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NGAIRE:
Hello everyone. This is a big catchup, as there have been days lately where we have been either so tired, or without connections for one reason or another. So, to cathc everyone up with our doings I have opted for the faster method.... ie: me writing quickly! Sp, fasten your seatbelts, this is going to be a quick trip!
After our second Go Ape, we headed over into the Cotswolds. A little trouble fiding a bed, so it was getting dark before we settled on the Wheatsheaf Inn in a little village called Northleach. Such a pretty place, and a really comfy bed and nice dinner for Steina and I. Hamish opted for just a sandwich in our room. We were treated to bell ringing practice in the local church -the peals ringing out in the darkening evening were so nice. Next day we wontinued our way through the Cotswolds and out onto the SalisbVisited Bulford Camp to try and find the Kiwi carving that the NZers had made at the end of World War One. What a neat surprise to find that that Kiwi cinnection is still there - Kiwi Barracks stand on the site of the old Sling Camp. Two armed soldiers on sentry duty at the entrance to the barracks - we braved being shot and chatted the two of them up for directions to the kiwi. One even looked the other way while we got a photo with the other - I think that was probably against army policy for security reasons but they nicely let us do it! We then had a hike up a hill through forest to reach the Kiwi. Glad we did, as from back down at road level we found it really difficult to get a photo of - trees have grown so tall around the area since that I think the best photo opportunity would now be from the air. Either that or we just didnt get to the best vantage point.
We went through the village of Avebury, and had a good look at their standing stones. At that point we were in a misty drizzle, so we only had a wuick look at the stones but they were certainly impressive. great to be able to walk right up to them, and jusdge for yourself how big they are, and how hard the men who put them there would have had to work.
Next port of call was Woodhenge. Not as impressive, as the original woo has of course gone, and only concrete markers are now in place. Having seen that, and with Stonehenge only a few miles away we headed there. I am SOOOOO glad we did, because as we came over the rise towards it, and it suddenly appeared in front of us both Steina and Hamish gasped and said WOW! with absolute awe in their voices. They were so stunned that rather than just park and look at it, we turned into the visitors centre and went to see it close up. I have been gifted a re-appreciation of the whole site as I looked at it afresh through their eyes, and we discussed the stones and visualised the extra third in length that is underground.
Bed that night turned into a mission - we zigzagged all over the Salisbury Plains, and finally ended up with a man at the Premier Inn in Salisbury phoning through to West Southampton to find us a bed. Find it he did, and we ended up having two nights there. That was good though, as it let us visit an animal sanctuary that we wouldnt have seen and this gave us foxes and a badger - both of which were on the must-see list. we also had a look around the area and got to go on a rattly wee antique train ride along the Hythe Pier, and to visit Old Sarum just above Salisbury.
Next morning, we headed for London,with a stop in Reading. Drop of point for Harry and Tim (Car and GPS) was Heathrow, and from there a train ride into London an a short walk to the YHA at St Pancras.
Our London days were busy - we saw the Tower and the crown jewels, and walked our legs off looking at all the usual tourist sites - Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Househould Cavalry, Downing street, St James Park, Harrods, Hamleys Toy Store, Trafalgar Square etc etc. We did intend to go to Madam Tussauds, and even got so far as Baker Street and the queue to get in. The queue slowly inched up the road, and once we got to the doorway we found we still would have had another hour to wait so we flagged it. It was on Steina's list, but even she felt we should move on.
Big treat in London - going to a Stomp show. One and a half hours of on-stop frenetic percussion and comedy. So worth going to! Will have to tell you all about that in person - but suffice it to say they used every thing they could to make a beat/sound out of, from hands and feet to brooms, cigarette lighters, paint cans, sticks, stainless steel kitchen sinks, rubbish tins...... at one point there were even 3 of them abseiling in front of a wall of hubcaps, bells and various bits and pieces drumming as they went. There were also times when they got audience participation in their antics. We finished that with a quick rickshaw ride back to our underground station. A nice wee treat - especially for Steina who thought I had managed to pick a really cute rickshaw driver!!
Last night in London was eventful - we had an alram clock set for just after 5 so that we had time to get across and check in for our Eurostar train through the Chunnel, and off we went to bed not looking forward to the early start. All nicely asleep..... FIRE ALARM! on with jackets and shoes, grab passports and money and off down the fire stairs. Got to the foyer and what did we find - harrassed staff with a mal-function on their control panel. Eveyrone back to their rooms, back to bed, lights out, just about asleep again and FIRE ALARM. Same pack drill as before, into the foyer to find even more harrassed-looking staff members trying to get an after hours electrician! Glad to say, no further trouble but 5am came awfully quickly!!!
