Ozzie Posted 23 August , 2007 Author Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Scottie, With NO intention of starting a row, Tuna was a very special part of our trip to Gallipoli. His warmth and enthusiasm, his translations and kindness, made our trip all that more special. It took a while took get a grasp of his spoken English, but that was part of his charm. He bought along his friend Abdullah, a great young guy, who has much knowlegde but not much English, and Tuna translated, enriching our knowledge. At Lone Pine we were accosted by a Turkish man who insisted we had no right to be there, Tuna explained that we did, and averted an unpleasant incident. We could tell from the man's body language what he was on about, and would have probably responded not so diplomatically, but Tuna stepped forward thank goodness. We were very lucky in our trip to Gallipoli in that we were introduced to people not normally found on the average tourist trip. Haluk and Sahin being just two. One that we have forgotten to mention is Shezkin, (sorry if it is the wrong spelling.) He was our bus driver. He made sure we had cold bottled water, waited very patiently for the crazy Aussies who walked up hill and down cliffs. Joined in with our funny moments, and was like a mother hen to us. His english was little , our Turkish limited to Hello and Thankyou, but with Kenan's, Eric's, and Tuna's help, we all communicated quite well. With out these people our trip would not have been the wonderful experience that is was Cheers Kim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sabine72 Posted 23 August , 2007 Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Kim, It was a pleasure, and we are glad that you all had a wonderfull trip, pm me with the pictures you still need and we will take them for you. kind regards sabine,patrick and robin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ozzie Posted 23 August , 2007 Author Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Many thanks, Sabine, shall do so. Cheers Kim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockney tone Posted 23 August , 2007 Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Kim, i was very pleased to meet up with Tuna during my trip and he kindly found time to show us around town, share a beer ot two and even 'paved the way' for our Turkish Bath trip by pre warning the owner to expect that the 'Tommies' were coming!' Bet the little devil has ignored my advice on stopping smoking however! Really enjoying reading your 'teams' account and starting to feel that you are fuelling my urge to plan a return to the Peninsula, the Hotel looks ideal. In the meantime I think I will have to treat myself to a night at Charlottes! So sorry not to have made the Menin Gate meet but could not 'wing it' with my better half due to our holiday being so close! Kind regards and best wishes, Scottie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ozzie Posted 23 August , 2007 Author Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Scottie, you could not go wrong staying at Gallipoli Houses. With in an hour we felt like we were at home. Eric, Ozlem, Quiby, Soozy and Ahmet became our friends very quickly. For the price you get Breakfast and Dinner ( 3 course) and bed. The rooms are huge compared to French ones, and the terrace, well, the terrace is the place we called our own. The beauty of the sunset over Anzac, the mineret, the village, the call to prayer, the warmth of the hosts, beats the hell out of staying at Cannakle and catching the ferry. And to have someone , Eric, that understands your passion for Gallipoli, and can tell some really good jokes, does not go astray either. If you stay, ask for a Lazy Lizie, Frev found then delightful. The meals were fantastic and the local wines up to par. It makes me wish I was back there right now. Cheers Kim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PoW1988 Posted 23 August , 2007 Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Yup Tuna is still smoking like a lum. He is currently up here in Scotland starting a new life. Good on the guy. Major part of his English problem is that he was taught how to speak English in the Scots dialect, which was frowned upon by the powers that be...so essentially he doesn't speak English he speaks Scots. Unfortunately that paved the way for many arguments and he subsequently left. He is missed by a lot of people on this forum and it would be nice if he would come back. Back on topic...the account and pictures are great my Aussie chums! I am throughly jealous and I now cannot wait for my planned trips to the Peninsula next year. Lynz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockney tone Posted 23 August , 2007 Share Posted 23 August , 2007 Kim, ok, you have sold the place to me with the sunset! it sounds a great place. Lynz, if you are in touch with Tuna could you please pass on my regards to him and wish him all the best in his 'new life' (plus give him a 'slap' from me