Nat at the Caen Peace Museum

I've gotten use to no grass, lots of cars and much concrete since I moved downtown. Walking the Canadian battlefields of France is incredibly peaceful. Both Vimy and Beaumont-Hamel are parks so there's plenty of grass and few cars. In fact, the French who live around the park enjoy walking the grounds, especially on Sundays.

When Nicole went to Vimy two years ago, she remarked how fresh the air was and I can say I felt the same way when I went back this year. But I forget that these battlefields were not peaceful 90 years ago.

So at the Caen Peace Museum I was especially impressed by the film on D-Day. The screen is split between the German and Allies. The film shows both sides preparing for the day. Of course, the Germans are oblivious and are going about normal drills. The footage of the Allies has men waiting in the landing boats. They all look up at the camera. Some smile or wave, some are sullen. But you know not all of them will make it.

The most affecting/interesting/memorable part of the film was the footage of the soldiers charging up the beach. The cameraman is standing among the soldiers, charging up the beach with them, into the hail of German bullets. The movie switches to an overhead view from an airplane. You watch these men run and just drop on the spot. Whether from a bullet or from strategy; they just fall. The movie then cuts abruptly to the beach as it is now. Sunny, calm, the beach empty of dead bodies.

When I visited, I tried to imagine those boys running up the beach but I couldn't. I guess that's why we have museums and memorials to help us remember.

I'm standing on the remains of a German machine gun bunker. The Germans forced the local French to build fortifications like these.

This was the first house liberated by Canadians on D-Day. If you watch footage from that day, you'll see the house as the soldiers march by. And people still live in it.

Statue at the Juno Beach Centre.

Wooden remains, now covered in moss.

Vimy Ridge musings

I've written this post a few times and had Firefox (!) crash on me several times. So here are my musings.

-I have never been close to the memorial. We went in 2005, but the monument was blocked off. Luckily the tunnels were open, so we had an awesome tour and tour guide. There were only four of us in the group (me, Daorcey, Nicole, and Ann). The tour guide (TG) was our age and was pretty accomodating.

Me: What did the tunnels actually look like back then? It seems pretty bright in here.
TG: Let me turn off the lights. (A few emergency lights remain lit) Yup that's about the lighting level back in 1917.

We approached a room where there's just a pile of rusted metal. Upon closer inspection, it's a pile of weapons, helmets, pumps, barbed wire, equipment. And it's just sitting there, not even under glass.

TG: Here, hold this rusted gun.
Nicole: Um, okay.

-This time around, the tunnels were closed due to some phone problems. But we were able to get close to the monument. Close enough to touch. However, that needed-yet-inconveniencing restoration prevented us from going on to the monument.

A little illegal activity was required to visit the monument. The path leading the monument was blocked off however were able to slip around a flimsy security gate. The path actually leading to the monument was blocked by pylons. So we ran up that path, with the kids catching up. About 10 minutes after we get to the foot of the monument, snapping pictures, a security car drives past on the walking path. We freak out a little but the car doesn't stop.

-I can't really explain why I like Vimy so much. I like the myth that Canada became a nation that day. But it's just that, a myth. If you want a good deconstruction of the Vimy myth, read Michael Valpy's Globe article. Some people decried his "destruction" of the myth, but he doesn't do that at all. It's good to know where your myths come from.

-The monument is achingly beautiful. As I approached it, I was overwhelmed. Part of its appeal for me is that it is not a celebration of victory but of sacrifice. Vimy may be part of the Canadian identity, but it came at a price. I am fond of the statue of Mother Canada who mourns her lost sons. I've also read The Stone Carvers and while the book is overly fond of the happy ending, I love the scene where Klara carves the face of her lost love onto a statue that will grace the pylons forever.

-It seems each time I visit Vimy, I get closer to the monument. So if I keep visiting, maybe by my 10th visit I'll be on top of the pylons.

Usually, one does the tunnels and trench tour and then proceeds to monument. Although I could be wrong. Anyways, you walk to the monument and you can catch glimpses of it among the trees. It's then you know it's big if you can see it and it's 10 minutes away.

This was taken from the first security gate. I thought this was as close as were going to get. Take that flimsy security gate!


This is Canada mourning for her lost youth.

You'll have to click on the photo to see the names of all the Canadians who died in WWI but have no known grave. Before the restoration, the names were disappearing.

At the back of the memorial, is this tomb with the distinctive Canadian helmet, a sword, and laurel leaves. Canada mourning her youth is above this tomb.