The trip through the Chunnel was also awfully quick - we had a couple of stops prior where other folk got on the train, but in all we were only in the actual tunnel for about half an hour. It was funny - I expected to see some sort of sign or entrance way but in actual fact we just seemed to pop into darkness and back out with no drama. I guess our speed was the reason for the fact that everytime we went into an underpass or tunnel on the way, and again as we came our of tunnels, our ears popped jus as they do with altitude. Hamish missed the Chunnel completely, as he was asleep on my shoulder most of the way.
We arrived in Lille, off the train up to get the renal car and straight out unleashed on France - then realised that we hadnt had to go through customs at all. Wierd feeling!!! Same when we crossed into Belgium at Armentierres. As Steina said - did anyone actually know we were here, apart from all you folks back home?? Certainly no one offiial, apart from those in London who stamped our passports as we left!!
Anyway, we had no trouble finding where we were to collect the rental. Off we went, holding our breath and tackling the right hand side of the road! The greatest trouble we had initially was judging how far we were from the right hand curb, so lucky no pedestrians had their toes right on the curb as we passed a few corners!! We had elected to get a GPS again - thank goodness for that! Re-united with and aided by our beloved Tim (the English voice on the TomTom GPS) we headed off south towards Neuville St Vaast. The day in the battlefields was amazing/emotional/wonderful/sad/incredible/an experience never to be forgotten.
All the research we had done about various battle happenings had not prepared me for the actual sight of the Vimy ridge memorial. All of a sudden, we could see it on our right, appearing out of trees and dominating the landscape. We were on a road with the ridge running across on our right, and in front and on our left, the Douai plain spreading out. And there amongst the green was this vividly white monument - large even though we were still some way away from it. Actually seeing it was quite emotional, even from that distance. I was surprised really just how much it affected me, and how much of a lump I had in my throat as we arrived in Neuville St Vaast and turned to drive up the ridge.
Our first stop was the carpark at the monument, and I think that it was a good thing that at that point we realised how much we needed the loo! That gave me time to collect myself, as we headed back down the ridge a little to the Visitor Centre. Second bonus was that as we wandered around the trenches beside the Visitor Centre, we came across a guided tour that was just starting, and we asked if we were able to join in. Thus, we got to look at all the trenches, find out which were the German trenches and which the Allied trenches. No-mans land was incredibly narrow, and completely pockmarked with deep craters from mine tunnel detonations, and shallower craters from shells. The two sets of trenches were so close that you could have chucked a grenade from one to the other relatively easily had you a good arm. The soldiers were able to hear each other, and the guide said that often they would know each other's names. There were also documented times when after battles or raids that local ceasefires were called, and men from both sides assisted each other to carry out wounded and dead. Totally imcomprehensible how men were able to make the mental adjustment that allowed the humane actions and the inhumanity of killing to co-exist like that. No wonder men returned from war so changed and with so much mentally to cope with.
The tour also went down into the tunnels - and this was fascinating. (Bonus - two bats sleeping jsut inside the entrance, and I managed to photograph one.) There is too much to say about the tunnels right here, but suffice it to say that they were narrow, relatively low, and damp. And this is improved from what they were at the time! I didnt know that chalk transmits sound easily, so an issue facing the soldiers down there was the proximity to the German trenches meant that they had to be very cautious about noise levels so as not to give away their position to the Germans. In the leadup to the battle of Vimy Ridge, this was quite an issue as the troops were all gathered in position with 12 hours rations and orders for silence, then the attack was delayed for another 24 hours!. in all, they had 36 hours of having to remain silently in position with a full pack, rifle and ammo, and in almost total darkness.
