Ailish's Shared Histories Adventure

[ailishjean]

Une année après le début de ceci parcours

Samedi, vingt-cinq avril:

I actually cannot believe that it has been over a year since my Shared Histories journey began! 2014 was one of the busiest years I’ve had to date- with it being my last year at high school, being involved in running my own business as part of the Young Enterprise Scheme, and, of course, being a Young Ambassador for the Shared Histories project. This time last year I was completely oblivious to how being a Young Ambassador would affect my life, and I had only met two of the other YAs by April last year too (Emma and Harriet). There is really no way of putting into words everything that Shared Histories has meant to me, but simply put, the memories that I made during this experience will stay with me forever, and my time as a Young Ambassador will continue to help define who I grow into as a person.

Firstly I want to start with a massive thank you to everyone who helped out with making Shared Histories and the Young Ambassadors Tour a reality for myself and my fellow YAs. Specifically I’d like to thank Glenda and Ruth for being such wonderful chaperones to us in France and Belgium, you both were absolutely intrinsic in making our experience as amazing as it possibly could be! I would also like to acknowledge the absolutely fabulous Pascale! Pascale, you are such a character, and your energy and passion for Shared Histories really enhanced my experience as a Young Ambassador! I am also eternally grateful to Mrs Hill, my wonderful, wonderful French teacher, and to Mrs Riepl, my fantastic History teacher! Without you both I would never have been able to have this amazing experience, and I can never thank you enough for believing that I was good enough to put forward for this project!  Finally I want to thank everyone who helped me fundraise for the trip last year, I certainly couldn’t have got there without you, and I cannot thank you enough.

Today, on the centenary of the Gallipoli landings, I feel that it is an appropriate time for me to “end” my Shared Histories journey with my final blog post. This morning I attended the Dawn Service at Pukeahu National War Memorial in Wellington, and I was blown away by the thousands of people who had flocked to the War Memorial in order to show their respects to those military personnel who have given their lives in service of their country. I think that the turnout is really reflective of the ways in which New Zealand and New Zealanders are waking up to the reality of the Great War, and to the impact that the War has had on shaping us as a nation.

Earlier this week I also attended the Victoria University of Wellington Italian Society’s ANZAC/Alpine Front centennial service, with fellow YA Josh Hansen. I found it an enlightening experience as I had never previously given much thought to the Alpine Front and the soldiers who fought there during the First World War, and yet here I was being exposed to yet another side of the War. For me this spoke to the increased recognition and education that is a by-product of the centennial commemorations, something that is also woven into the Shared Histories project. The aim of Shared Histories is to connect schools in New Zealand and France with the hopes of creating ties that are shared over an educational experience focused on the Great War, and as the remaining centennial years progress I can only see this project expanding in positive ways.

Finally, I must address my fellow Young Ambassadors. Who would have thought that 11 teenagers from across New Zealand could have come together for such an amazing experience, and have come away from it as such good friends? Certainly not me! I was incredibly anxious about spending time in France and Belgium with ten near on strangers this time last year, but I had absolutely no need to be worried. After our first official meeting in Wellington last June my doubts started to dissipate, and they were completely gone by the time we arrived in Paris the following month. I am so grateful that I got to share the experience with ten such talented, kind-hearted, and hilarious people, who I now consider extended family and some of my closest friends!  Since we returned to New Zealand, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting up a couple of times with some of my fellow YAs, and I reckon a 2018 reunion with all of us would be great, huh?

In closing, I’ll let you know what I’m up to this year. I’ve made the move from Dunedin up to Wellington, and I’m currently studying History, Classical Studies, Italian, and Latin at Victoria University of Wellington (with hopes to continue with French next year!)

I will never forget the experiences that I’ve had because of Shared Histories and on the Young Ambassadors Tour, and I can’t wait to see how this project evolves!

Bonne chance pour tous l'étudiants s'impliquer dans Histoires Partagées, et au revoir tout le monde! Merci beaucoup pour suivant ma histoire!

[ailishjean]

YAs passée un jour en Auckland

Samedi, six septembre:

After almost two months since the beginning of the Young Ambassadors Tour in July, all eleven of us YAs, Glenda, ad Pascale were reunited for a day in Auckland. It was brilliant to see everyone again, and to catch up after a hectic time back at school.

