Saturday afternoon 25 April.
This afternoon we set sail for Gokceada Island which was the staging point for the Gallipoli campaign. As we set off late we did not get to see Anzac Cove from the ship as it was too dark. The night was really lovely and Ray & I spent sometime up top in a sheltered spot watching the tiny lights on the shore along the peninsular.
We docked back at Cannakale very late, around midnight, (we didn't here a thing), and our Gallipoli 12 re-boarded the ship. They had gotten back from the ceremony at about 10.30pm (after long long day/night/day for them) but our ship was still out at sea, so the bus driver kindly took them to a restaurant where they ate and consumed lots of red wine according to the stories told later!!!
Sunday 26 April
Today we went to visit one of the two very old forts that are situated at Cannakale and were used in WWI. These forts were built hundreds of years ago and are amazing, just the size and construction.
After lunch - at a seafood restaurant - in Cannakale we visited the ancient city of Troy. These are the first ruins we have seen and they were very interesting. Archeologists are still working on the site and I guess they will be for many years to come, as there are 6 layers of buildings - one built on the top of the last old ruin and so forth. DISAPPOINTMENT - there was never such a thing as the wooden horse of Troy - just a myth!!!!! But they do have a wooden horse there just for photos!!!
Monday 27 April - Gallipoli Peninsular.
The Wooden Horse of Troy!!!
Turkish squat toilet!!! No I did not use it.
Shrapnell Gully & Plugges Plateau
Ray sitting on Anzac Cove Beach
The Sphynx
Our group's solemn walk to Ari
Burnu
Simpson's Grave (for Jhie)
Lone Pine Cemetery
We lay the Leeton wreath.
Wreaths at memorial (Harry' s the white one).
Looking back to Lone Pine through
the thick scrub.
Original trenches.
Looking down on Anzac Cove and
over to Suvla Bay & Suvla
Salt Lake.
Ray sits in one of the trenches
with old post & barb wire relics.
Poingnant sign in Cannakle.
Today we were all ready at 8am for our big day on the Gallipoli Peninsular. The atmosphere on our buses was so different to any other days outing. We all new it would be emotional for us, all in our different ways.
Our first stop was at Shrapnel Gully and just walking down the track to the cemetery was spine tingling. I asked our special guide, Hugh Dolan, what the vegetation was like when our Anzacs arrived, and apparently it was just as we saw it - very thick, very dense low scrub with scattered pine trees. The scrub is made up of wild azaleas and rhododendrons, plus many other local species. When the soldiers were being fired upon all they could do was lay on the ground; they were showered with leaves that were being shredded by the bullets.
Shrapnell Gully was the first place the Anzacs headed for, as it was a way up to the ridges without having to climb the shear cliffs. Plugges Plateau sits above here, and we could see it clearly, but did not have time to climb to it. As Hugh was explaining what happened here, there was not a dry eye amongst us. Just to be standing there was emotional.
Anzac Cove Memorial site was not far down the road. Here all the stands were still up and our Gallipoli 12 pointed out to us where they were sitting, and we could see the stage area, and the area where the officials were all seated. Many men were busily working to try and dismantle everything for another year. We had our photo taken in front of the Anzac Cove sign and then we all solemnly walked along the beach to Ari Burnu cemetery, which is the spot where the first boat landed and where they left the beach and headed for Shrapnell Gully. It was certainly very peaceful here, with a huge tree shading this very small grave site area.
We then headed to Beach Cemetery where we actually found Leeton's Charles Bosward's grave (thanks to our local historian Wendy Senti). Here I placed a poppy on his grave and shed a few more tears!
We had lunch in the National Park at a resort type place on a quiet secluded beach. There were hotel type apartments, villas and a small caravan park. (We have not seen a car and caravan since we left home - maybe far too early in the season here).
After lunch we made our way to Lone Pine - the main Australian cemetery. All the wreaths laid on ANZAC day, in all cemeteries, were still laying on the memorials. I placed our Leeton wreath very close to Prince Harry's wreath. One of our fellow passengers took photos of us as we laid the wreath. I don't have tell you how emotional this was!!!! With this mission accomplished, I then went off to the remembrance wall to find Wendy Senti's great uncle's name on Panel 41. I found it easily, and it was only a couple of feet off the ground so I was able to do a pencil rubbing of his name. I then used some Blue Tac I had brought with me to attach the beautiful crocheted poppy that my friend Pat did for me. I took several photos of Pte. T Jamieson's plaque for Wendy.
Everyone in our group mentioned how lovely the wreath was, but also how well it stood out when looking at the wreaths from afar - the red poppies truly stood out.
Emotions in our group were pretty high by this point, but lightened by the taking of a group photo. We sat in the stands and a photographer took the photo from below! One of our group realised this was back to front - we should have been sitting on the lawn in front of the Lone Pine and the photographer should have been in the stands - but too late to reorganise us all, so heaven knows what the photo will look like!
Later we walked in the diggers trenches and could see the Turkish trenches a road width away. No wonder they got to "know each other"!! (I must mention here that the respect shown to us by the Turkish people was truly amazing. In the streets they would shake our hands and welcome us to Turkey).
From The Nek we could see the whole of Anzac Cove right around to Suvla Bay & Suvla Salt Lake. We could see where the troops were aiming to get to, but were halted by Turkish troops. We have learnt so much about the Anzac landing, but can't put it in a blog - far too much to say - actually an incredible story to be told.
Driving away from this area we were looking down through Monash Gully, the scrub looking totally impenetrable, although they did it - having to use ropes to get down into the gully.
We drove home, all in a sober mood, but all grateful that we had the opportunity to have walked in their footsteps, but oh so much safer.
That evening our ship set sail for the island of Limnos - famous for the hospitals set up here during the Gallipoli campaign, but that can be another blog!
