On the Sunday before the 9th, we went to Ypres now called Ieper. On the way we had lunch at the Hooge Crater Cafe which is opposite the Hooge Cemetary. Great link for Hooge here.
We then went onto Tyne Cot. Tyne Cot is the largest British cemetery in the world. Most of the dead here came from the Battle of Passchendaele. There are nearly 1,000 Canadians buried here - The CEF was the unit that finally took the town at a cost of 17,000 casualties.
Here is James. The scale of the place is overwhelming.
On this wall the names of the missing - Robin and I lost it when we found a wreath just behind the screen. It had been placed recently and said "To my dear brave grandfather whom I never knew".
We had dinner in Ieper and then went to the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate. This takes place at 8pm every night no matter what. The gate was filled with Canadians that night.
The Menin Gate is one of two memorials for those that have no grave. The salutation for them is very moving and gracious.
