19th June 2017
SIII pupils enjoyed a fantastic week visiting the WW1 Battlefields of Belgium and France last week. The 14th St Columba’s Pals Battalion visited the sites connected with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battles of Ypres, and of the Somme.
Particular highlights were the singing of the battalion songs on the bus, walking through the preserved trenches at Sanctuary Wood, crossing the Beaumont Hamel battlefields on the Somme, marching from the Passchendaele ridge to Tyne Cot, watching the Menin Gate ceremony and then participating in our own, extremely moving, remembrance service at New Cement Road military cemetery. Pipes were played, poems recited, songs sung, and there was plenty of time for reflection on the sacrifices made during the war at a variety of impressive memorials and thought provoking cemeteries. Pupils were enthused, shocked and humbled in equal measure.
The trip was not wholly confined to the war though, and visits to Bruges and Ypres allowed for the sampling of Belgian treats such as their famous chocolate!
