I am a big history buff and grew up an avid reader of both World War books and novels. I was…read moreblessed to be working in Europe, France specifically and had this gracious opportunity to visit this military cemetery 168 miles east of Paris and just west of Luxembourg. There are 3050 military cemeteries in France, each with a story. This particular one is just north of the city of Verdun and has separate areas for the different countries that were engaged in the Great War 110 years ago. Wow I get goose bumps as I mention that, over 100 years ago. It is serene. It is immaculate. The staff here is very polite and helpful. There is an area where one can read about that period. There is train service from Paris to Verdun. It is a 95 minute ride. Tickets are $45 ( or approximately 40 Euros) per Senior each way. We drove, took our time on the A4 and stopped at Reims and some other cities on the way. Loved it. I would recommend renting a vehicle and experiencing this.

I was traveling with my two college-aged children, and we had just visited the Memorial Museum and…read morewere heading to Fort Douaumont when we see a large field of crosses. There were other cars that had pulled over on the side of the road, so we did too. I knew from my trip research that we were at L'Ossuaire, and I knew there was a fee to enter, but I wasn't sure about the grounds. As it turns out, you can tour the grounds for free, it is just a fee to go inside the building. The grounds were beautiful and well-kept, it was very moving to walk along the gravesites. I'm glad we took a few minutes to stop and visit.