In Flanders Fields the poppies blow…

And so begins the poem by John McCrae of Guelph Ontario, Canada. He wrote this poem in Belgium during the Battle of Ypres in World War I. The poppy is now a symbol of Remembrance Day (formerly Armistice Day), a day in Canada where ceremonies are held and a minute of silence is observed on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

Sadly the world has seen many wars, the world wars and just wars around the world. War tourism sounds a bit macabre but for many relatives and strangers it is a way to experience history and pay homage to fallen soldiers in foreign lands. Of special note to Canadians are the following sites:

• In Flanders Fields Museum, Belgium
• France:
  Vimy Ridge
  Juno Beach
  Normandy: D-Day; Dieppe
• Belgium, Luxembourg and Holland – War Monuments, Museums and Cemetaries

And back in Canada:
The John McCrae museum in Guelph, Ontario
Canadian War Museum, Ottawa, Ontario

Canadian Battlefield tours

Other ‘Famous’ War Sites oft visited:

• Gallipoli, Turkey
• Vietnam and the war tunnels
• USA – Top 10 Civil War Sites

…Lest We Forget