Somme Battlefields

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RagTagChallenge-Vanish

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vanish

disappear suddenly and completely.
*****

Many servicemen simply vanished during World War I.

I often wonder if their spirits are wandering battlefields

in search of a resting place.

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RagTagChallenge:…Vanish

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Word-of-Day-Challenge-Memorial

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a statue or structure established to
remind people of a person or event.
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The Australian Memorial…

 

…at Villers Bretonneux.

 

It was extremely difficult…

…to picture these serene fields…

…as a war zone.

The Sir John Monash Centre was

still under construction in 2017.

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One-Word-Sunday22-Straight

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straight

extending or moving uniformly in one direction only;
without a curve or bend.
 
 
 
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School Library.

 

Suburban Library

Waurn Ponds

Geelong.

 

The exterior of the

National Gallery of Victoria,

The Home of Australian Art…

 

..was created using straight lines of various lengths

that created a myriad of geometric shapes.

 

Melburnians either love or hate

the finished product.

Australian National Memorial

Villers-Bretonneux

France

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One Word Sunday Challenge:...Straight

 

 

 

 

 
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One-Word-Sunday22-Hole

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hole

a hollow place in a solid body or surface.
 
 

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Lochnagar Crater is…

 

…is one of approximately…

 

…twenty such holes created by… 

…Brtish forces who tunnelled under German lines…

…and detonated large quantities of explosives.

Lochnagar Crater is the only surviving crater

of the original twenty created during World War 1

And is now owned by the

Friends of Lochnagar Crater

which is based in England

Surrounding the crater are several memorials to

others who served in World War I.

There is a boardwalk around the top

of the  crater where visitors can,

for approximately $50 (Australian)

or 25 GBPounds, add a plaque

to commemorate their ancestors

who served on the Somme.

 

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One Word Sunday Challenge:...Hole

 

 

 

 

 
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WeeklyPrompts-PC-Missing

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missing

(of a thing) not able to be found because
it is not in its expected place
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During my 2017 visit to the Western Front Battlefields,

we visited many memorials dedicated to those who

paid the ultimate sacrifice and those listed as missing.

The Thiepval Memorial, on the Somme, was one such

Memorial to French-Anglo Soldiers.

Although only 300 French and 300 British graves

in this French-Anglo memorial,

it set the tone for our few days

on the Western Front.

 I could only wonder if there were any of

the 72,000 names inscribed upon the Memorial

watching over their comrades in arms,

as I imagined they may be.

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Weekly Prompt Photo Challenge:…Missing

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by

FOWChallenge-Blast

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blast

blow up or break apart (something solid)
with explosives
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During World War 1 allied forces tunnelled under

the German Army’s lines in France.

 

When tunnelling was complete, 27 tons of explosives

were placed in the tunnel and detonated.

The resulting blast created Lochnagar Crater,

the only surviving one of twenty or so such craters

on the Western Front battlefields

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Word-of-Day-Challenge-Poignant

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evoking a keen sense of sadness or regret

In 2017 I visited the Western Front Battlefields

in France and Belgium

where my grandfather served during

World War 1.

 

Serre Road Cemetery No. 2.

Merricourt Cemetery.

Nowhere was it as poignant as at…

…Menin Gate,

Ypres,

Belgium…

 

…during the Last Post Ceremony

held each evening at 8 PM.

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Sunday-Stills-0912-Going-Back…

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going back

(of a clock) be set to an earlier standard time,
especially at the end of summertime

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In a few weeks, October 3 to be precise,

we are going to be thrown out of gear

for a few days as we go back to

Daylight Savings Time

which will last until then the

1st Sunday of April.

In 1976 I set off on my overseas trip

as was the norm in those days.

I spent a month touring around Great Britain,

before heading over to Canada,

my real destination.

In 2016 we returned to Great Britain,

for a few days, prior to crossing

the English Channel, from Dover,

for our European holiday.

***

It was not until we were home a few weeks

that I began thinking of going back

to France to visit the Western Front battlefields

where my Grandfather served during World War I.

 

In late May 2017, I again landed at Heathrow

where I boarded a London bound train to

St Pancras International Station.

At St Pancras, I boarded the Eurostar

for my trip across to France,

disembarking at Lille.

From Lille, it was only a 45-minute

train ride south to Arras.

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Sunday-Stills:…Going-Back

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FriendlyFriday21-Found-Objects

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Fishbait on Point Lonsdale Pier

French farmers are still finding unexploded

ammunition in their paddocks.

These munitions are taken to a depot

outside their town, which is cleared

every two or three weeks.

Shrapnel is also in plentiful supply

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FriendlyFriday:...Found-Objects

   Amanda                                Sandi       

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Cee-BW-Challenge-Landscapes

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Cee’s

Black and White Challenge.

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Geelong sunset.

Beachscape

A landscape or the result of landscaping?

Many South West Victorian farms have

changed their landscape from one

which grazed sheep and cattle to one

which grows trees and is far less intensive.

A little over 100 years ago this idyllic

French landscape would have appeared

anything but idyllic as Villers Bretonneux

was in the middle of some of the

heaviest fighting of World War I.

As the sun goes down…

…near Geelong.

Yearling Herefords

Spring sown canola crop on its way to maturity.

Canola in flower

 

Saint Kilda Pier

 

Moorabool Valley eucalypts.

In the distance are

The Grampians.

The southern end of

The Great Dividing Range.

Moorabool Valley

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Cees-BW-Photo-Challenge: Landscapes

Black_White

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