Anzac Day marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. The acronym ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, whose soldiers were known as Anzacs. The pride they took in that name endures to this day, and Anzac Day remains one of the most important national occasions of both Australia and New Zealand
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANZAC_Day

thank you- to all those who have fought in wars, to protect our way of life

for those who paid the ultimate sacrifice

to those still fighting

They shall grow not old,
As we that are left grow old,
Age shall not weary them,
Nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun,
And in the morning
We will remember them. Lest we Forget
[Edited 4/25/08 1:47am]

It was my first Anzac day as im travelling NZ.... I work for bunnings warehouse, and because of law we opened at 1pm, the amount of people waiting out side was crazy, its like they had nothing else better to do!!

But I had a 1min silence for those people who lost their lives!

They shall grow not old,
As we that are left grow old,
Age shall not weary them,
Nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun,
And in the morning
We will remember them. Lest we Forget

andykeen said:

shops were allowed to open here at 12

it doesnt give those ppl who have to work much time to get from an 11 am service


the store i work at didnt open today.

my family didnt go to the services this yr, but we went 4 a long walk along a beach- and discussed ANZAC day and all it means to us.

" Those heroes that shed their blood and
lost their lives...! You are now lying in
the soul of a friendly country, therefore
rest in peace. There is no differences between
the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they
lie 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."

Mustafa Kemal ATATURK, (1934).


Isn´t it sad how wars and duties and obligations that come with them sometimes make it necessary for people to travel from the other end of the world in order to support another army in a battle against people that never had a problem with them in the first place ?
As a Turk, I find it quite sad that all these young men died in a war that wasn´t really their war. I mean, come on, what did New Zealanders and Australians ( and Irish) have to do with the foreign policy of Great Britain ? Sure, they are Commonwealth countries, but still...

An Australian friend of mine who visited Gallipoli ( Gelibolu/Canakkale ) was quite surprised that the Turks don´t bear any grudges towards Australians because of their participation in the war.

Is that day still that meaningful to New Zealanders and Australians, and if so , why ? What is the deeper cultural reason behind it ? And what were your ancestor´s motives for joining that war ?
Just curious...

For those who are interested, British author Andrew Mango´s biography on Mustafa Kemal Atatürk gives some great insight into that time. Mango is an Englishman who was born in Istanbul and speaks Turkish fluently, and his book is a great read, though I must admit it is a bit heavy. Should be available at your libraries.

Also interesting is that documentary with Jeremy Irons as narrator. It is simply called "Gallipoli" ( Gelibolu) . I bought the DVD in Turkey.