New Jersey... and NYC

So yesterday I checked my bag and arrived at the gate. After confirming for the one hundredth time that I was in the right place after much prompting of my mother... I relaxed at the gate and started talking with a man regarding why I was traveling. I explained to him that I was traveling all around the U.S. meeting POW's held in a concentration camp called Berga. He said, "When I think of concentration camps I think of Jews from Germany not our own men." This just reaffirmed my desire to write a book to educate people what our own GI's endured. My flight from Charlotte to New Jersey was delayed and I arrived at 2:45am. This morning I arrived promptly at the restaurant and Tim video taped the entire lunch. Now I have digital memories I can later recall in my life and be so thankful they were caught on tape..

During the lunch Peter Iosso and Norman Fellman and their lovely wives shared memories they had of Berga an der Ester. I was in awe that I was sitting here like a fly on the wall listening to these men talk. Norman made me laugh several times. He said without laughter he wouldn't be alive today. I firmly believe him. Above all Norman gave me his copy of the silence pamphlet no other historian who has studied Berga has, I am the only one. So now I can confirm that yes they signed these pamphlets and a major milestone was accomplished. Also I was told of two other Berga POW's contact info as well. So more traveling is about to begin.

At the spur of the moment we decided to go to NYC at 3pm. I went online and priced a hotel in Manhattan and got an unbelievable deal. So at 5pm we will be shuttling into the city to spend the night and spend all day tomorrow in NYC until our flights out to Boston and to home for Tim.

The adventure has taken me to different routes but overall it will be a blast to be in NYC for roughly two days especially for September 11th.