Verdun

Verdun is the site of one of the longest battles of World War I, with 750,000 troops killed during 1916. Verdun was captured by the Germans in World War II in 1940, and liberated by the Americans in 1944. There are large monuments to both wars.

Several years ago this was the first place in Europe where we obtained money from an ATM machine, using our Visa card. Imagine our surprise when the computer recognized our card as being from the US, and presented the instructions in English. This is the best way to get cash in most countries. If we go inside the bank they usually have a service fee, and the exchange rate for just a few dollars is not as good as the exchange rate for the millions of dollars the major credit card companies exchange each day.