Candle Light Tour Of The Replica Muhlenberg Brigade Huts Of The American Revolution In Valley Forge, PA

Valley Forge National Historical Park hosted a fine event on December 19, 2010. Reenactors and living historians showed tourists how the Continental Army handled the cold weather and lived in such conditions.

First I encountered several candles along side the walkway leading up to the park ...





Then I entered the Visitor's Center where I listened to the Carolers and looked at some artifact displays ...



















The tour guide:




We were stopped by Continental Troops who asked for the password:




A replica Muhlenberg Brigade Hut (the originals vanished long ago):


I always enjoy photographing and being near the fire ...

Here is a brief video. I started it by looking up at the Moon and then walked into one of the replica Muhlenberg Brigade Huts while a three-woman choir was signing "What Child Is This" by candle light. Very dark; I did my best.

A final candle as I bid farewell to the park:


See you all next year ...

Battle Of Saint Vith World War II Reenactment At Fort Mifflin On December 18, 2010

Once again, Fort Mifflin in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania hosted another fine Reenactment. This time World War II took center stage, specifically the Battle Of Saint Vith. This Reenactment was incredible. It featured the Living History Associations known as the 2nd Ranger Batallion, E Company and the 78th U.S. Infantry Division.

I purchased the entrance ticket at the Fort's gift shop and, when I stepped out to get a spot to watch the Reenactment, I saw quite a large body of soldiers in 1940s uniforms marching by and heading to their respective positions. Since I have been to so many Revolutionary War and Civil War Reenactments, I got used to the musket guns. Hearing the automatic weapons was indeed an eye-opener. The Allied Troops ran across the bridge and entered the Fort for the Reenactment. They slowly made their advance. I believe the Battle Of Saint Vith is considered to be a German victory so I am not sure why the German Reenactors were gunned down at the end. If anyone can explain why, I would be glad to hear from you (perhaps the Germans fell in one part of the Battle??). The photographs and videos below will show you all of the action. I captured footage during the entire event - from beginning to end.



















































The aftermath ...


A captured Japanese Soldier:




Here are some props that were placed around The Fort:








Some uniforms were on display:


Close-up of the Reichsführung-SS uniform:


Many more photos of the day can be found at this link:
http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u213/portaltothepast/Reenactments/World%20War%20II/Battle%20Of%20Saint%20Vith%2012-18-2010

I filmed four videos ...

Accelerator Transforming Action Figure From The M.A.R.S. Converters Toy Line

I usually laugh at off-brand versions of established toy lines.  I thought that this one looked cool though so I picked it up. The toy line is M.A.R.S. Converters (apparently a new brand), and this guy's name is Accelerator. As it turns out, it has a defective piece! Plus, it looked better in the box and in the promo set-up on the back of the box. It is still kind of neat though. The company is Hap-P-Kid/Cybotronix.

In this video, I am taking it out of the box and transforming it:

Photographs of the toy ...





Here you can see the piece (discussed in the video) sticking out:






UPDATE!!!

Last week someone commented on the video and stated the back piece is not defective so I checked it, and, as it turns out, the figure is not defective. The joint was just really, really tight. Once I fiddled with it, it went into place just fine. The only problem has to do with the ball joints.  That is not a defect ... it is how the toy was produced and made. It was a trade off ... although the back piece is not defective, the arms can easily fall off when playing with the toy so the figure is not totally without fault. Still a cool item nonetheless.

This new video (made on March 17, 2011) explains further:

A photo of the toy in its car mode showing the piece now in place:

Battle Of Iron Works Hill Reenactment In Mount Holly, New Jersey Held On December 11, 2010

I will post a complete review of the event soon. Here is a link with all of the photos:
http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u213/portaltothepast/Reenactments/Revolutionary%20War/Battle%20Of%20Iron%20Works%20Hill%2012-11-2010

Here are three videos from the event ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJlERiO1_3g

The Pearl Harbor Attack ... Sixty-Nine Years Ago Today

December 7, 1941 ... the day that influenced the United States Of America to enter World War II. The Japanese attack left the nation no choice but to mobilize.  This is a day to remember that event and the bravery of those involved.

Here I am with someone who was there ... Henry Heim. He was wounded during the strike on Pearl Harbor, and later flew 78 missions over Germany, North Africa and the Balkans during the War. He also flew 51 missions in the Korean War.


I met Henry Heim at the World War II Weekend event in Reading, PA back in June. My blog entry for it is at this link: http://michaeltheresearcher.blogspot.com/2010/09/world-war-ii-weekend-in-reading.html

This website http://www.pearlharbor.org has information about the attack.