To start off the day we each picked a picture out of a box that showed somewhere that we had visited/had something to do with our trip, and we went around the group talking about each photo. It was so interesting to hear what the others thought, and had taken away from, the activities that we did, and it was a great way to relive great memories.

In the afternoon, Jean-Marc Dépierre, the Directeur of the Alliance française Auckland (and Délégué général de l'Alliance française Nouvelle Zélande et Iles Cook), visited us- which was a great honour- and we took part in a very informative quiz about the Alliance française.

We spent the majority of the day talking about the future of Shared Histories, and how we, as Young Ambassadors, can branch out into our own communities to spread awareness of such a great project.

I had an awesome day catching up with everyone again, and it was so nice to all be together. I hope that it won't be too long before we get the opportunity for another reunion, and I can't wait to see how Shared Histories progresses.

[ailishjean]

NZAFT Concours d'Écriture

Vendredi, vint-neuf août:

Whilst we were in Ypres, I found out that I had been successful in gaining 4th place in the NZAFT Concours d'Écriture. The following is my entry about ANZAC Day and commemorations of the First World War in New Zealand:

« Ceux qui ne peuvent se rappeler le passé sont condamnés à le répéter. » ~ George Santayana.

En 1914, la population de la Nouvelle Zélande était d’un million. Comme nous étions membre Commonwealth nous suivîmes volontiers la Grande-Bretagne à leur guerre contre l’Allemagne, malgré le fait que la guerre se soit déroulé à plusieurs milliers de kilomètres de chez nous.

La Première Guerre mondiale a coûté la vie de 18,500 Néo-Zélandais et avec en plus 40,000 blessés. Donc, dire que La Guerre a énormément affecté notre pays est dire la vérité. En fait, La Guerre a déterminé ce qui est devenue la Nouvelle Zélande. Comme c'était encore un pays relativement jeune; elle a défini notre histoire.

Pendant le  20e siècle, le monde est devenu plus connecté que jamais et par conséquent, les jeunes d’aujourd’hui ont plus accès aux informations que toutes les générations qui précédent. Les adolescents sont exposés aux medias à tout moment et donc ils voient souvent à la télé et donc les conséquences de la guerre. Ils sont plus conscients que leurs parents ou leurs grands-parents quand ils étaient jeunes de la façon dont la guerre peut détruire tous les aspects de la vie. Les soldats qui ont combattu La Grande Guerre avaient le même âge que nous et donc, nous pouvons reconnaître l'importance de leurs sacrifices.

En Nouvelle Zélande on ne peut pas trouver un seul village ni une ville sans monument pour commémorer les défunts de La Grande Guerre. Il n'existe aucun moyen de s'échapper du passé et donc La Guerre reste importante pour notre pays. Il suffit de regarder le nombre de gens grands et petits qui assistent à la commémoration ANZAC, du 2013 pour voir que les sacrifices des jeunes du passé n'ont pas été oublié.

Pour moi, l’essentiel c’est d’apprendre du passé afin qu’on puisse éviter de répéter les horreurs de la Grande Guerre.

[ailishjean]

Une présentation à Yvette Williams

Jeudi, quatorze août:

Today I went to the retirement village next to my school in order to give a presentation on the Young Ambassadors Tour for the residents.

I actually really enjoyed having the opportunity to go and talk to them, as they have even closer personal ties to the Great War than my generation does, and they all seemed very happy to know that a group of young New Zealanders were getting so involved and interested in this part of our country's history.

I had a few residents approach me after my speech to share their stories, and one was from a lovely man called Nigel. Nigel's father had been a soldier at Gallipoli, where he had been injured, and whilst in convalescence in England, he had his caricature done with a Maori soldier- a picture than Nigel has kept to this day. It was such a privilege to get to see it, and to speak to a man like Nigel.

An opportunity like this really made me appreciate the effect that the Shared Histories project can have on the wider community, and I felt very proud to have been a part of the YA Tour.

[ailishjean]

100 ans depuis l'annonce de la Grande Guerre

Lundi, quatre août:

Today marks 100 years since the beginning of the Great War, and all around the country there have been commemorations, and Dunedin is no exception.