After that, we went back up the ridge to the memorial - a quiet and peaceful place, in beautiful sunshine. A far cry from the battle which was a hell launched into the teeth of a snowstorm. The memorial is SO white that it was really hard on the eyes. It commands a beautiful view to the north and east - easily seen how it was so strategically important. No one living within sight of this beautiful memorial could possibly forget the contribution of the Canadian soldiers, or of any of the other forces remembered in this area. Canada can justly be proud tha they have commemorated their men so fittingly with this memorial. There is another memorial close by, and tucked into pockets of the woods around the ridge are several cemetaries. We didnt visit these, as time would not have allowed, but you could see the rows of headstones clearly as we drove slowly by. The roads all about were busier than we had hoped, and the tour had used up more of the day than planned, so we opted not to head down further towards the Somme and insterad carried on through Armentierres towards Ypres. Ypres is such a pretty place, and considering the fact that it has been levelled twice within the last 100 years this is amazing. We finally found our B&B, then headed out to Tyne Cot. Row upon Row upon Row of white headstones. Many of them with names, but many simply recording the presence of an unknown soldier. Some were identified only by which army the soldier had belonged to, some were recorded as known only to God. Absolute peace, and intense sadness were the feelings here - we found ourselves in tears amongst the graves. Steina put it well - each of these soldiers had families back at their homes.
After this it was back to Ypres and the Menin Gate ceremony. We struck a night where a lot was happening - local children in a drumming band marched, visiting school children laid wreaths and sang, a piper played, several groups laid wreaths, and a piper played, AS WELL as the local Fire Brigade buglers sounding the Last Post. Apparently as early as 1919, families started coming into the Flanders area looking for answers as to the resting places of their loved ones, and looking to understand what had happened for them. Knowing that, one can see why the nightly ceremony at the Menin Gate has asumed the importance that it has.
I am SO glad to have had these experiences even though it made it an emotionally draining day, and this will shape my ANZAC rememberances from now on. I finished the day quite sad, and missing you all at home greatly.
Straight to bed in the B&B with the miniumum of luggage taken up to out room. Early up the next day as we had to dash off back to Lille and the train, so again we were out of bed well before we were ready. Thank goodness no fire alarms in the night this time!! Our B&B lady had advised which way to travel and the time to allow, but traffic was awfull and we progressed so slowly that we finally were in Lille with only about 15 minutes to spare before our train left. Next issue parking the jolly car where we had been told to park it - no luck what so ever, and 3 circuits of the combined railway station. We of course missed the train for Paris. Sorted that out - car papers handed back in, explained why we hadnt topped the fuel up etc etc, then off to change our tickets. Net result, we arrived here in Paris after noon instead of about 10 am. Not too bad, but then the challenge of finding our hotel. That done, our room wasnt ready so we checked in the bags and went to suss out where we had to go for the disney shuttle. Really glad we got that sorted before this morning! Up at the crack of dawn again today as we had to be in down town Paris by 7.45am for the Disney shuttle. Chummed up with an Aussie grannie and her 3 grandkids (12, 14, 24) and spent the day with them racing around the two parks. The kids worked out they had been on 6 different rollercoasters, and some of them more than once. The Aussie grannie and I opted for the more sedate versions, and bag/coat holding. Very wise!!
Didnt arrive back in Paris until 9pm, Hamish busting for a wee so that determined where we had tea as it had to be the nearest place with a toilet. Tea probably cost us more than it should have!!! And now I am back at the start of the story - exhausted, and ready for bed. Just checked time zones, and I see midnight Wednesday here (which it is now) converts to 10am Thursday back home. Warwick, if you wanted to catch us in the morning, we are in room 147. ph 0033 1 47 70 68 33. Or ring in on my cell - I have a message from Telecom on it that NZ rates dont apply if I ring from here so it might be better if you rang in.
Tomorrow is our day to move off to Venice, and there is a possibility of air and rail strikes. FIngers crossed it wont affect us. The Metro was running normally this evening, so that is a good start. We were hoping to put our bags into storage here at the hotel, and see the Eiffel tower tomorrow before we leave. I see on the net just now that it was evacuated yesterday because of a hoax bomb threat!!!!! Perhaps viewing it from the ground rather than going up it will be our plan!
Well!!!!! This is where things change a little - we are STILL in Paris.......... Rail strike did affect us, but "fortunatley" we discovered a glitch with our sleeper train tickets. Early moring PANIC x3, an urgent phone call put in to Carissa our travel agent back home, but by the time we had recieved her return call Steina and I had put our panic in check and had started to think clearly again. The lovely man at the reception desk here at the hotel had said "with ze strike, perhaps zis is a good mistake, Non?" and assured us that we could stay at the hotel for extra nights. We decided not to try to change our tickets as with the strike EVERYONE else would have been doing likewise. We now leave Paris on 25th and have only ONE night in Venice. C'est la vie. Will catch you all up with the rest of the Paris news in the next blog session.
Love to everyone at home. We are enjoying ourselves but are looking forward to seeing you all at the same time.
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