and a lecture on the dangers of smoking please!) Regards, Scottie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Michelle Young Posted 24 August , 2007 Admin Share Posted 24 August , 2007 Did you leave the photo of Ernie by his grave by the way? I assume the photo of him you are holding was a laminated one. Keep the photos coming if you can, I am really enjoying seeing them, the Gallipoli ones are making me want to go back there. Michelle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myrtle Posted 24 August , 2007 Share Posted 24 August , 2007 Scottie If you and anyone else who appreciates tuna would like to make contact , you can find him HERE Myrtle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myrtle Posted 24 August , 2007 Share Posted 24 August , 2007 Tim Thanks for the clarification. I understand how special it is to follow in the footsteps of a relative. I did something similar some years ago around Ypres and each stage of the journey is not only recorded by my photographs but also in my memory. Kim I wouldn't be surprised if this is the first of many similar trips. Myrtle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockney tone Posted 24 August , 2007 Share Posted 24 August , 2007 Myrtle, thank you for the link I appreciate it, i will drop him a line. Regards, Scottie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ozzie Posted 26 August , 2007 Author Share Posted 26 August , 2007 Day 3 Another great breakfast and another day of discovery ahead of us. As Charlotte hugged us goodbye, she remarked that she would remember us as "The Aussies who never slept!" We kept that up the whole trip. More corn fields, more vegetables, the countryside so green, muscley beef cattle, and dairy cattle in top condition. Harvesters everywhere, and tractors with huge trailers chugging along narrow country lanes. Langemark was a little misty, on this summer's morning, and it added to the atmosphere of the cemetery. Some previous visitors had left crosses and poppies, which stood out against the dark stone. I had it in my head that I wanted to see Yorkshire trench, and after a few mistakes, we finally found it. It was great to walk along the duck boards with the recreated sandbags overhead. For my purposes, it bought home just an inkling of what it must have been like down in them. I took every chance in the coming days to examine recreated trenches and dugouts, and take lots of photos of such. Another confusion on the map, and we stopped in a little village to ask directions. No Enlish and a little French got us back on track somehow. We met some great characters along the way as well. Toronto cemetery was through a wood, and after searching for the usual shellholes and trench remains in the wood, to come upon the cemetery is a bit of a surprise. As beautifully maintained as any other, it is an oasis of peace in the woods. I found deer and dog tracks around the outside of the wall, and also some of the sticky yellow mud that you sometimes see in the accounts of the soldiers. Whenever we came across mud, I could usually be counted on to play in a bit, to see what its consistency was like. The others showed great patience with me, as when they had finished their photos , I was still off scrub bashing, after checking out the cemetery. The dig at Messines was very interesting, and many thanks to Richard for taking timeout from his tight schedule to show us around. The 42nd Batt ( one of my interests) had come through here, and it bought their story closer when you saw the remains of the trenches, and the other finds that had been discovered. We were heading back to the car when a piper squeezed his bagpipes. On hearing that sound, I ditched my companions, and headed towards the sound. Down the road came a piper, playing his pipes. Unfortunately, my mates would not let me stay, but we had to move on. (I suppose) The Cobber statue was magnificent, and VC Corner is where one of my local boy's name is on a panel. My brain was somewhere else for a lot of the trip, and I missed getting some of the boys graves, but maybe next time. Would love to have gone to Neuve Chapelle, but time restrictions ruled it out. We tried to fit in too much, and seemed to get sidetracked now and then which took up time as well. If we had had more time we could have gone north of Ypres and down the other side to Messines, so taking in more of the Belguin countryside, but... Twilight was confusing us again, and with an hours drive to our next B&B we had to get moving. After ringing Diane to let her know we would be late, we stopped in Bapuame looking for something to eat. Into a bar I goes, with the usual "Bonsoir". Got a bored look, so tried, "Je voudrais quelque chose, manger, sil vou plait?" Got back, "No manger". So another tack "Parley petite Francais, Je suis Australian. " (Prepositions, what were they??) Well, I thought I was in trouble. He came flying around the bar, grabbed my arm, and dragged me outside, all the while babbling in French. I