I went to a candlelit peace vigil, that walked down from First Church to the War Memorial and Cenotaph.

It was nice to be a part of a commemoration service after having had my perspective on the war put into context after the Young Ambassadors Tour. The great loss of the First World War hits me much harder now than it did before our trip.

There were speakers at the vigil, after the pensive silence, and one German woman spoke. She said simply, "Look around, there are no enemies. We're all just people"- an impacting statement indeed.

[ailishjean]

Le dernier jour en France

Jeudi, vingt-quatre juillet: Today was our last day in Paris/France, so we decided to split up in order to make sure we all were able to do what we wanted. Theo, Huia, Emma, and I went to the Eiffel Tower, whilst Harriet and Sophie visited the Catacombs, and the others went to Musée d'Orsay. We went right the way up the the top of the Eiffel Tower, and the views were just astounding! Paris from above is stunning, and it was a great way to spend our last day!

We briefly met with the others at the Medieval Museum after our morning at the Eiffel Tower.

Once reunited as a group we walked to the Jardins de Luxembourg, and we had a nice relaxed stroll together.

Afterwards, we headed back to the Fiap, and prepared ourselves for a very long journey home!

[ailishjean]

Messines et Tyne Cot

Mercredi, vingt-trois juillet: This morning we got to stroll around Messines, and we had a lovely guide from the Peace Village, Simon. We visited a New Zealand memorial for the men who died at Messines, that held the names of over 300 soldiers.

In the cemetery Simon told us of four Kiwi soldiers' remains who had been found recently nearby and finally laid to rest with their comrades. Simon told us some great stories of the New Zealand soldiers, and explained to us their part in Messines.

We then went to the visitor centre in Messines that reopened this year with a focus on New Zealand's involvement in the war.

On the town square outside is a statue of a New Zealand soldier, placed there on ANZAC Day this year to commemorate the Kiwi soldiers of the Great War.

We then left the wonderful Simon, and travelled on to the Memorial Museum of Passchendale. There were some fascinating exhibits that spanned all areas of the war.

There were interactive parts of the exhibits, and one of these was one where you could smell the different gasses used on the soldiers. They were absolutely disgusting smells, and the smell alone was choking, so it wasn't hard to imagine how awful the real gas would have been for the men.

There was an entire dugout in the museum, which was a very surreal experience.

And there was also an interactive video detailing the battles at Flanders- which was brilliant as we were able to see what the New Zealand troops helped to achieve, even at such an immense loss.

There was an entire section dedicated to New Zealand troops too, which was brilliant to see!

And there were also more trenches- another eery experience.

The end of the exhibit detailed the mourning of the dead, and the years after the war- a respectful, and somber end to a great museum visit.

Our last trip in Belgium was to Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest British war cemetery in the world- including a section dedicated to New Zealand soldiers.

The graves seemed to go on for miles.

And the number of names inscribed on the panels seemed endless too.

It was a nice experience to be able to visit the New Zealand section, and it was another moment when I felt proud to be a Kiwi.

After we left Belgium, we headed to Lille for a touch of shopping before we caught the TGV back into Paris. And tonight we went out for our last dinner together as a group- which was a lovely experience to have.

[ailishjean]

Ypres

Mardi, vingt-deux juillet: After a sad goodbye to our lovely host-families this morning, we left Arras and made our way to Belgium! It was quite strange to drive just a short way and to be in a completely different country, with all the signs in Flemish instead of French! We went to the Bayerwald Trenches, and had the pleasure of being able to explore the restored trenches.

The tops of the trenches were surprisingly low, and they were rather narrow too- we were able to imagine how awful it would have been to live in these trenches, with the added atrocity of being constantly under the threat of opposing fire.

We then made the short ride to Ypres, which is an absolutely gorgeous city!

We saw the restored town hall, with its homage to WWI soldiers- a building which doubles as the In Flanders Fields Museum.

After lunch, we got to explore Ypres for a few hours, and of course we had to try some Belgian chocolates!

All around Ypres there were war memorials- a reminder of the city's continued connection to the war that helped define it.

A group of us then went and saw the Menin Gate, and I was greatly impressed by the massive structure!

Once again, I was blown away by the sheer number of names of the dead soldiers who all fought for their countries during the war. The number is incomprehensible really.

