TBT: Cologne, Germany & Me

First, to properly pronounce the town of Cologne's name, click H E R E.  
It is not how we Westerners would usually do it. My DIL, who is German, says it perfectly.

Second, the Fox News post below prompted a memory of Sis' father-in-law's warning during our visit to Germany approximately 1 year ago. Americans are generally disliked by the people of Cologne  and for good reason.  The town was devastatingly destroyed and flattened, and many thousands were killed or homeless during World War 2 because of the Allies.

The Allies dropped 44,923.2 tons of bombs on the city during World War II, destroying 61% of its built up area. During the Bombing of Cologne in World War II, Cologne endured 262 air raids by the Western Allies, which caused approximately 20,000 civilian casualties and almost completely wiped out the central part of the city. During the night of 31 May 1942, Cologne was the target of "Operation Millennium", the first 1,000 bomber raid by the Royal Air Force in World War II. 1,046 heavy bombers attacked their target with 1,455 tons of explosives, approximately two-thirds of which were incendiary. This raid lasted about 75 minutes, destroyed 600 acres of built-up area (61%), killed 486 civilians and made 59,000 people homeless. - wikipedia

World War II veteran Clarence Smoyer, 95, received the Bronze Star Medal on Wednesday for his heroic actions that helped destroy a German tank and take the crucial city of Cologne.

Smoyer was a tank gunner with the famous "Eagle 7" M26 Pershing tank crew, which blew up a Nazi Panther tank that had killed several American soldiers on March 6, 1945. 

His lieutenant told them, "'Gentlemen, I give you Cologne. Let's knock the hell out of it,' and we obliged," Smoyer told the Defense Department following the event at the National World War II Memorial in Washington.

I am thankful that historic Cologne Cathedral remains standing though it sustained 14 aerial bomb hits during WW2. No, I am not a Catholic; I admire it for its historical significance and as a great example of gothic architecture. 

From the air during the War, it was an easily distinguished landmark. (pc: wikipedia)

And I will restore to you

 the years that the locust hath eaten...

Joel 2

Cologne, Germany

Cologne Cathedral

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The Dominican Republic: Something Strange This Way Comes

ARE VOODOO AND WITCHCRAFT TO BLAME FOR THE UNPRECEDENTED RISE OF MURDER, RAPES AND ASSAULTS HAPPENING NOW IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC? - N T E B

“There is something … something dirty at the bottom of all of this,” Nieves told

 news station WTXF. “She was 51 years of age, relatively healthy, no reason for her 

to go on vacation and just die so suddenly.”

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” 1 John 4:1-3 (KJV)

Something strange is going on in the once-peaceful tropical country of the Dominican Republic. Known for its lush sandy beaches and gorgeous ocean vistas, a sinister spirit has risen up there and bad things are happening. Instagram influencers are being assaulted, Red Sox star David Ortiz was shot and nearly killed, tourists are visiting top-dollar resorts and dying mysterious deaths. What on earth is happening there? For starters, take a look at this image I found when I googled the term ‘voodoo in dominican republic’

"The Dominican Republic is the oldest European settlement which neighbors Haiti. The two were once one called Hispaniola before Haiti declared its independence in 1804. Although the two were once one, they resent one another. Though they went their separate ways, they still share some of the same practices and beliefs. The main religion in the Dominican Republic is Roman Catholicism. The dominant religion in Haiti is Voodoo. A large number of Dominicans practice voodoo, or “Las 21 Divisiones” which is Dominican voodoo. Dominicans do not identify their African roots, so they have created their own voodoo which is accepted of those who practice it and viewed different from Haitians’ voodoo practices." -- Race and Voodoo in the Dominican Republic

In Haiti, some Catholics combine aspects of Catholicism with aspects of Vodou

As you can see, in both Haiti and the in the DR, voodoo is practiced alongside Roman Catholicism as the two have much in common. In the Roman Catholic mass, the eucharist is stored in a container that is ironically called the ‘monstrance’, as in monster. The Catholic priest recites a Latin prayer as an incantation with which he believes will “pull Jesus down’ from Heaven and sacrifice Him all over again. This is where we get the term ‘hocus pocus‘ from. This pagan practice of transubstantiation is right in line with the type of voodoo practiced on Haiti and in the Dominican Republic. In the above photo, you see a Haitian voodoo ceremony being prepared and what do you see right in the middle of everything? A Roman Catholic monstrance. Hmm.

