Yesterday, 25th April, was Anzac Day a day of remembrance for those Australians and New Zealanders who have served their country in wars and conflicts and other operations over the years, in particular for those who have lost their lives in doing so.
Originally the ANZACS (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) were a part of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force set up in Egypt in 1914 and operated in the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915/16 against the Ottoman Empire, which led to a terrible loss of life on both sides.
Normally commemorated by dawn services, in this year’s time of social distancing candlelit vigils on driveways and radio broadcasts took the place of public gatherings.
However last week Mlle and I were able to go for a walk in the beautiful setting of Kings Park (see here and here for previous visits), still open to the public as long as the social distancing rules are observed. Of course the State War Memorial could not be used for a public service this year but we could wander round, pay our respects and enjoy the magnificent orange floral displays and views across the Swan River.
Lest we forget.
Copyright © 2020 Rosemary Thomas Le Chic En Rose. All rights reserved
Le Chic En Rose 
I’m very struck, from yours and other posts, at how meaningful ANZAC Day still is to Australians and New Zealanders. It’s good if young people too can say ‘Lest we forget’.
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It is a very important day here and the schools cover it in detail with the children. Normally the school across the road from us has a Dawn Service for ANZAC day each year though obviously not this year. I used to work there and we all attended at about quarter to six! I was impressed last year when my elder granddaughter who was then 6 drew some pictures of the soldiers in the 1st World War and started telling me all about the stories she had learnt. History is so important!
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Indeed it is. But we don’t learn from it, do we?
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Alas no …… 😦
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I had seen in the news that ANZAC day had been celebrated in various different ways. Thanks for the story on how you celebrated this important day…beautiful pictures. (Suzanne)
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Kings Park is a lovely setting Suzanne but of course couldn’t be used this year. The flowers were beautiful though 🙂
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ANZAC day is so important to you Australians and New Zealanders. All those lost to wars fought in other countries. I had not realised that it was a dawn event until this year. You are so lucky to be able to still visit your parks. I wish our gardens and open spaces could re-open again, but it’s worrying how many people still don’t observe the social distancing aspect which is vital if we are to keep safe.
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Yes we are very lucky Jude – hoping that there will be no need here to close the parks and gardens. I guess it helps that we don’t have such a big population and have larger amounts of space certainly here in Western Australia. My dad was saying how people had flocked to the Yorkshire Dales over the weekend causing the police to issue infringement notices – at least one family had come up from Kent hardly a day trip! We have started to relax restrictions further here so schools will be opening for the new term tomorrow and groups of up to 10 can now meet up either at home or outside. Fingers crossed that people are sensible with social distancing and taking hygiene precautions and we can maintain the progress. Yes traditionally ANZAC services are held at dawn – I used to go to the one at the school where I worked it was very moving though I’m not a very good morning person!
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I would find a dawn service difficult, unless in the mid winter when it is later! I think we are a few weeks away from any lifting of restrictions here. We still have a lot of deaths each day, though the numbers are decreasing. What happens when people go out again is anyone’s guess!
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Kings Park is so beautiful, your photos bring back some lovely memories of our time in Perth 🙂
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It’s a fabulous spot and I went there on my last day In Perth at the beginning of March. So nice to see photos without crowds of people. The V.C plaque for Martin O Meara, an Irishman from Tipperary is there on the right of your image of beautiful flowers at the entrance. He survived the war having saved the lives of dozens of his fellow combatants. He spent decades in a lunatic asylum after the war, where he died. He is buried in Karrakatta. His Victoria Cross is currently on loan to the National Museum of Ireland.
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What a poignant story he must have been so traumatised by all his terrible experiences. I will look out for the V.C plaque for Martin O’Meara when I’m next in Kings Park. When we were there with with our granddaughters at the end of January, we spent some time looking at the crosses and memorials dotted round the parkland in memory of the soldiers who gave their lives in the war. The girls are 7 and 5 and were very moved by the stories and the tragic loss of often young lives. You were fortunate to be able to get out to Perth in Feb/March – our borders were closed by mid March. I should have been in the Uk then but postponed and have no idea when we can come over to see our extended families again. Just have to be patient and realistic plus grateful that we are safe here – closing the borders has been drastic but we are really are seeing the positive effects now.
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