The train trip to Amiens was very straight forward and thankfully our hotel was in easy walking distance of the station. Once we'd checked in and deposited our bags we headed out to explore the city centre. The cathedral was huge and incredibly has survived both wars intact. We climbed the towers and enjoyed great views of the city and countryside around.
After consulting the guide books we realised that we had to go to Villers Bretonneux on Saturday if we were going to get access to the museum. So there was a bit of an early start to have breakfast and make our way back to the station for the 9am train. It was quite by chance that we decided to double check the opening hours of the museum before heading out to the main Australian memorial. When we got to the museum there was already quite a crowd and an Aussie couple came up to us to explain that Tony Abbott was due to arrive any minute although he was running late. Breakfast was prepared in the playground of the Victorian School and everyone was invited. Unfortunately the heavens opened and everything got soaked before the Prime Minister arrived. When he did, I barged my way to the front of the media pack and shouted "Tony, we're from Mosman!" He said "I'm sorry you had to come so far to meet your local member." Clearly he was in France for the D-Day commemorations so I asked him what his lasting impressions were of the previous day. He gave an expansive answer stating among other points the fact that the ceremony at Bayeux cathedral had been very moving. I then asked if he thought the spirit of D-Day would survive and he declared that it must, for all our sakes. Incredibly my interview does not appear to have been televised or reported in the French or Australian media! It was really interesting to see Peta Credlin and all the security dudes, as well as journalists from channel 7 and SBS milling around. It's quite a circus. I got talking to one of the pack and she said she had to be really careful to listen out for when the decision was made to move on because it was really easy to get left behind. Apparently she nearly got stranded on a trip to Beijing.
Anyway after all that excitement we walked out to the Australian memorial outside the town and enjoyed the views of the surrounding countryside. The peaceful scene that greeted us was obviously a far cry from the nightmare of the battlefields nearly 100 years ago.
With the benefit of a hire car on Sunday we were able to visit other significant WW1 sites such as Thiepval and Pozieres. The scale of the human tragedy that took place here is unfathomable and certainly beyond my powers of description. This weekend it was clear that Picardy was being subjected to another invasion but this time of relatives, school children and other tourists making their way from the D-Day beaches to take in the arena of battles from the "Great" war. We saw memorials to the British, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans, Canadians and Irish. I couldn't help wondering where all the dead German soldiers were who were presumably no less loved or mourned by their families.
