He and  his  wife own a dress shop.  Now  located  near  the four seasons  restaurant.  I  inquired where I could buy some  bundhosen.  He  laughed and  said  that  they were  no  longer  in style or  available.   I  was   so  disappointed,  but  in  some way  he   had a few  remaining in  stock.  And  they  fit!!!!   My  last  pair   had  to be  pitched   I think  about   1975.  we managed to  do a  lot of catching  up and rehashing  the old days,  but  as  he said….To  much  change.  Not enough  thought by  the local planners.    As  we  sat  at a  gasthaus sidewalk and  I   looked  out into  the   distance, I could  hear  the  voices and the nameless faces of  those  that   I  had lifted  so  many   .5ml of  beer with.  Beer (bier)   a  four  letter word.  That  in itself  brought  back a thought  of  my return  to the states in  June   ’67.   I  had  my  first   beer with  my  dad, while  family   finalized my  return   an  hour or so  later.   I  damn  near choked on that  whatever it was I was drinking.   I have since  brewed my own German style from which  I take  up  every  now  and  then.   Never could drink   state  beer  since Germany.  And  have since toned  down  that consumption as  well.  Wondering  if it  was  the  17  liters  at the  Octboerfest in  ’66.   hummmmmmmm. 


 


At the sidewalk  I  looked to the  Watzmann,  the  Untersburg and finally  to  the  Eagles nest.   And  I  remember  thinking back to  the  time  in May  of  1945, when my Uncle,  a  member  of the  101st made   that  final  trek   up  to  Obersalzburg and  the  Nest in the  sky.  To this day  he will  not  talk about  any  of  his  WWII experiences,  other  than  one  time I did  get  him   going a bit.  And that  was  about  B’Gaden.  He  made the  jump  on June   6 and survived all   the campaigns without a scratch ----- One of  the  lucky  ones ---Until  he   was  riding  one  of  Goering’s horses and  got clipped by a  deuce and  ½ near  the  bahnhof I believe.  Took  nearly a    year  of recuperation in a  Belgian hospital  before he  was  able to go  home.  Still crippled  to this  day.


 


As I  go about this narrative, I  am reminded  that  somewhere  in this  house,  I  have a  list of  people in a  notebook  with  names  and  not  current  addresses.  Will  list them  later and  who knows  what  will  pop  out of  the  Lamp  if  rubbed   just  the right  way.


 


When I  first  arrived for  duty as an  MP,  I had a rude  awakening, as

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