A Terrible Waste

So far, the weather hasn't truly co-operated. We saw the sun on Saturday evening - briefly - the first time since we left Vancouver on Monday. But we're making the most of it.

Friday was a shopping day. We went over to the next village of Koekelare and visited the other two of the three grocery stores there. Delhaize is the favorite. In the afternoon, we visited a local castle. The Wijnendael Castle is a picture postcard place. But the owner still lives in half the castle, and any picture of the place is ruined by his car parked on the drawbridge. The self-guided tour was a bit cheesy, as well.



Wijnendael Castle

Saturday, we went where the weather would be most favorable. And that was to
Pas de Calais in France, about 90 minutes away. I wanted to visit the place where my Dad's uncle Charles was buried during the First World War, and it was supposed to be rain-free there today. 

Again, the highways were a pleasure to drive - some at 130 km/h. Not too busy, and everyone courteous. Although at one point, we came upon a toll bridge. Didn't know what to do. Everyone stopped and took a ticket from the machine (instructions in French - je ne comprende pas!). We shrugged, kept the ticket and drove on. A few km later, we exited the highway, came to another toll gate, and between Moi and I, we figured out we had to put the ticket in, and pay .70 Euro to continue on.

I knew that Etaples Military Cemetery was one of the biggest of the Commonwealth cemeteries, but pulling up beside it took my breath away. I was shocked by the number of headstones I saw.

First view of Etaples Cemetery

Turns out there are 10,000+ Canadians, Brits, Aussies, Kiwis and others buried there. The area was the site of a number of field hospitals during the war.

My grandfather and two of his brothers, one older, one younger, volunteered at the outbreak of war. My grandfather was the only one to return home. His older brother Charles had immigrated to New Zealand a few years prior. He joined the New Zealand army, and fought in Egypt before being sent to France. The records I have show he took a wound to the abdomen a week prior to his death in October of 1916. A week of being shuttled from the front lines on the Somme, to hospitals back and further back, only to die almost in sight of his homeland. A terrible waste. Today, we paid our respects to him, and to the others with whom he lies.

Eric and Sean placed a Union Jack and Maple Leaf

Too many to count

We had fun today, too - more in a later post.