Just back from an emotional and interesting day discovering Flanders Fields. The Ypres area we visited was the scene of some of the heaviest fighting of WWI and over 500,000 soldiers lost their lives in this 8 mile area.

Our first stop was Tyne Cot Cemetery where we paid our respects to the 12,000 Allied soldiers buried there. Next we visited the artefacts and exhibits at Passchendaele Memorial Museum and made our way through the underground tunnel system. We then sat in the sun and enjoyed our packed lunches before taking some time at the Balbardie tree to plant our crosses, hold a minute’s silence and read our letters of thanks to the fallen soldiers.

In the afternoon we visited the German Langemark cemetery and compared it to the Allied Tyne Cot cemetery. We then visited the Bayernwald trenches at which point the heavens opened and the rain began to pour which only helped to create a realistic setting. Next we had frites for dinner and munched them along with our rolls and juice in the town square in Ypres while some chose to enjoy ice cream instead.

Our final stop this evening was Ypres where we watched the nightly last post ceremony at the Menin Gate which holds the names of 55,000 soldiers who died but were never found during WWI. Liam and Lauren took part in the ceremony and did a fantastic job of representing the school as they laid our wreath.

Time for bed now and Plopsaland in the morning before beginning our journey home.