Click for a closer view of the pylons. The figures represent several concepts which I'm sure you can google.

Swedish flat-pack

We are slowly moving into our new place. On Friday, Daorcey got the locks redone. We moved in most of our DVDs and books. By the time we were done making several trips with the car back and forth, it was 9-ish.

The next day we went to Ikea, just in time for $1 breakfast. For some reason eating there reminded me of eating at a hostel. We arrived at 11 am, left at 1 pm with less money. But we got a bed, couch, a chair that matches the couch, rug, bedside table, medicine cabinet, a key hook and entertainment centre. The Echo is definitely not equipped to transport all of that so we had it delivered.

After Ikea, we went to Rona to buy screws for the key hook. Instead of just screws, we walked out with two light sets, hooks for the bathroom, and light bulbs. For some reason our bathrooms have no towel racks nor toilet paper dispenser. I don't know how the previous tenants hung up their towels or where they kept their TP.

Ikea showed up at 5:40 which was excellent. They were quoting anywhere between 5 and 10. The couch didn't make it since it was out of stock and Ikea has no idea when it will be in stock again. You'd think Ikea would be on top of its supply chain times. We'll probably need a third person to help us assemble our furniture (hi Tony!) but we had to dress our chair.

So instead of an empty apartment, you can imagine several flat cardboard boxes, a chair, and a rug.

Paris: Bang, bang, bang

Besides the teenagers in our group, it seemed the hotel was filled with teenagers. While sitting up and drinking cheap wine, we could hear kids running around and doors slamming.

At 12:30 a.m. we crawl into bed, tired from a full day of walking around the Louvre and riding the Seine on a bateaux-mouche. Maybe 10 minutes later the phone rings and we all think it's our wake-up call. I pick up the phone since I am the closest to it. Out of instinct I put my ear to it and say hello, and then a guy says "Voulez vous couchez avec moi?" I reply no and proceed to hanging up the phone. In fact I can barely reach the cradle part and just bang the receiver around until it's in the cradle.

I fall back to sleep only to be awaken again by another call. On the other end a voice speaks in a foreign language. I can't remember what I said but it prompts the caller to say "Anglais" and another voice comes onto the phone. That speaker asks "How old are you?" and I say "Too old" and then bang the phone again to hang it up.

I think those other teenagers were looking for the kids on our trip and instead got the old, tired people. Clearly this is a pattern and if we travel with Nicole and we stay in cheap places, we should just be prepared to be awakened by teenagers.

The new condo

The ensuite half-bathroom. Now with toilet. But no shower.

Shuffle-in closet. Has a Daorcey. This is how you access ensuite bathroom.

Bathroom. I like that the previous occupants left a shower curtain thus preventing Jeff's problem of wanting to take showers but no shower curtain. He ended up getting the bathroom all wet.

Kitchen. It has Maytag appliances which is very nice. The fridge is huge. And has glass shelves.

Main room. The kitchen is to the left. And the patio doors to the "generous" balcony.

Here's a panoramic view from the balcony.

Ypres

They shall not grow old, as those that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
- Laurence Binyon, from "For the Fallen"

This piece of poetry was read at Vimy Ridge Memorial re-dedication ceremonies yesterday. It is a solemn bit of writing that can have a significant effect on the listener, especially when read outdoors to a large, silent group.

Two weeks ago, I was reading that aloud to a similar congregation.

In Ypres, Belgium there is a place called the Menin Gate Memorial built as part of the medieval city wall to honour those who fell in the Ypres Salient during the First World War before August 16, 1917. Link for background.

This place was one stop on our tour as the Canadians had played a significant role here (Ypres, is in the district of Flanders). Our guide had scheduled us partake in the Last Post Ceremony that is held 365 days a year (since the end of WWI with only an interruption during WWII) at the Menin Gate. During the event, traffic through the gate is diverted, buglers play the Last Post, various readings are presented and wreaths are laid. Our group was scheduled to lay a wreath on behalf of the Stony Plain Legion and one of us was asked to read the exhortation. I was a bit nervous when Dad asked if I'd like that gig.

Nerves can be overcome, especially if you assure yourself that there will only be a few people there to watch you screw up (should that happen). But the nerves came back when we speed-walked (we were a bit late) our way to the Menin Gate to participate and were confronted with at least 500 people crammed under to gate to watch the ceremony. I was quickly introduced to an organizer, given a laminated sheet with my reading and a wireless mic. Next I was placed beside a small group of women and men smartly dressed in suits and military fatigues and formals.