caught manger and gauche, it was a few seconds before I realised that he was trying to direct me to a restaurant!! So after I got out, "Je ne comprends pas!", I got dragged back inside, where he drew a map and wrote a short note. After vigorous handshakes, and smiles all round, we headed off down the street following this crude map. It bought us to the front of a small, somewhat seedy looking restaurant. We looked at each other, and thought what the heck, and in we went. The owner, who turned out to be the chef, spoke no English, and all I had was very bad, very little French, but we did have a phrase book, and he had one as well. I showed him the note, and all became clear, to him at least, he was quite amused by us , poor man. We had the best meal, at a great price, accompanied by good wines, and the best Fromage board I saw over the whole trip. We had some great laughs, (Frev, I haven't told) , and I think that poor Frenchman won't forget us in a hurry. It was one of those wonderful spontaneous moments of our trip. On top of which I ended up with Pig's Trotter for Entree, that was a new experience for me. Back to the car and off to Le Allouettes for the night. Diane and Vic were all smiles, despite the lateness of arrival, and so after a bit of relaxing in the garden, so ended another day. Cheers Kim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted 26 August , 2007 Share Posted 26 August , 2007 Day 3 , (Frev, I haven't told) But you'll tell me, wontcha, Kim? It all sounds like a wondeful trip! Marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 26 August , 2007 Share Posted 26 August , 2007 Kim Is the one you haven't told about the Belgian cyclists? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ozzie Posted 26 August , 2007 Author Share Posted 26 August , 2007 No, Drew, it was the spit one, forgot about the cyclists. The Aussie in tights that we were always looking for. Cheers Kim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockney tone Posted 26 August , 2007 Share Posted 26 August , 2007 Kim, great account, sounds like my sort of trip, thanks for sharing it with us and please keep it coming, any more pictures at all please? regards, Scottie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auimfo Posted 26 August , 2007 Share Posted 26 August , 2007 (Frev, I haven't told) , Kim, You're not allowed to spill the beans about Frev just yet...........well at least not until I've found a way to make some money out of it! Hooge, Tim L. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auimfo Posted 26 August , 2007 Share Posted 26 August , 2007 Here's a panorama of photos I've stitched together. It's looking back towards Anzac from No. 2 Outpost (I think). The original is much larger and the whole thing loses a bit in the size reduction but you'll get the idea. Cheers, Tim L. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 You're not allowed to spill the beans about Frev just yet...........well at least not until I've found a way to make some money out of it! Hooge, Tim L. Ah guys - what ever happened to that age old pact "What happens on trip - stays on trip!"???? And besides can anyone really remember what truly happened, and how it really started, and who was really to blame? - or is it going to be another case of 'never let the truth get in the way of a good story'. Actually - these are quite legitimate questions now I come to think of it............ Too many more laughs, wine, amazing sights, tears, raki, exhausting treks & sleepless nights followed............hmmm! Anyway, remember - I have photos of more than just me - in a dress!! On a more serious note: Michelle - I'm really sorry I never got around to laminating any of the soldier's photos I took with me (wish I had) - so Ernie's photo along with the others never got left behind I'm afraid. A few more photos to follow. Cheers, Frev Kim sets the scene in Yorkshire Trench Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 Tim visits his Uncle at Underhill Farm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 Cobbers - Fromelles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 Um....perhaps a little big for a battlefield souvenir! Remains of a German blockhouse, Fromelles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 Group photo at Menin Gate From left to right - Tim, Kim, Frev, Me, Sabine - (I think Patrick was taking the photo) & One of my Fremantle soldiers buried at Tyne Cot Cemetery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 The archaeological dig at Messines/Ploegsteert Wood that Richard Osgood & Matt McLachlan were kind enough to show the four of us over. Richard & frev are partly in the photo. In this shot I think they were uncovering an entrance to a German blockhouse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 27 August , 2007 Share Posted 27 August , 2007 German blockhouse in Polygon Wood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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