When a spirit rises in a land the way it is right now in the Dominican Republic. you need to stay far away from there. I have a good friend named Craig, and he went to Haiti a few years ago on missionary work, but when he came back his head was spinning from the level of witchcraft and voodoo that went on there. He was in no way prepared for what he saw there, but the Lord kept him safe. People who don’t know the Lord and who aren’t saved are at grave risk in places like the Dominican Republic right now. The people who survived their trips to the DR nearly all have said that there is ‘something strange going on’, they just don’t know what it is. Now you know.

Woman suspects sister’s Dominican Republic death is linked

 to latest series of shocking fatalities

FROM THE NY POST: The family of a Pennsylvania bride-to-be who died under circumstances similar to those of guests at the Grand Bahía Príncipe resort in the Dominican Republic says it’s “impossible” that her sudden death at a hotel owned by the same company isn’t related.

Yvette Monique Sport, of Glenside, Pa., died from a heart attack in June 2018 during a trip with her fiancé to the Bahía Príncipe in Punta Cana, news station WCAU reported.

“THERE IS SOMETHING … SOMETHING DIRTY AT THE BOTTOM OF ALL OF THIS,” NIEVES TOLD NEWS STATION WTXF. “SHE WAS 51 YEARS OF AGE, RELATIVELY HEALTHY, NO REASON FOR HER TO GO ON VACATION AND JUST DIE SO SUDDENLY.”

Sport had a drink at the minibar in her hotel room, took a shower and “wanted to retire for the evening,” according to her sister. When Sport’s fiancé tried to wake her, he realized she was unresponsive, according to WCAU. “He tried to nudge her again and there was no sound and then she was gone,” Nieves said.

Sport’s situation is strikingly similar to the case last month of 41-year-old Miranda Schaup-Werner of Allentown, Pa. Schaup-Werner also drank from the minibar in her room at the Luxury Bahia Principe Bouganville resort. Her family said she succumbed to a heart attack hours later on May 25 in the hotel.

Five days later, an engaged couple from Maryland died during their visit to the same resort, officials said. Nathaniel Holmes, 63, and Cynthia Ann Day, 49, were found dead in their room from pulmonary edema and respiratory failure. Nieves said she wants to get in touch with the families of the victims to put pressure on the resort chain to investigate.

“It’s a complete fabrication that you could have as many people and they all have the same cookie-cutter outcome. It’s impossible,” Nieves told WCAU. A rep for the resort didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.  READ MORE

US authorities are scrambling to get to the bottom of a rash

 of deaths of US tourists in the Dominican Republic, with 

the number of reported fatalities over the past year

 now rising to six.

FROM YAHOO NEWS: Three people whose deaths have been confirmed all arrived on May 25 in San Pedro de Macoris, a seaside resort in the south of the Caribbean country, Dominican authorities said. Miranda Schaup-Werner, 41, booked a room with her husband at the Luxury Bahia Principe Bouganville hotel. She lost consciousness on the day of her arrival after going out on the balcony. She could not be revived by her husband or hotel medical staff.

Cynthia Day, 49, and Edward Holmes, 63, stayed in an adjacent hotel, Grand Bahia Principe La Romana. The couple from Maryland was found dead on May 30 in their room by hotel staff.

According to the Dominican Prosecutor’s Office, the three victims died of respiratory failure and pulmonary edema. Schaup-Werner also had a heart attack.

News of the deaths has drawn attention to earlier deaths of American tourists at island resorts that received no publicity at the time — some now suspect — may have been part of a pattern.   READ MORE

Instagram influencer painted rosy picture of DR despite 

being groped, nearly kidnapped, she now is warning others

 not to go

pc: the_greatescape.blog

FROM THE NY POST: An Instagram influencer known for traveling around the world with her husband said she was nearly abducted and sexually assaulted during their trip to the Dominican Republic.

Cora Smith — who, with her hubby, Jay, runs the Instagram account The Great Escape Blog, which has 26,000 followers — said she felt compelled to paint a rosy picture online of their three-month jaunt to the DR in 2018.

“You feel this obligation to be honest, but a fear of rejection if you are,” Smith said in an interview with Business Insider. “I didn’t tell my story, and I think it’s out of fear.”

She first shared her harrowing experience in a blog post last year — but said she wanted to make it more publicly known following the recent spate of deaths in the DR and news that a Delaware mom was brutally attacked at a resort there. Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz was also recently shot while sitting at a bar in Santo Domingo.

