Remembrance Day in Ypres

So I did something special for Remembrance day. Something I will never forget and hope to do again. Another Canadian and I went to Ypres, to explore the cemetery's and see the official ceremony.

We started off with the In Flanders Fields museum. Belgians definitely have a talent for museums, and this one was no exception. It was the perfect thing to do to get yourself in the appropriate mood for a Remembrance day visit.

We then rented two bikes from a local hotel to go see the cemeteries. I think it's the best way to do it. Though it is a fair distance and we did run out of time in the end, you just wouldn't get the same feel speeding by in a car. We visited several cemeteries, in a coincidentally ascending order in the size's of the cemeteries. Seeing all those numbers, all those statistics my whole life about all those who died, after seeing all those photos every year, one would think that there aren't many more surprises. But nothing really sums up the devastation of those wars, like seeing the rows upon rows of tombstones. So many you can't even fit them all into a single camera shot. And as you walk between them knowing that you are walking over all these men, and then looking and seeing just how many have no name, how many will never have a family visit them, how many will just fade and conform into the background. Over eleven thousand were buried in the last cemetery we visited. How many will continue to have poppies laid upon them? How many will only feel the rain?

Report Trois

Where to start. Well, the last report I left off as being sick, which I was, but only for a day. It just so happened that on week later I was sick again. Except in a different and slightly worse way. Seeing as these were both Mondays, I was really feeling Garfieldish. But alas once again it did not last and I was in again in fine form the next day.

To be completely honest, the last month has gone by so fast, I’m having trouble remembering what happened when, so if you can bear with me, I’ll try to give some highlights.

Sports: I finally started playing soccer! I’ve played three matches now. The first we lost 6-2. So pretty bad. But I got myself the nickname the bear from Canada, so not all was bad. The second which was against the top team our league we tied 0-0, so a definite improvement. The third we won 2-1 and I had an assist! As you can see our team is on the rise, unfortunately a little too late as we’ve already lost too many to make it to the championship. On a happier note however, I have been asked to play with the next age group up as well as my team this weekend as they need some extra players, so I’ll be having a jampacked nonstop soccer weekend! The guys on my team are great, and we have a lot of fun.

School: Though still very tough, I do believe I’m starting to improve and perhaps reach the level required. As before my friends are all just as supportive and helpful, though I am now making more and more, so much so that even one of the Belgians was impressed. An interesting little something we did in school say goodbye to our principle, we did this with the whole school dancing a pre-choreographed dance to Mika’s Love Today. It was a fun and interesting way to say goodbye.

Rotary: A rather uneventful month for Rotary, I had one meeting with my local host where I had to do a little presentation about my arrival. It went over very well, and I had several compliments for my French.

Scouts: I did two big things with scouts this month. One as a leader with the “lutins” where we went around town selling clown noses for an organization of clowns who go to children’s hospitals and retirement homes to entertain and bring happiness to places that can be rather sad at times. I made sure to keep one to pin on my blazer, as you never know when you might just need to make someone laugh. Two weekends later I joined in with my host brothers’ scouts group for a hike weekend. The hike itself was quite brutal. In total I would say around three hours of hiking, if not four. Out of this three, around two was spent in field/marsh/swamp. This wouldn’t have been so bad if it wasn’t already almost 7:30 when we started, so this was all in the dark. Never been happier for light pollution. It was a fun weekend though, as they gave it a little Halloween touch.

Now I can only really think of to talk about is my last week. This past has been holidays for me. Don’t ask me why, I couldn’t tell ya. But as my host mother has left for Egypt, alone. All my host siblings, and I have been distributed to several different family members for care. I am with Baudouin with their grandparents in Verviers. Though there is not a whole lot for “youth” to do here in Verviers, I got to some nice sightseeing with the grandparents, have fun with the little cousins who came over for three of the days, make a traditional Canadian dinner (which was a success!), and help destroy and rebuild a driveway.

Though I would love to tell you all about the various things I’m very excited about for the next month, I wouldn’t want to spoil the next report. So until then, keep enjoying Ontario’s feel good town!