A memorable day - it is impossible not to be effected by the sight of thousands of graves set in neat rows in so many sites. To think that this whole area was completely devastated between 1914-1918 is also incredible.
Collected the hire-car fom Lille station at 9 (no GPS - "zey are too unreliable") so had to find our way out in the heavy traffic, trying to find signs to Ypres which was our target for the day. Maps were hopeless but with a mixture of good luck and good navigation (!!!) we were happy to start seeing road signs with "Ieper" (Ypres to you) - about 30k North.
Got there without drama and parked - walked into the town centre. Lovely town centre with a huge "Cloth hall" at the centre. This magnificent building (cloth production was once big in Ypes) was totally destroyed in the war, rebuilt and is now the site of the "In Flanders Field" museum. Spent ages there going through the brilliantly presented exhibits, some with vision of the objects on display being dug up from the mud and water.
Wanted to get to the huge Tyne Cot cemetery (largest British/Commonwealth war cemetery in the world) which is circa 11 k North. Found it with the help of a lovely fellow doing the lawns at the Irish cemetery nearer town - there is a vistor centre at Tyne Cot which is also very moving. To see so many graves really hits home - it is a beautifully designed and constructed area - on a hill in the middle of farmland "in Flanders field". What is quite surprising is the number of cemeteries - they are located everywhere - along the roadside, in the middle of villages - just everywhere. Not surprising when you realise that in the Ypres area alone, more than 10 million lives were lost in the 4 years of war. The battles for Passchendaele accounted for huge numbers of Australian lives. No one ever gained the upper hand. Under the huge cross at Tyne Cot are the remains of a German bunker captured by the Australians in 1917.
The entire town of Ypres was detroyed by shelling - the Cathedral and the Cloth hall totally destroyed and the inhabitants had abandoned the town by May 1915.
Got back home circa 5 - bit of trouble navigating back to the car park but we made it. Planning to get to Villers-Bretonneux and possibly Fromelles tomorrow so we'll see how it goes. Certainly glad we've added this to our trip - an extraordinary experience and incredibly moving.
Off for some more Foi Gras tonight!!
Trivia: None of what we saw and learnt about today was trivial - the numbers are just mind-blowing and how it all happened and then continued just defies human understanding.
cap: still can't manage a new one!
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