“It’s not a safe country, and it’s not just the five-star resorts,” Smith said. “I feel like I can’t sit here and listen to the prime minister and say, ‘Our country is safe,’ because it’s not safe.”     READ MORE

Read the full NTEB article H E R E !!

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” 1 John 4:1-3 (KJV)

E T A New Jersey man, 55, Is Latest Case of Tourist's Death in DR

ARE VOODOO AND WITCHCRAFT TO BLAME

Brother of 'Shark Tank' star Barbara Corcoran found dead in Dominican Republic

US Tourist Beaten During Dominican Vacation

Pennsylvania woman died at same Dominican resort complex five days before Maryland couple in similar circumstances

RACE AND VOODOO IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

**

God bless the Country of Turkey!

The country of Turkey is ripe for harvest!

35 Reasons to Visit Turkey

***************

Unexpected Sights in Paris

Cemetery cats who looked sleek and content.  They hid in the  closest open (hopefully empty) grave  or hole whenever we approached. Eeeeeek!

Riding in an empty 1st-class car on  the  TGV .  Only one other person showed up -- and this was well into our 4 hour trip! Visual proof of Europe's lower birthrate among non-Muslims (2.2 versus 1.6 children per family)??

Too. Much. Ugly. Graffiti.

Beggars, sometimes whole families of them, on the most well-known  and supposedly most beautiful boulevard in the world,  Avenue des Champs-Élysées

 Cemetery built below street level (Montmartre Cemetery)

The overcrowding of said cemetery 
(20,000 burial plots over 27 acres)

At Père Lachaise Cemetery:  Fernand Arbelot,  musician and actor who died in 1990, 
wanted to gaze at his wife for eternity.  Oh, really?!! 

Delicious macarons at McDonald's.  Why not here in the USA?

Increasingly common: camouflaged soldiers, 3 at a time,
with their weapons  ready

Graceland Cemetery, Part 2

Here are more pics from our visit to Graceland Cemetery with our out-of-town relatives.  What an extremely interesting place.  Please, enjoy the History lesson. Description and some pictures are from the official Graceland Cemetery website.

Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense  ~ Song of Solomon 4:6

George Pullman (1831-1897)

A man who won't meet his own men halfway is a damn fool!" 

--Mark Hanna, on George Pullman

George Pullman (1831-97) was the inventor of the Pullman sleeping car. When a Pullman car was attached to the funeral train carrying Abraham Lincoln's body, demand for Pullman's product surged, and the Pullman Sleeping Car Company grew quickly.

George Pullman and architect Solon Beman built the town of Pullman for his employees near 111th street. Pullman joked that the town had been named for both of them: the first syllable of his name, the second syllable of Beman's. The town of Pullman was a planned community, with schools, theaters, library, hotel, all operated by the Pullman Sleeping Car Company.
The monument was designed by Solon Beman and features a towering Corinthian column, flanked by curved benches.  Because Pullman eventually became such a hated employer, he is buried just as, or more securely, than Abraham Lincoln.  It would take an army of bulldozers to exhume him. 

William Kimball (1828-1904)

William Kimball (1828-1904) was a manufacturer of pianos (we own one!).  Kimball's monument is one of the largest in Graceland. Across the rear are four Corinthian columns, with two more on the sides. The structure is without a roof. Below, an angel kneels, watching over the two graves beneath the floor. The entire monument is of white marble, and was erected in 1907 from a design by the architectural firm of McKim, Mead & White.

Much of the original detail has eroded away, most noticeably the face of the angel. On bright days, this monument is more brilliant than any other.

William Goodman (1848-1936)

Above, rear view

Above, front view

Lumber magnate William Goodman (1848-1936) hired architect Howard Van Doren Shaw to design this tomb in 1919 after the death of his son. Lieutenant Kenneth Sawyer Goodman, a playright, died in 1918 of influenza while in Naval training.  Goodman founded Goodman Theater.

The Goodman tomb was built into a hillside on the shore of Lake Willowmere. A concrete platform in front, just above the water level, permits access to the front door. The ground slopes upward away from the lake, and, at the rear of the mausoleum, is level with its roof. Visitors may step onto the roof from the rear, protected by a granite railing on the other three sides. In the center of this railing is a marble panel featuring relief carvings in the classical style. To either side are the words from the Song of Solomon, "Until the Day Breaks and the Shadows Flee Away." (4:6)

The Bible verse is quoted in full at the top portion of today's entry.

11.07.04.17