I was suddenly aware of my unwashed jeans, all-weather jacket and 4-day stubble. But there was no time to worry and soon the ceremony was underway. After a short parade and initial bugling, I was given my cue and slowly walked alone to the centre of the street running though the gate.

Overwhelming. This immense gateway arch. So many people, yet so much empty space around and above me. Facing the buglers, I felt very small not nervous, but insignificant. As I began to speak into the mic, I thought of the words: how they sounded and what they meant.

They shall not grow old.

It felt longer, but it was over quickly and I returned to my spot at the side of the gate. The three students who were placing the Stony Plain wreath soon got their chance to be escorted across the road to the designated place for wreaths. It must have been quite an experience for them too.

As I think back on this trip, this was clearly a special moment. Yes, I felt insignificant, but also honoured and proud. The Menin Gate is a meaningful place and the Last Post Ceremony is a meaningful event. To be a part of it is a rare experience.

The many names on all available space on the Menin Gate.
There was not enough space for all the names of soldiers without graves;
some needed to be written elsewhere.

OMG Debt!!11!

"Look at me, I'm Doctor Zoidberg, home owner."

We have an agreement, on conditions of inspection and viewing the condo documents, to buy a condo.

It's a few blocks west of our current abode. It's close to many things including the library, Tony, gym, the Hop, and transit. Obviously that list is not in priority order.

It has two bedrooms, a huge living area, vented in-suite laundry (yay, clean underwear!), an open kitchen, 1.5 bathrooms and a walk-in closet (but it's more like a shuffle-in closet). There is a balcony but it's too tiny for me to be comfortable. The windows face east and unless physics change, we'll get the morning light.

Hooray for debt!

Spring Break 2007: Caen Peace Museum

To clarify, we went to France with a student group from Memorial Composite High School (Stony Plain). Normally, a sane person would shy away from toodling around France/Belgium with 20 teenagers, but this trip was a special tour to Canadian war memorials/battlefield, plus we would be there with mom and dad, so it made sense to go. Even if we should be thinking about a mortgage instead...

Rather than get into the boring details of every thing we did ('cause isn't that a lot like going into the details of the last video game we played or our drive to Moosejaw?) we'll just make a few notes on the highlights... the moments we'd tell you about over dinner should you ask about what we liked most about France.

Still, I've been known to have a long-winded moment or two.

In 1999, I did a similar school trip and one of our stops was the Caen Peace Museum. I was really struck by a museum dedicated to the idea of peace rather than war.
Much of the museum looks at the reasons for war and the conditions of soldiers during WWI and WWII. On that trip in '99, I saw a French propoganda poster that I've always wanted to try and get a copy of, but have never been able to find since.

When I found out that Caen would be one of our first destinations in '07, I knew that I had to see that poster again. Along with the rest of the museum, which is pretty great, there was the poster and this time I took a photo.
It's not much and the lighting's not great, but I appreciate its simplicity of message and design. It's easy to imagine it as a distributed poster hung on cellar walls during the French resistance.

It was also cool to toodle around the Canadian garden at the Museum.

All-around photos

This is the Beny-sur-Mer cemetery. It holds the bodies of all Canadian soliders that died June-August 1945, mainly from the D-Day landings. (For better viewing, we recommend clicking on the panoramic to get the larger version.)


Juno Beach, where the Canadians landed.


This is Gold Beach, the British D-Day landing area. In the water, the black specks are the remains of the Mulberry Harbours. The harbours allowed the Allies to bring in supplies and men. It cost more than the Chunnel to build.


A crater at Vimy Ridge. It's huge.


The Vimy monument above the Douai plain. The two columns at the top of the monument represent Canada and France. The female figure to the right of the columns represents Canada mourning her dead sons.


At the Adegem Canadian War Museum in Belgium. This is the tea room/dance hall. The man on the very right is the man who created the museum as a result of his father's death bed confession. His father had been a spy for the Allies and had to go into hiding just before the Canadians liberated the area. He never told his family about his wartime activities for fear of Nazi reprisals, and he only confessed to being a spy while on his dead bed. The father made his son promise to create a museum which would educate people about the Canadians' war efforts in the area. The father felt a great debt to the Canadians because their liberation of the area allowed him to come out of hiding so quickly.


At the top of the stairs to Sacre Coeur in Montmartre.