Last year's tour

On Friday, the students were farewelled by invited guests and family members and presented with their winning certificates by Ms Jennifer Howard (Assistant Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Assistant Minister of State) representing the Premier of Queensland at the farewell event held at 1 William Street in Brisbane. In the evening their journey commenced, flying to Dubai before the second leg of their journey to London.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After arriving in London mid-afternoon local time, the group did some brief sightseeing en-route to the hotel. After freshening up, the group enjoyed dinner at the hotel and prepared themselves for the expedition through history that lay ahead of them.

Today the group immersed themselves in the sights of Old London Town. Westminster, Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square were just some of the sites visited on a walking tour. The students began their war pilgrimage with a tour of the Churchill War Rooms and the Imperial War Museum before enjoying an evening cruise on the Thames.

Venturing outside the capital today, the group travelled to the town of Harefield which, during World War I, was used an Australian military hospital. A combined commemoration was held with the student leaders of Harefield Junior School at Harefield Anzac Cemetery where Australian diggers lay in rest. Upon arrival back in London, they visited the HMS Belfast and held a commemoration ceremony.

Moving on from Great Britain, today the group travelled to Paris by Eurostar. The afternoon was spent with a tour of some of the city's most famous sights. The day concluded with a cruise down the Seine River.

The Louvre and Chateau of Versailles were the main attractions today as the students received an exclusive tour of the spectacular palace and gardens of Versailles. A highlight of the visit was a trip to the Hall of Mirrors where the Versailles Treaty was signed, ending the First World War.

The tour in the footsteps of the Anzacs' commenced today with students embarking for Belgium after breakfast. Several historical sites including the Australian Memorial Park, V.C. Corner Cemetery, and the site of the recently discovered Australian mass grave at Pheasant Wood were visited, giving perspective of the sacrifice given to defend the Western Front.

The group continued their tour of the Western Front concentrating on the Ypres Salient where over one million men were killed or wounded trying to gain control of this small patch of ground. Polygon Wood and Buttes New British Cemetery were among the cemeteries visited today as well as the German Cemetery at Langemark. At the Langemark cemetery alone, the number of buried soldiers is greater in comparison to the total buried in all of the allied cemeteries, such were their losses also.

This evening they attended the Last Post Ceremony at Menin Gate (where the names of 54,000 missing British and Commonwealth soldiers are recorded) and laid a wreath. The Ypres fire brigade has performed this bugle ceremony every day since 1928, the only interruption being during the four years of German occupation during the Second World War. The ceremony recommenced on the day the town was liberated in 1944.

Today the group explored one of Europe's most charming medieval towns, starting with a cruise on the canals before wandering through the cobbled streets of Bruges. After a couple of hours roaming the many chocolate shops and cafes the students returned to Ypres via a visit to the New Irish Farm Cemetery.

Arguably, the highlight of the tour, today students immersed themselves in the life of a solider. Dressing in full WWI kit they undertook a journey through the Passchendaele battlefields in a once-in-a-lifetime experience that lead them to sites such as Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest Commonwealth war cemetery and the resting place of 11,954 soldiers of whom 8,367 are unidentified and 'Known unto God' only.

Today the tour group visited the location of the Battle of Bullecourt where Australia lost 10,000 soldiers over two great battles in 1917. After paying their respects at the Australian Memorial Park the group spent time exploring Amiens, the capital of Picardy, a town rich of art and history. This included a tour of the famous Notre-Dame Cathedral.

In the evening the students were guests of the mayor of Amiens at a special 'Proclamation of Friendship' event held at the Amiens Town Hall, acknowledging the links between the towns of Amiens in France and Queensland.

Villers-Bretonneux, home to the rousing 'Never Forget Australia' sign that graces the entrance to the Victoria School was amongst the locations visited today. Stops at battlefields throughout the Somme included the astounding Lochnagar Mine Crater, which is over 100m in width. Walking with their historian through some of these battlefields gave a deep insight into the fighting that resulted in more Australian casualties than any other battle in our history.

Watching the sunrise over the Australian War Memorial, in the early hours of the morning on Anzac Day, the students and chaperones experienced a once-in-a-lifetime event as they participated in the historic centenary dawn service at Villers-Bretonneux, France. A truly unforgettable event they will remember for the rest of their lives!

As the sun reached higher points in the sky, the students were guests in a town breakfast hosted by the townsfolk of Le Hamel, a town that was liberated by Australian and Allied troops in 1918 in an offensive led by Sir John Monash.

After a day of remembrance and reflection, the students returned to the Australian War Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux where they toured the newly opened Sir John Monash Centre. The tour group also took the time to commemorate a number of service people who lay at rest at Villers-Bretonneux. Also visited today was Adelaide Cemetery, resting place of the Unknown Solider for 75 years before his remains were returned to Australia in 1993 to the Australian War memorial in Canberra.

The group toured more of the Somme including the inspiring Australian 2nd Division Memorial and the trenches of Mont St Quentin. The group then headed east out of the Somme battlefields and into the area that was the scene of a series of great Australian victories in late 1918: the Aisne. Sites visited here included the 4th Australian Division Memorial at Bellenglise and the village of Montbrehain - Australia's last battlefield of the war. After a long and at times confronting trip, the final dinner gave the students' time to reflect on what they had experienced throughout the journey across the western front.

The tour group departed Paris this morning for their return journey home. The return trip began at Charles de Gaulle Airport in the morning, stopping at Dubai en-route to Brisbane. No diary entry has been made for this day.

Arriving back in Brisbane the group will have a meal before spending the night at a local hotel, the post tour event is held tomorrow. They return with everlasting memories and with a new perspective of our Anzacs.