Jo-Anne lives in Canberra, with her husband and two kids. Her kids are 7 and 5. I've not met Oliver or Sophie. I haven't seen Jo-Anne and Mick since 1996. I've been to the Australian War Memorial before, so I left Hubby there for the morning, while I spent the morning with Jo-Anne and her family. We chatted about Guides, travels, mutual friends, Mexico, families, jobs, and more. I was gone for a few hours and it was so good to see Jo again.
Back at the War Memorial still wasn't done. So I had a little bit of time for myself. I didn't go through the museum that is within the Memorial, I did spend time in the Commemorative Courtyard at the Pool of Reflection and Eternal Flame. It was very calm and peaceful.
Above the courtyard and outside the Hall of Memory is the Roll of Honour. The names of almost every Australian who has died in war since 1885 are engraved in a long series of bronze panels. That's more than 102,000 people. Just seeing the size of the bronze panels gives you some sense of the magnitude of the lives lost. This is only half, if that. Visitors have placed poppies next to names that are significant to them.
The archways name the battlefields on which Australians have fought.
The Hall of Memory sent goosebumps down my arms, and brought tears to myeyes. It is awe- inspiring. See the 5 stained glass windows in the photo below? There are 15 within the Hall, each window represents a defining quality of the Australian servicemen and women at war.
At the centre of the Hall is the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier. Behind the tomb are 4 pillars that represent earth, air, fire and water, which in turn represent all the landscapes and climates where Australians have fought and died.
The tomb is right below the dome. The mosaic in the dome depicts the soles of the dead rising from the earth towards their spiritual home, represented by a glowing sun within the Southern Cross.
The walls of the Hall of Memory are covered in one of the world's largest mosaics (6 million plus enameled glass tiles). The figures are a soldier, sailor, airman, and a service woman.
airman detail
soldier detail
The Australian War Memorial stands at one end of Anzac Parade and Parliament House (both old and new) are at the other.