Amiens and Villers-Bretonneux War Memor

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.

Ohh I took a pic of a tiny car😁.Read more