We then went into the museum, and were exposed to the war from a new perspective- a Belgian one.

The exhibits were really enlightening, and covered all aspects of the war from the viewpoint of Belgium, France, Britain, and Germany.

In the end though, all men were united in death; and a display of graves and memorials demonstrated this fact.

We were lucky enough to partake in the Menin Gate Ceremony- Josh, Caitlin, and I had the once in a lifetime opportunity to lay a wreath for the Shared Histories Young Ambassadors!

There were flocks of people present for the ceremony, and it was a very poignant experience. I looked up at all of the names as the Last Post was being played, and it was hard not to be moved.

There was a troop of Canadian soldiers there, and so alongside the English National Anthem, they sang the Canadian one.

I've had an incredible day in Ypres, and today I felt very proud to be a part of Shared Histories and the Young Ambassadors!

[ailishjean]

Carriere Wellington

Lundi, vingt-et-un juillet: This afternoon we went to the Wellington Quarry just near Arras, and we took a tour down the 20m underground tunnels.

There were small stops every so often that contained either some actual items from the Great War soldiers (left during the Battle of Arras), or a video for us to watch. I found eh experience quite emotional actually, as we heard soldiers' letters read out, and heard songs they would have sung, as well as very realistic sounds of battle etc.

In one area, a drawing had been found of a chaplain, and the area was presumed to be a make-shift chapel for the men before they went up into the open to face the Germans.

Some of the tunnels dug by the New Zealanders went on for over 2km!

And the entrances to No Man's Land are still visible from below.

"I am the enemy you killed. My friend."

We then returned to the centre of Arras and we went down into les bovres- the underground chalk tunnels that run for miles under the town. It was a great way to learn more about the lovely town we've been staying near for the past week.

Harriet and I were then taken this evening, by our host-dad, to a German cemetery. I'm glad that we had the opportunity to go and see one, as sometimes it's easy to forget that Germany lost thousands of men in the war too. The crosses for Germans are black, and each cross holds the names of four different soldiers- the crosses seemed to go on forever too.

We then went to a Franco-British cemetery also.

And we went up to Notre-Dame de Lorette- an absolutely gorgeous church built after the war that also holds a French cemetery.

It's our last night with our host-families unfortunately, so Harriet and I took it upon ourselves to make our family a good Kiwi pavlova! It surprisingly turned out really well, and our family loved it! It's our host-sister (Emilie's) 18th birthday on Thursday too, so the pavlova turned into an early birthday cake. I've absolutely adored my time here in Arras with our host-family, and I'll be sad to leave them to go onto Belgium and the final leg of our trip!

[ailishjean]

Le Quesnsoy

Dimanche, vingt juillet:

Today we took the trip out to Le Quesnoy- a town that the New Zealand Division liberated from the Germans near eh end of the war (4th November 1918)-, and we were met by the New Zealand Association there. Since the Great War, Le Quesnoy has had a strong connection with New Zealand, and it has never forgotten the work of the Kiwi soldiers. We had a lovely breakfast together before we headed out to a nearby town, Beaudignies.

At Beaudignies, we met the Mayor- Mrs Raymonde Dramez- and got to visit the Town Hall, and here about the history of the Kiwi soldiers in the town. They had lots of photos, articles, and books about the subject- of which we luckily got to have a look at.

We then started a mini-tour of the area, and to begin with we went to the river, Le St Georges, that the soldiers had to cross in order to enter the town.

Next to the river is an old farm house (that was around during the war), and we were able to see where the Kiwi soldiers would have stayed once they made it across the river.

The woman who lives at the farm came out with a photograph to show us of the German soldiers the New Zealanders had taken prisoner once they’d captured the area, and we were able to see exactly whee the photo was taken, which was a little eery.

We then visited a nearby church that held the graves of several New Zealand soldiers, placed alongside other soldiers, including a few Germans.

We headed back to Le Quesnoy, and were greeted at the Town Hall by the Mayor. We presented our knitted poppies to the Mayor and the New Zealand Association members, as a sign of friendship to the people who remember what our Kiwi soldiers did all those years ago, and who foster the same interest in remembrance and commemoration.

In the Town Hall they had lots of gifts they’d received during their connection with their sister town in New Zealand- Cambridge.

