We travelled to Arras which is a 50 minute train ride north of Paris. Our train was running late and we nearly missed our tour, so we were very lucky.

The countryside was littered with  poppies that grow wild on the the roadside. We then drove to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission which has a busy job here with memorials, headstones and soldier recovery. This can be when a road is extended, paddock plowed or a house is modified and often a soldier/s will be discovered and then hopefully later identified. This whole process can  take up to a year to do.

We travelled through the countryside to Beaumont Hamel Newfoundland memorial park. We saw preserved trenches and section of the original 1916 front line. We walked in  them and heard about trench life. We also walked to the other side where the German front line was. Our understanding of the conflict is now so much better and our guide shared his knowledge which was extensive. We saw a bomb crater and trench burials sites. It was very moving. Hard to believe  it was so peaceful today, yet was once the site of intense and bloody battles. We travelled the roads that were once walked by our soldiers and originally built by the romans. We stood where they fought and died  at Pozieres Ridge, we then stopped at the memorial for Australian 1st Division. We then travelled further to the memorial site of the Third Australian division and passed the site where the Red Baron was shot down. Passing by we could see artillery including old bombs on the roadside that the farmers continue to find on their farms. This area is full of tunnels and some are still being discovered although many are documented in maps from the war.

The battle of the Somme had significant military, political, industrial and domestic consequences for all the countries involved. Every village, copse, farmhouse and rise was fiercely contested and both sides committed huge quantities of manpower and munitions to the struggle. An estimated 3.5 million men fought on all sides and over 1 million were wounded and killed. Precise figures are impossible to calculate. Offical figures for British Empire casualties numbered some 420,000 wounded, missing or killed.

Last stop was at Villers Bretonneux visiting the Australian War Cemetery and The Monash Centre (only opened in April 2018). They have ANZAC memorial services here on Anzac Day. They had a 3D film room with special affects like cross-fire, bombing, smoke and 180 degrees movie of the front line, it was very moving and very real. The Museum was very well done and you could spend all day here. The leadership and actions of Sir John Monash are what lead us to victory here. It was a very moving day, to stand on the soil where our soldiers fought, lived and died. We are both so proud to be Australian and we will never forget them.