Advertisement
Published: April 21st 2015
ANZAC Cove
The wind sprang up at this moment!A significant moment was experienced as we stepped off the bus and onto the soil of Ari Burnu…ANZAC Cove. Nick McCallum and his cameraman, Paul, from the Channel 7 news team greeted us. They led us onto the beach and away from the main group. We stood on the exact place of the landing, picking up the stones that those adventurous, charging, mostly inexperienced young men would have scrambled over…including Mum’s father, my grandfather. I was more emotional than Mum! She was incredibly calm and told the journalists so as she was interviewed. (Not sure when it will be aired!)
To look out across the sea and imagine the boats filled with these young soldiers who had no idea what lay ahead; to visualize them entering the water and crunching the stones of this foreign land; to bring to life my grandfather’s 25 April 1915 diary entry…
Landed at Gallipoli peninsula Gabatepe under very heavy shrapnel fire as we were coming ashore the shrapnel fell all around our boat but no one was hit as I was walking along the beach the shrapnel was right along side of us I have the piece
Sharing a significant moment
Admiration for Mabel...and yes, there were hugs and kisses! in my pocket I have had no sleep for 2 days
My mind transported back in time while the present peacefulness and beauty of this place enveloped me. The wind sprang up, a light shower of rain fell, then it all passed over giving us the minutest taste of the weather conditions. Looking up from the beach area brought another perspective. The terrain hasn’t changed much in the 100 years. How could the objective be achieved?
We went on to visit the Beach Cemetery, Plugge’s Plateau, Shrapnel Gully, Lone Pine, The Nek, Quinn’s Post, and completed this section of battlefields with Chunuk Bair. They are all significant in their own right. They are all beautifully presented and maintained. Respect is evident throughout the peninsula. Mum saw most of the battlefields but sat in the bus to rest when we visited Plugge’s Plateau, Shrapnel Gully and Quinn’s Post. Some of the walks were quite lengthy, steep and uneven ground. She was well looked after with coffee and comfort!
With each battlefield visited the reasons for utter confusion, the inappropriate planning and the senseless loss of young lives became
View from near Plugge's Plateau
Overlooking where the Dawn Service will be held on Saturday. The red is the seating. apparent. The courage and bravery will always shine. My grandfather, Sgt Wesley Charles Rivers Taylor, aged 22 at the time, survived it. But by the grace of God.
(Due to photos taking SO long to upload and an early start tomorrow to go to Helles and Suvla, I'll wait until there is more time to post lots more photos telling today's story. Thank you so very much for all your wonderful comments and messages! We love reading them!)
Advertisement
Tot: 0.144s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 10; qc: 49; dbt: 0.0601s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Judy Potter
non-member comment
Wonderful descriptions
Jan, you make the whole place come alive, with your descriptive writing. Once there it is easily seen how impossible the mission would have been. Incredible that they just didn't give up and retreat. That is the testament to their unbelievable courage.