And opposite Marianne- a prominent symbol of the French Republic- was a Maori Tekoteko!

A tradition for towns in Northern France is to have Town Giants, and in Le Quesnoy, one of the giants is a Maori!

We went though the Porte du Château (in the town square) and onto the Avenue des Neo-Zelandais! There was even an All Blacks Place nearby!

Here we got to see the Jardin du Souvenir, one of the four New Zealand Battlefield Memorials on the Western Front.

The garden had lots of ferns growing alongside oak trees- to represent the New Zealanders and French. And there was also kiwi fruit vines there too!

We then got to walk along the battlements, and look down the very long drop to the marshes below- a height that the kiwi soldiers had to climb to get to Le Quesnoy.

We then got to return to New Zealand in a way, because the French gifted some land to New Zealand as a thanks for what they did during the Great War for Le Quesnoy, and so it is actually New Zealand territory.

On one of the high walls was a commemorative sculpture of the Kiwi soldiers climbing the walls into the town! And it was in front of this artwork that we were able to sign a waiata for our French hosts, which was a great experience.

Le Quesnoy (and Beaudignies) are fabulous towns, and it was great to “walk in the footsteps” of the Kiwi soldiers who liberated them almost 96 years ago, and to meet the wonderful people who live there, and who very kindly showed us around their home!

[ailishjean]

Un jour avec notre famille française

Samedi, dix-neuf juillet: Today we had the whole day to spend with our host-families, and so Harriet and I went to the beach with our family!

We went to Cap Gris-Nez and from the beach were able to see England (The Dover cliffs)!

We then went to Cap Blanc-Nez and climbed to the top of the hill.

At the top we could see an obelisk for la Grande Guerre, and there were brilliant views of Calais, the sea, and England.

We also went to Boulogne-sur-Mer, which was another absolutely gorgeous town!

And in the evening, we were able to go to a party with our host-sister- it was great to get to experience a French party!

[ailishjean]

La Somme

Vendredi, dix-huit juillet:

This morning we reunited as a group, and travelled out to Péronne to visit the Historial de la Grande Guerre (a museum). It was housed in a lovely medieval castle, and it was full of amazing artefacts- spanning from 1914-1930s (for the effects of the war).

After lunch we went to the Lochnagar Crater Memorial, which was a lovely memorial by a crater (presumably made by a shell).

Then we went to the Thiepval Memorial, which was absolutely huge and very harrowing- the structure has around 70,000 soldiers’ names on it!

Next we briefly visited the New Zealand Somme Memorial.

Then we made it to the Caterpillar Cemetery, which was quite an emotional experience. I found out that three of the soldiers (three Wallaces) that I had researched for History were buried there, although unfortunately I couldn’t find their graves.

We got to see the replacement headstone for the Unknown Warrior that now rests in Wellington, and Theo and Caitlin gave us a talk on what they had learned when they visits the memorial in Wellington.

Lastly we visited Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial- where the largest preserved trenches of the Somme are- and we were able to actually walk in the trenches, which was a strange experience.

[ailishjean]

Shopping en Arras

Jeudi, dix-sept juillet: Today we had a day relaxing with our host-families, and Harriet and I went into Arras and met up with Huia, Emma, Caitllin (and her partner Mathilde), and later Sophie (and her partner Delphine).

We went up the Bellfoi and we got to see all of Arras from up high- it's a very beautiful town!

We then went shopping, and had a great afternoon despite the heat of about 31°C!

This evening, Harriet and I made our way across to the WWI Cemetery across the road from our house.

There were lots of British and Canadian graves- it seems as if a lot of Canadians died serving their country in this area-, and it was a rather emotional experience.

The number of unknown soldiers really shocked me, and it was sad to think that there are men that died and have been forgotten/lost in time. Something like this is a harrowing experience that I think everyone should experience to understand the sacrifice of those who died in the Great War.

[ailishjean]

Notre Dame et le voyage à Arras

Mercredi, seize juillet:

This morning we made our way out to the Notre Dame, and it’s truly a gorgeous piece of architecture.

Before we went in though, we got to visit the bookshop Shakespeare and Company, and it’s honestly a little haven for book lovers!

When inside we had the pleasure of listening to a New Zealand school choir singing as we toured the cathedral, and there was a gorgeous atmosphere!

