Gallipoli is always a destination high on the list for Australian travellers and now I can say that I am lucky enough to have been.
The Gallipoli peninsula is a (long!) day trip from Istanbul, but it was time well spent. To see it with my own eyes was really something I won’t forget.
(Looking down from the top of the ridge)
Our guide was amazing. He has been guiding Gallipoli for 30 years, and even did a tour for the director of the movie ‘Gallipoli’….and told him the faults! Turns out all the other guides in the area are all his students.
Our tour took us to so many points of interest that it is hard to get them all down here.
We started with Brighten Beach, where the ANZACS were supposed to land. While the area definitely was flatter, it still would have been no easy task.
ANZAC Cove itself would have been a nightmare. Coming off a boat in the early morning to gunfire raining down on you from above is unimaginable. But to their credit, the ANZACS managed to get the top of the ridge within 2 days – but with a tragic amount of lives lost. To think that this conflict went on in this cove for 9 months is just horrific.
What you see on TV during the live broadcasts from Galliopoli isn’t actually ANZAC Cove, as the amount of visitors got too big. The memorial now takes place at North Shore, just a few hundred meters up the beach.
(Where the ANZAC Day service is held)
(Walking back to the bus)
There are trenches still zig zagging up the hill (dug by the ANZACS) and some trenches not 5m away (dug by the Turks). Nature is slowly taking back this land but you can still easily see where they were.
(Tunnel entrance)
(Close up)
(Turkish trenches on the left, ANZAC trenches on the right)
There are several cemeteries along the beach and upon the ridge. It is heartbreaking to see so many young lives lost in such a small space of time. Many graves list 25 April (the day they landed) as the date the soldier died.
.
.
.
(Simpson….from Simpson and his donkey. Carried wounded soldiers up and down the ridge to hospital)
Other headstones state that they ‘believe’ the soldier lies here, as this was a mass grave.
Turkey and the War Commission do an excellent job of maintaining this area with the cemeteries in pristine condition and memorial plaques everywhere. There is even a beautiful memorial with words from President Artiturk….
This plaque made me cry. It is quite difficult to read but because it is so moving I copied it below…
Those heros that shed their blood
and lost their lives
you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country
therefore rest in peach
there is no difference between the johnnies
and the mehmets to us where they die side by side
here in this country of ours…
You the mothers
who sent their sons from far away countries
wipe away your tears
your sons are now lying in our bosom
and are in peace
after having lost their lives on this land they have
become our sons as well
Aturk, 1934
There is no animosity from the Turks towards Australians at all in this place, and it’s important to remember that thousands of Turks also lost their lives.
(Turkish cemetery)
While it is a place of sadness, there is also a sense of beauty and calm. I honestly believe that those who lost their lives there can truly rest in peace.
Lest we forget.
Stumbled across your post today. We were in Gallopoli about eight weeks before you and your photos seem to be a replica of mine. Likewise your comments. It was a humbling experience and reminds us of the futility of war. A beautiful peaceful place now, how terrible it must have been for the combatants from both sides.
Thank you Jenny. I couldn’t agree more. I wasn’t sure what to expect or how I’d feel but you are right that it is a beautiful peaceful place. Very glad to have had the chance to visit.