To date, I had not traveled any further East than Seelow Heights in Germany. This last spring, a decision was made to visit two World War II historical sites in Poland. We flew into Warsaw where tour personnel picked us up. A guide and car took us to the "Wolf's Lair" near Ketrzyn (aka Rastenburg). Another guide showed us the large number of concrete bunkers and other structures used by Hitler and his other cronies to direct the war against Russia. It was here that Colonel Von Stauffenberg on July 20, 1944, placed a bomb under the conference table in an attempt to kill Hitler and other high ranking officers. He had planned for the meeting to be in Hitler's concrete bunker where the concussion would kill all the attendees. Unfortunately, the meeting was moved to a wooded building where the large wooded table shielded Hitler against the blast. As everyone knows, Von Stauffenberg was arrested and shot in the courtyard of the German army headquarters in Berlin.
Pictures of the Site
Plaque on the attempted assassination of Hitler in front of the building foundation where the bomb was placed.
Stalag Luft III
We took an express train from Warsaw to Wrolclaw(formerly known as Breslau). The next day our driver and car drove from Wrolclaw to Zagan. This was the site of an allied POW camp on which the movie the "Great Escape" was based. The museum director gave as a very informative tour of what's left of the camp.
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End of the tunnel named "Harry" where 76 airman escaped. Sorry to shatter the movie script, but there was no motorcycle ride or escape by captured Nazi airplane.