Day 7 – June 19 – Alexandroupolis to Canakkale (Turkey)
It was a great night’s sleep at the Alexander Hotel, looking out over the northern Aegean Sea, not all that far from the Turkish border. We had to work quickly this morning – breakfast at 7am, bag pick-up from our rooms at 7:30am, and bus waiting to leave at 8:30am.
Firstly though, it was Julie’s birthday. I was up extra early to get her card written and ready before she opened her eyes, which had to be 6am this morning. I also made ‘café latte’ for her, and put a magnificent photo of a 15yr old Julie sitting on the bonnet of my FC Holden. I didn’t quite see it myself at first – the symbolic significance of my ’59 Model FC Holden, and Julie today turning 59! She has had quite a good day. What about a birthday present, you might sask? Well, just wait.
Breakfast was a sheer delight! The spread and selection of sumptuous food was beyond description, as was the dinner the previous evening. There were several busloads of tourists staying at the Hotel. The breakfast bar smorgasbord was a very popular beginning to the day. We headed off, all feeling sparky and cheeky. Life on board the bus is mostly a happy affair, at least until later in the day when everyone is feeling weary, especially from the heat. Today though, it never really got above the twenties.
We headed east along the ‘via egnatia’ (the road built by the Romans linking Rome with Asia, running from Rome through Albania, Greece and Turkey). It didn’t seem to take long before we were queuing at the Turkish border Passport checking point. We were required to change buses, into a bus that would only take us about 1k through what is known as ‘no man’s land’ – basically the first check was for Passports, the second was for Visas, and once through, we changed buses again, this time into our Mission Travel Turkey bus. Our Greek guide Athena, departed (we will see her in Athens) and we started with a new Turkish guide – Omar. Omar is an absolute character, and very quickly became ‘one of us’. We will enjoy the week with him!
Our Passports were collected ‘en masse’ at the first check-point. We just sat in the bus, but were given 5 mins to check out the small Duty Free shop just inside the border gate. I bought some really nice perfume for Julie’s birthday, which fortunately turned out to be very popular! At the second gate we had our Visa check, and then entered Turkey.
I must confess I have very quickly fallen in love with Turkey. It is nothing like what I imagined. The scenery is so pretty, it is almost ‘english’. The Aegean Sea looked beautiful at a distance, as did the Dardanelles as we tracked close to the inside of the Gallipoli peninsular. We were getting very close to Anzac Cove, our main destination for the day.
We were all rather excited as we drove into the Gallipoli National Park. Omar was very lovely and gracious. He spoke about ‘our heroes’ referring to the Australian soldiers buried on Turkish soil at Gallipoli. He spoke so graciously and gently and with so much respect.
For the next few hours we visited most of the main memorial locations of what became the areas of tragic conflict for the Gallipoli campaign. In an area of barely a few square kilometers, where the Turks defended their country from an invading foe which included a large contingent of Australians, more than 140,000 soldiers lost their lives, with Turkey suffering the highest losses.
We started at Anzac Cove, where the Australians landed (in the wrong place) in the early hours of 25 April 1915. Looming high behind us we could see the Sphinx, and in the distance Lone Pine; we passed Shrapnel Gully, and could see the Nek and not far from there we could see Chunuk Bair, where there were high New Zealand casualties. Over the next few hours, we visited all of the places that have become part of our Australian story for 100 years now.
We gathered together at Anzac Cove and took 30mins for our own Anzac reflection, which was nicely led by one of our couples, including the Last Post and Reveille. It was a very moving time.
We made our way to the grave of Private John Simpson’s grave, who saved so many of his fellow diggers by bringing them to safety on his donkey, only to be killed himself by a sniper’s bullet some 3 weeks after the initial landing. We eventually made our way to the top, to Lone Pine Memorial cemetery, probably the scene of fiercest fighting and bravery by the Australian 4th Battalion. The Padre for the 4th Battalion was our own Salvation Army Major William McKenzie, better known as ‘Fighting Mac’. This was more like Holy Ground knowing that Fighting Mac was alongside the Diggers when they charged the Turkish trenches. Fighting Mac buried some 700 diggers, wrote letters to their families, with many a burial done on his knees to avoid being shot himself.
We asked to visit a cemetery for the Turkish soldiers, which was very touching for Omar. The views of Suvla Bay and also Anzac Cove from the Lone Pine and Chunuk Bair memorials and cemeteries were simply breathtaking. It was very difficult to leave such a special place that really has become Holy Ground for Australia and Turkey equally.
We headed for our Hotel at Canakkale. We crossed the beautiful Dardanelles by a very large ferry, which easily took our bus, and couldn’t believe the beauty of Canakkale across the water. Everything in Turkey so far has been just stunningly beautiful. Our Hotel is a delight, right on the waterfront with the most glorious views of the Dardanelles, and the entire waterfront of Canakkale. We had dinner together on the deck of the Hotel restaurant, looking out over the splendor of this magnificent region of Turkey.
Today we left the shores of Europe and entered Asia with the crossing of the Dardanelle waterway, still tracking with the ‘via egnatia’ which was also the road taken by St Paul (mostly) in his 2nd Missionary journey from Syria through what is now Turkey into Greece. Despite the focus of the day on our Australian history, we have not forgotten St Paul entirely.
Julie and I sat on our 7th floor balcony, watching the sun settle behind the hills across the Dardanelles waterway. So from the beautiful city of Cannakkale, not far from the Anzac Cove landing beaches where so many young Australians paid the ultimate price for service to their country, we send our love.
Until tomorrow….
KRA
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