Pre-Impressions
I am really looking forward to learning more about the Battle of the Bulge, along with other events that occurred during World War II. I have studied WWII in the past, but it will be nice to refresh my memory on many of the events that happened, along with being able to learn about these events from Belgium's point of view. I expect that this will be a guided tour and that we will get a chance to see various exhibits about WWII, and maybe even some artifacts from the war, such as uniforms or weapons.
Post-Impressions
There was a lot of information in this museum and I needed more time to be able to read everything. I enjoyed being able to use the audio devices so that I could tour the museum at my own pace. I was surprised that there were videos for us to watch in addition to looking at the pictures, artifacts and descriptions. My favorite part of the tour was watching the three videos, especially the second one that took place in the forests of Bastogne. I really liked how they set everything up to make us feel as though we were actually in the forest. The setting really complemented the video that we watched and the stories that were told. The museum gave a lot of information about World War II and not just the Battle of the Bulge. This allowed us to learn about, or refresh our memories on, many of the major events that happened during the war.
Just like with all wars, World War II had an impact on the economies of all countries involved in the war, and even on those not directly involved in the war. One economic advantage of war is that the economy can be improved by increased military and government spending on items such as weapons and supplies for soldiers. Some countries, such as the United States, benefited from the war because investors decided to invest in the U.S. because they believed that their investments would be safest there. While this was an advantage for the U.S., it was a disadvantage for other countries such as Germany, where many people stopped investing. War also has many economic disadvantages, such as an increase in taxes, which affects consumer spending and will likely lower it because citizens cannot afford the high taxes. There was also rationing that occurred, and the government also encouraged people to save their money. These actions all harmed the economy because people were not spending money like they used to. War also impacts the political systems in each country because it causes governments to implement new policies, such as monetary and fiscal policies. These are implemented in an attempt to help the economy and return it to a better state.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/14/business/economy/from-world-war-ii-economic-lessons-for-today.html?_r=0
I am really looking forward to learning more about the Battle of the Bulge, along with other events that occurred during World War II. I have studied WWII in the past, but it will be nice to refresh my memory on many of the events that happened, along with being able to learn about these events from Belgium's point of view. I expect that this will be a guided tour and that we will get a chance to see various exhibits about WWII, and maybe even some artifacts from the war, such as uniforms or weapons.
Post-Impressions
There was a lot of information in this museum and I needed more time to be able to read everything. I enjoyed being able to use the audio devices so that I could tour the museum at my own pace. I was surprised that there were videos for us to watch in addition to looking at the pictures, artifacts and descriptions. My favorite part of the tour was watching the three videos, especially the second one that took place in the forests of Bastogne. I really liked how they set everything up to make us feel as though we were actually in the forest. The setting really complemented the video that we watched and the stories that were told. The museum gave a lot of information about World War II and not just the Battle of the Bulge. This allowed us to learn about, or refresh our memories on, many of the major events that happened during the war.
Just like with all wars, World War II had an impact on the economies of all countries involved in the war, and even on those not directly involved in the war. One economic advantage of war is that the economy can be improved by increased military and government spending on items such as weapons and supplies for soldiers. Some countries, such as the United States, benefited from the war because investors decided to invest in the U.S. because they believed that their investments would be safest there. While this was an advantage for the U.S., it was a disadvantage for other countries such as Germany, where many people stopped investing. War also has many economic disadvantages, such as an increase in taxes, which affects consumer spending and will likely lower it because citizens cannot afford the high taxes. There was also rationing that occurred, and the government also encouraged people to save their money. These actions all harmed the economy because people were not spending money like they used to. War also impacts the political systems in each country because it causes governments to implement new policies, such as monetary and fiscal policies. These are implemented in an attempt to help the economy and return it to a better state.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/14/business/economy/from-world-war-ii-economic-lessons-for-today.html?_r=0
small artifacts from WWII
WWII uniform
map of the Battle of the Bulge
memorial to the United States
newspaper from WWII
United States memorial in Bastogne
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