'In Flanders fields where poppies grow...'

Well we didn't see any poppies but we have been totally immersed in the 1st World War today, as we toured the Flanders battlefields with Philippe of Quasimodo Tours.

We took the 8am train to Bruges where we joined the group of twenty, mainly Canadian, British and Australian tourists. As we travelled around the battlefields, Philippe kept up a constant commentary about the history of the war, what life was like for the soldiers and the lasting legacy for Belgium of unexploded armaments and bodies still being unearthed.

During the day we visited several war cemeteries including Poelkapelle (British), Langemark (German and rather grim), Tyne Cot (Commonwealth, with an Australian memorial) and Polygon Wood (with Australian and New Zealand monuments).

Langemark Cemetery - German graves

Tyne Cot Cemetery - Commonwealth graves

Polygot Woods cemetery

At the Australian memorial, Polygot Cemetery

We stopped for lunch at Hooge Crater Museum, a small private museum with lots of interesting artefacts and a video of original footage of troops in Flanders. This was also where we discovered that this week is the end of term for British secondary students and huge numbers of them are on school trips to learn about the Great War - several bus loads arrived at our small museum!

A pile of ammunition fragments and other detritus
unearthed in the vicinity of Hooge Crater Museum

In the afternoon we spent some time in Ypres (a city that was totally destroyed during the war and has since been carefully reconstructed).

Ypres Grote Markt - spendid facades!

Grote Markt view at sunset

We also walked along a restored trench, experienced the cramped conditions of a field dressing station and found the grave of 15 year old Private Valentine Strudwick, one of the youngest soldiers to die in the war.

Restored Yorkshire Trench

Grave of 15 year old Valentine Strudwick

'In Flanders Fields' written by John McCrae,
a doctor at the Yorkshire Field Dressing Station

Instead of returning to Bruges with the group, we arranged to return to Ypres to experience the Last Post ceremony which takes place every night at 8pm at the Menin Gate. There was a large crowd to observe the ceremony but Philippe had briefed us on the best place to stand and we had a perfect view. It was very moving to see the four buglers led by a piper and to hear them play the Last Post, as has been done there each night since about 1920.

Evening view through the Menin Gate

Piper and buglers at Menin Gate

We returned to Brussels by train, arriving back around 10.30pm - a long day but a very memorable one!