Mark Hone Posted 2 January , 2014 Share Posted 2 January , 2014 You know his date of death (the first day of the Third Battle of Ypres) and unit. It would be a straightforward matter to determine the approximate site of his fatal wounding, if that is what you would like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillEll Posted 3 January , 2014 Share Posted 3 January , 2014 I visited several times in the 1980s and again in 2012 and the increase in numbers is staggering but I would never compare it to Paris Disneyland, it is still very much about remembrance. WillEll why not go and pay your respects there during the day when it is quieter but do revisit for the last post ceremony and make you own mind up. Perhaps when you last visited Steve you were fortunate in not having quite the same experience as some of those in more recent posts ? The coach park pictures at Tyne Cot have a familiar look about them and remind me of similar sights at most theme parks if not Disneyland ? Mr Camerons recent news bytes from the same place giving an impromptu lecture to a load of kids did not endear me to it either but, apart from that it is a very personal thing to stand at a cenotaph/memorial and think of the terrible conditions these young men faced and consider what their families must have gone through after being treated in the way that they were,and to thank them for their ultimate sacrifice ? I want that 'moment' to do just that. And I will have it. Away from the greed and commerce that surrounds the problems that this thread has pointed out quite starkly. With respect I think that a previous poster, ROEL22 said it all eloquently and so long ago, "I saw my First Last Post ceremony around 1986. I remember feeling sorry for the buglers, with so few people taking notice. I understand those days are in the past... Roel" In response to Marks suggestion,yes that is exactly what I want to learn and is the place where I will have my 'private moment' ! I have searched many publications concerning that day and the 1/9th and the 'Kings' in particular and think that I now need to visit the terrain in order to make some sense of it all. They suffered so many losses that day that it would always have to be sheer best guess work as to where he most likely fell. I am grateful to all that have responded and will obviously consider my options nearer the time. I still dont like chocolate though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveMarsdin Posted 3 January , 2014 Share Posted 3 January , 2014 Six coaches in a coach park doesn't make it Disneyland ! Even if it is only a whistle-stop visit in a much wider itinerary, at least some of those will now have a better idea of the sacrifice made by earlier generations. Why single out coaches at Tyne Cot ? Most school trips travel by coach and, as you will see from other threads, there are many excellent trips that run, many of which are taken by members of the GWF. I do agree there is something very special in having a cemetery or battlefield to yourself, to collect your thoughts and remember those that went before but to be fair you can't really expect to get that private moment at Tyne Cot or the Menin Gate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillEll Posted 3 January , 2014 Share Posted 3 January , 2014 With regard to the last paragraph I have to concede that In all fairness you are right and would see the situation in reverse (i.e perceived 'undesirable' people being prevented from attending) as a form of elitism. But in reference to the number of coaches that constitute a nuisance, I used the example of the photograph, but the tenure of the preceding and following posts were much the same. This thread was started on the very subject of passenger vehicles being a nuisance, I believe ? I merely wish to visit there but do not wish to contribute to the problems that arise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 I thought forum pals would be interested to see this photo, posted by our pal Chris Lock onto Facebook yesterday. Coaches parked near the Menin Gate by 6pm. Better get there early if you plan on a good view at the 8pm Last Post during this centenary period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithmroberts Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 Just when I was beginning to wonder about a short trip to Ypres. Maybe I'll not bother. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Davies Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 Maybe it should be seen as an opportunity. From 6pm onwards all the coach parties will be in town which will mean that the battlefields and cemeteries will be congestion free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithmroberts Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 They can't all be school buses, the bars will be full. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
centurion Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 They can't all be school buses, the bars will be full. Keith And even if they are bars full of teachers doesn't bear thinking about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin spof Posted 13 April , 2014 Admin Share Posted 13 April , 2014 How will anyone be able to get into a chocolate shop? Unless you are saying there are other reasons for visiting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scalyback Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 They can't all be school buses, the bars will be full. Keith I attended a few weeks ago, had the gate pretty much to myself and other parts as the town was packed with the buses loads. When I went into town to pick up some grub in the supermarket only locals about(I think I may of cause some amusment in thesupermarket for the locals) then returned to the bar that is next to the gate. Had a window seat to myself and then wandered to thegate after a nice glass of LeFort(anyone know where I can obtain in the UK). It is a matter of timing and planning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithfazzani Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 I was there with a group on Wednesday evening, it was a rugby scrum, and not at all pleasant, I think to get a viewpoint one would have needed to be there at around 7pm. However our coach had no problem in dropping us off at the approved spot behind the Cloth Hall at 6pm and picking us up there at 8:30pm, in fact there were only two coaches there. The driver said that there was plenty of space in the approved coach park at the "goods yard". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 A trot along to Ramparts Cem. always recharges my batteries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Lees Posted 13 April , 2014 Share Posted 13 April , 2014 I was in Ypres yesterday. Plugstreet Wood at 5pm, no-one else in sight anywhere around. Walked from Prowse Point to the Christmas Truce memorial and then down into the wood and the cemeteries therein. Then off to Hill 60 and spent 40 minutes there. Again, no other visitors there and an empty car park. Into the square for about 7.40pm and parked right in the square, wandered into a restaurant and it was very quiet. We didn't visit the Last Post ceremony and had a lovely time. It's not difficult to avoid the crowds, even in Ypres. The day before, the Somme was packed with coaches and it was mayhem at Lochnagar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 14 April , 2014 Share Posted 14 April , 2014 On the risk of being accused of repeating myself... the best way to visit those places in still ... ON FOOT !!!! Or take the train... Menin Gate is 10 minutes tops from the station! M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrislock Posted 14 April , 2014 Author Share Posted 14 April , 2014 Isn't it amazing how members of this forum feel empowered to tell the good burgers of Ypres how to run their town Run their town?? As a Belgian ID card carrying citizen of this great town and also a citizen who has accepted his democratic right to sit at Ypres town hall public meetings and vote in local authority elections where I live and work today, I would state quite clearly I have every moral and legal right to comment on how my town is run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 15 April , 2014 Share Posted 15 April , 2014 Run their town?? As a Belgian ID card carrying citizen of this great town and also a citizen who has accepted his democratic right to sit at Ypres town hall public meetings and vote in local authority elections where I live and work today, I would state quite clearly I have every moral and legal right to comment on how my town is run. Yes, excellent that you are "Our Man in Ypres", Chris. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harveyfletch Posted 16 April , 2014 Share Posted 16 April , 2014 Being as the ceremony has taken place every night since 1928 , apart from the interlude caused by ww2 . I can't understand why locals are taken by surprise every evening by the road closure . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Medic7922 Posted 16 April , 2014 Share Posted 16 April , 2014 Reading the concerns of members on here regarding the parking, if I parked at the Railway Station and “Yomped” to the Menin Gate how long would it take, thats of course my mate who is coming with me don’t stop at the local drinking houses on the way I’m not drinking due to me driving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 16 April , 2014 Share Posted 16 April , 2014 Reading the concerns of members on here regarding the parking, if I parked at the Railway Station and “Yomped” to the Menin Gate how long would it take, thats of course my mate who is coming with me don’t stop at the local drinking houses on the way I’m not drinking due to me driving. 15 minutes, tops... 10 if you're speed-marching ... A bit longer if you stop at every bar of course... MM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 30 April , 2014 Share Posted 30 April , 2014 Our pal Chris Lock has posted photos on Facebook of the more than 40 coaches parked up for the Last Post yesterday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 3 May , 2014 Share Posted 3 May , 2014 This text is copied from the weekly Friday news email sent to members of the International Guild of Battlefield Guides. As we have discussed above, plan your visits to the Menin Gate with care if you wish to avoid disappointment. "I thought members might wish to be aware that sadly the Menin Gate has become a “theme park event” we were there on Saturday 26th April along with an estimated 3000 others and over 150 coaches. Parking is chaotic, coaches moving twixt and between the Railway station which is being dug up and the road above the Gate which is grid locked. I had a long talk to Jaquie Platteau and other members of the Last Post Committee afterwards and they are very concerned from a number of aspects and have no solution!! I was told by one who lives on Hill 60 that they had some 20 coaches there at one time and as we well know the park can take but 2 at a time". It is beginning to look to me as though this just has to become an all-ticket event or with restricted access by some other means. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seadog Posted 3 May , 2014 Share Posted 3 May , 2014 Is this a peculiarly British attitude towards events and locations becoming popular and thereby attracting crowds who of course have every right to be there. Perhaps a more positive approach will be in order starting with a meeting of representatives of all the interested parties in an attempt to address the perceived problems and to try to find a solution. I find it amusing that the quote from the IGBG moans about the crowds when they themselves rely of such crowds for a living. I would have thought that the increase in visitors is extremely good for Ypres and those who provide for them. Regards Norman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 3 May , 2014 Share Posted 3 May , 2014 Not sure it is an attitude thing at all, Norman. It is a simple question of practicality for the people of Ypres and those who wish to visit. If the situation is as described (I can't vouch for it, having not been for some months) it does require a lot of thought and management. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seadog Posted 3 May , 2014 Share Posted 3 May , 2014 Chris it may well be a situation which requires a radical solution such as making the road from the Square to the Gate traffic-free on a permanent basis then installing TV screens in this street so that the crowds can view the ceremony without a crush under the Gate. I would also suggest that the practice of both wreath-laying and putting on a performance under the Gate is severely curtailed and that the ceremony returns to a simple dignified format as no doubt was intended in the first place. To address the coach parking situation then perhaps a more drastic solution is required such as the construction of a new coach park with shuttle buses bringing the visitors to and from the Gate with perhaps even a restriction on the number of coaches allowed controlled by a ticket permit system. In fact the same Ypres coach park /shuttle bus solution could also be applied to the Hill 60 parking problems. I appreciate that the above may appear radical but perhaps something along these lines is the only long-term solution. Norman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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