Anzac Day 2012 saw our group standing in the pre-dawn cold and darkness of Polygon Wood, a few kilometres outside the city of Ieper (Ypres). At this very hour, 5:30 am, back on September 26, 1917, Australian soldiers would have been standing in their forward assembly points as an artillery barrage howled over their heads to give the notice to their enemy that an attack was coming. Despite the crash of high explosive, the men would have been calmly fixing bayonets, checking kits and trying to catch their mates’ eyes in the dark to give them an encouraging glance. Perhaps they were wondering who would still be standing in a few hours’ time when their objective would be gained and the battle over.
Polygon Wood in 2012 was the ground hard won that day, and the blood of thousands of soldiers of the 5th Division AIF was part of the soil under our feet. Candles illuminated the Stone of Remembrance and the rows of headstones gradually became visible as the sky paled. Small birds twittered in trees planted afresh around the neat cemetery that was once a holocaust of shattered timber and shell-churned mud.
The Anzac Day Dawn service was an experience that moved us all. Many elements combined to form a fitting statement of honour to the sacrifice of those men. Prayers for peace, heartfelt speeches devoid of clichés, including from the ambassador to the European Union , Dr Brendan Nelson, the gun salute from soldiers of the Belgian Army, the two men dressed in WW 1 diggers’ uniforms in the catafalque party, the music by the New Zealand veterans’ band and singing by three young women representing each of Australia’s armed services. A unique aspect to this morning’s ceremony was an invitation to each of the several hundred attendees to take one of over 500 small wooden crosses from the Stone of Remembrance and lay it on the grave of an Australian soldier in the cemetery. These crosses had come from Tasmania and were written on by primary school students from schools around Hobart. A touching way for everyone present to take an active role in the commemoration.
After the service was over, our students met and were photographed with the President of the Australian Senate, Senator John Hogg and his wife.
Our day was just beginning, however, because at 11 am we were back in Ieper to meet up a second time with our new friends in the Technisches Hochschule Immaculata. Ann Vandermaele, one of the English teachers there, had organised more activities, including a challenging “sleuth trail” where our students had to team with the Belgians in small groups to track down the “murderer” of a Belgian chocolatier. The successful team won a specially-made, 2 foot-long dagger made of chocolate and marzipan! The “weapon” was fortunately dismantled by a joint Belgian-Australian demolition team. Afterwards there was singing and dancing in the school gym, and the students also had some free time together. Our students showed their appreciation for the genuinely warm-hearted welcome by concluding the day with a presentation of personal gifts of Aussie memorabilia to their hosts, who were clearly moved. We also presented an “official” gift of a book of photographs, signed by all our group, of the Tumut Region and high country to Mrs Vandermaele for her school library.
The value of these two days of interaction has been very high. One of our students commented, “It feels like we’ve known these kids for years – not days!” Teachers also were able to squeeze some professional interaction into the time with their Belgian colleagues. There will be increased traffic on Facebook from here on, and we know that on both an official and personal level something good has begun. We hope this will continue in subsequent years of “The Europe Trip”.
By Doug Rand
