War memorials, human kindness, and Amiens
4 comments September 4th, 2004
The road from Abbeville to Amiens follows the course of the Somme river through a picturesque valley of peaceful fields, and quaint old villages. It is difficult to believe that the bloody battles of the Somme wreaked such utter devastation during both the first and second world wars – difficult, that is, until one passes any of the countless lonely memorials, which stand folornly in every small village and beside many forgotten back roads. The first we saw was some time back, on the road to Etaplés – a small sign caught our eye which mentioned a cemetary commemorating the soldiers of the Commonwealth. The sign was so insignificant that we were wholly unprepared for the heartbreaking sight of hundreds upon thousands of small, white headstones, presented in stark military lines; the final resting place of so many soldiers from Australia and other commonwealth countries.
Being priviledged to have grown up in a country which has never fought a war on it’s own soil, the realisation that I was actually walking across the very ground on which those historic battles were fought, through the villages which before were only names from books, has been a strange and disturbing experience. In so many of these tiny villages lone monuments stand, always dedicated to the “guerres” who “mort pour France” – the soldiers who died for France. And very often either next to these monuments, or on the same stone, is a testament to the Australian and other commonwealth forces who fought and died beside them. We have come across some of the more out of the way monuments, seemingly forgotten, and read that an entire regiment of Australians died in that same peaceful looking field, or been moved by the simple pride in the words “liberated by the the allied forces” and a date. War memorials have always had the ability to move me to tears. But in walking through the quiet backroads of the Somme, I have felt as if I were walking back in time. It has also made us both more anti-war than we ever were before. Gary has said on more than one occasion that if that imbecile John Howard stood in front of some of those memorials, perhaps he would think twice before sending even more Australian troops to fight other people’s wars.
All of these monuments led the way to the greatest of all – the magnificent Gothic cathedral at Amiens, the biggest in Western Europe. Quite apart from being utterly beautiful, inside was the most moving tribute to soldiers that we have seen. Carved into one wall was a lifesize sculpture commemorating the French soldiers who died. Close by, hidden away in one of the naves, was the Australian flag carried by the troops who fought in the battle which liberated Amiens in 1918, hanging dirty and torn from the wall, alongside those of America, Britain, New Zealand and New Foundland. On the walls opposite are stone plaques donated by each government, in memory of those who died. Neither Gary nor I are Catholic – but we lit a candle at that memorial.
The 13th century Cathedral itself is dramatic. Over the last few years research has been done to discover the colours which the sculptures at the entrance were originally painted. The results have led to an incredible laser light show, which lights up the facade of the Cathedral every night for an hour, enabling watchers to to see the beautiful colours and detail of the sculpture as they must have been during Medieval times. I had been a bit sceptical – somehow “laser light show” and ancient cathedral didn’t seem a good combination – but it was absolutely wonderful, and we were both transfixed throughout.
On our way to Amiens we passed through the town of Flixecourt. It had been a lovely day’s walking, through stunning countryside, but we had done over 13 miles and were definitely ready to stop. Unfortunately the campground was signed about 4 miles on. Hot, tired, and not remotely interested in walking another 4 miles, we decided instead to enquire of the owners at a farm on the corner as to whether we could camp in their field. And here comes the human kindness part of this entry!
We were greeted by the most friendly woman imaginable – Monique, who, with her husband Alain and brother Christophe, runs the farm. She welcomed us immediately and showed us where to put our tent, would not accept a cent for her trouble, and then came out of the house with -oh joy – big bottles of cold water. By the end of the day we had met the entire family and been so well looked after we didn’t want to leave. We spent a lovely night in their front garden, had wonderful coffee and cake the following morning, and were sent on our way in amazement at how incredibly kind they were.
To Monique, Alain, Christophe, Isobel, and all the family, thankyou so much for welcoming us, and we hope very much to see you again.
I know we have said it before, but every day we are absolutely bowled over by how much the French people we have met happily go out of their way to help or be kind. We have met nothing but welcome, hospitality, and goodwill from all we have come across, and have felt truly grateful on many occasions for the kindness and patience shown us.
From Amiens we are turning South, to Paris via Beauvais. We have switched into slow mode a bit at the moment – there is so much to see! – so we may not get to Paris for a couple of weeks. The sun has finally come out, so we can’t rush in such dreamy weather. Lets face it – we just can’t rush! We seem to be stopping as much as we are walking at the moment. But then, we shall only pass this way once, as the saying goes, and we want to savour it all.
Feray and Sadia, it was brilliant to get your comments – but come on now, Fez, I could never compete with Nadia, Scott and Michelle (can’t believe I can actually remember the names of the losers from Big Brother). And Sards, not suprise you can still feel me in that room babe, I left it in the most appalling mess ever created. Should imagine my presence will be making itself felt for some time to come! I hope you are both coping ok with the new school year. I miss everyone from school loads and think of you all the time, Gary thinks I am going to get RSI from txting. It is really lovely to hear from you and please, please stay in touch!
To our darling nieces Kate and Em thankyou so much for your lovely posts, we are carrying photos of you both (although they are a bit old now) and think of you every day. Emmy-lou I hope your neck is not so sore now, and that you are back doing acrobatics soon.
I have put some new photos up – some of the delicious FOOD I am addicted to – so you can all see how much weight I am not losing. Cheers for now.