We had a really good day - started with breakfast in our studio apartment then a wake-up coffee for Anne before we set-off for the Sir John Monash Centre Australian National Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux. It’s dedicated to the Aussies that died on the Western Front, including the 10,700 with no known grave. It’s a magnificent (if very sad) place. It was special to Anne as we were able to find the name of her grand-uncle,Samuel Hardwick, that died at the front. It also reminded me that many returning of the returning WW1 soldiers settled around Stanthorpe and named their farms, and the little hamlets/rail sidings and the roads linking them, after battles (of the Somme and Western Front) in which they had fought - Amiens Rd along with Amiens, Messines, Bapaume, Passchendaele, Bullecourt, Pozieres and Fleurbaix. After there we went to a town called Albert to see another museum, this time underground, that gave a history of the battle of the Somme particularly showing the reality of trench warfare.
We got back to Amiens for a brief rest and dinner before we headed to Amien’s own Notre Dam Cathedral (every city/town/village has a huge church or cathedral and mostly named Notre Dam!!!). It is huge and quite fantastic (the Catholic Church does like it’s edifices🤔). After dinner at the apartment we went back for a 9.45 light show at the Cathedral- again quite magnificent, the pics don’t do it justice.
Tomorrow to Calais for an overnight stay before heading by car ⛴ to the UK.
Thanks my kind of car, but Kerry will have run along side as we wouldn't both fit in. Anne that would have been so touching to find your grand uncles grave.