We then went over to l’île Saint-Louis for a delicious ice cream and a bit of shopping.

I the. Left the group for a wee while as I had the pleasure of meeting up with my Aunt and cousin from England, who I haven’t seen in 5 years! It was great to catch up, even though time went very quickly!

In the afternoon, we left the Fiap hostel, and we made the bus trip up to Arras to meet our host families. Harriet and I have been put together with a lovely family, and I’m really excited for this next part of our trip!

[ailishjean]

Le Musėe de l'Armistice et Ubisoft

Mardi, quinze juillet: This morning we went out to Compiègne to visit the Musėe de l'Armisitce. In the museum they had a replica carriage for the one that the Armistice was signed in (during the Second World War, Hitler destroyed the original), and they also had lots of brilliant artefacts- including lots of photos of places around France that were devastated during the war.

After lunch we came back into Paris and went to the New Zealand Embassy in France, and we had a brilliant chat with two of the women that work there about using languages for careers overseas, and about what they are doing for the WWI commemorations. We then went to Ubisoft, the gaming company, in the afternoon. There we met Alexandre Lafon, who works with the Misson Centennaire, who kindly gave us badges, and who had helped to organise our time at Ubisoft. One of the workers at Ubisoft presented their new WWI game 'Valiant Hearts' to us, and it's absolutely brilliant! It tells the story of four different characters during the war throughout the game, and it looks fantastic! I had a great time at Ubisoft! (The trailer for 'Valiant Hearts': http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MP8q5F6dFqQ)

This evening we went on a river cruise on the Seine, and it was a great away to see Paris. The mood was really set with the audio tour, and the French music that was being played. I loved listening to 'La Vie en Rose' whilst looking at the magnificent buildings along the Seine!

[ailishjean]

Le Quatorze Juillet

Lundi, quatorze juillet:

We were lucky enough to receive an invitation to be seated on the Champs Élysées for the Bastille Parade, only a short way away from the Concorde de la Place! We also got to see François Hollande- the French President- as he drove past!

This year’s Bastille Day Parade was really the start of WWI commemorations for the French, and so there was a group of soldiers dressed in First World War uniforms, marching as the men would have done 100 years ago. It was great to actually see people dressed in the uniforms, and it gave a great visual in thinking about the men in 1914-1918.

My favourite part of the parade was when the planes (old and new) flew overhead. It was a spectacular sight, and the sheer noise of the planes gave a great atmospheric mood.

There were thousands upon thousands of soldiers marching down the Champs Élysées, and it was brilliant to see all the different French battalions, vehicles etc.

After lunch we made our way to le Jardins Tuileries, where a reconstruction of WWI cars, camp sites, and soldiers had been set up. Once again it was great to see a slice of history brought to life!

Then we walked on towards the Louvre, and we got to see the magnificent L’Arc de Triomphe de la Carrousel!

And of course, the Louvre itself! I was blown away with how gorgeous it was!

We managed to quickly stop off at L’Arc de Triomphe- which was massive and stunning!- before we made our way to the New Zealand Ambassador’s Residence for afternoon tea.

We had a wonderful time exploring the gorgeous house, and meeting some great people- we even got to catch up with the four older Young Ambassadors who had actually taken part in the Bastille Day Parade in a dance! Lucy, Theo Loretz, and Harriet also wowed us by playing some gorgeous tunes on the piano in the salon. All in all, it was a lovely afternoon!

Tonight we made our way to a bridge near the Eiffel Tower to watch the fireworks, and it was an amazing end to an absolutely brilliant day!

[ailishjean]

Les Invalides et Sacre Coeur

Dimanche, trieze juillet: Today we made our way to Les Invalides to see the exhibit at le Musée de l'Armée on WWI and WWII. There were some brilliant objects, and it was a great way to start our visits to war related places.

After le Musée de l'Armée we went and saw Napoleon's Tomb- it was astonishingly beautiful! The architecture and grandeur of the whole building was amazing!

After lunch a group of us walked on to the Sacre Coeur, and it was also gorgeous, and we had a brilliant view down onto Paris.

We then met up with Ruth's old host-son, and wandered through Montmatre before going to his apartment for a few hours- it was great to get a real feel of Paris!