This morning at dawn 40,000 people gathered in Melbourne to mark Anzac Day. All over the country on April 25, families remember the soldiers of the Australia and New Zealand Army Corp. At a beach near our home, 1,500 people assembled, and later many more of us joined for an Anzac Day Parade in our small, country town.
Veterans chatted to old mates, young cadets fell in ranks, and school children waited for the marching to start, wearing the medals or badges of soldiers from their families.
Older Diggers waited in cars and Jeeps.
And then the parade started, only half an hour late.
Veterans of all different regiments and wars marched together.
Families clapped and waved Australian flags.
School children, like this remarkably cute one waving, marched.
And this lovely big sister.
Children represented Diggers who have passed on, wearing the medals on the right.
Several soldiers wore kilts.
The horses came, and someone ran behind putting orange cones over the poo they left behind.
They all marched past the review officer.
And then we all assembled to listen to speeches. Look at that sea of school hats!
We laid wreaths at the cenotaph.
Where a soldier stood at each corner, guarding in the hot sun.
We listened respectfully near the plaques and poppies that mark the names of the fallen.
Planes flew over. And then we went home to enjoy this beautiful land.
I didn't know Anzac was ya'll Veterans Day-- I've seen it on the calendar. Great Photos!
ReplyDeleteWow! I had no idea what Anzac Day was. Thank you for sharing. It's really neat to see countries honor their soldiers. My daddy was a soldier in our Marines.
ReplyDeleteYour pictures are fantastic! I love the ones of the girls ~ especially the one with the girl with the medals pinned on. Really cool.
OMG, love the post and info but the GUY ON THE HORSE! Yummy. Wow. A beautiful bit of Australia there, and the other photos were great too!
ReplyDeleteThe schoolgirls looked so sweet...are uniforms like that common?
Amy
Hi, Amy, thanks for stopping by.
ReplyDeleteHe is handsome! I noticed the wedding ring, though!
Yes, all school children wear uniforms in Australia. The tidiness/ formality varies with the schools, of course. Both of those girls attend a private school (like almost 1/3 of Aussie kids), so they look a bit dressier. They generally have a sports uniform of shorts and a polo shirt.
Stacy,
ReplyDeleteI liked the photo of those girls, too. Notice the big one is holding her little sister's hand.
Do you have your Daddy's medals or copies of them? I'd like to get copies of our families for our girls to wear, so the understand a bit better what it's all about.