Since 2003 Canadians have honoured the WWI battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9th. It is especially significant for me as my grandfather valiantly fought alongside many other Canadian soldiers for victory. To pay homage to all we will revisit our emotional journey to the memorial.
In light of my familial connection and a strong sense of Canadian pride it was an easy decision for Ken and I to plan a day
trip to Arras to visit the Vimy Memorial while in France.
Arras is a direct train ride from Gare du Nord station in Paris. We were able to take the subway to the train station from the metro stop near our apartment. The train runs a number of times throughout the day and can be easily booked online before leaving home. Tickets can be printed in advance as well. For more information and times for a roundtrip fare we used Rail Europe at https://www.raileurope.ca/ for service in English and bookings in Canadian dollars.
Once at the train station you still need to arrange transportation to the Memorial. There are a number of options. Taxis are about €30 each way and will give you about three hours time. You can also book a private chauffeur, which is what we did. We found RMB Transport through TripAdvisor. Michel picked us up at the train station and returned us there after a three hour visit. On the way back he took a more circuitous route so that we could visit a couple of memorials and cemeteries scattered throughout the countryside which was a great extra for less money.
We arrived at the Vimy Welcome Centre mid morning. The Centre offers a small museum, a gift shop, and the opportunity to tour the site with a guide. The guides were all passionate young Canadians who worked at the Memorial during the season. Our young lady was well spoken and readily answered all of our questions.
The tour takes you through a number of underground bunkers and reconstructed trenches to help you get a feel for what life was like at the front. Paired with the photos and artifacts in the small museum it was easier to imagine that time. One of the real finds was a copy of the original handwritten version of “In Flanders Field” by Canadian physician Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae. The significance of that poem in remembering and honouring our fallen soldiers has not been lost.
The real draw however is the Memorial itself. Designed and sculpted by Walter S. Allward the memorial was officially unveiled on July 26, 1936 by King Edward VIII. The 117 hectares of treed land surrounding it was donated by the French government and is considered to be Canadian soil. Reaching the Memorial from the Welcome Centre is a bit of a walk, but the road takes you through landscape pockmarked with craters from century old bombs and regularly 
posted signs warning to stay on the road as there may still be “undetonated explosives” in the area. We found out later that the larger cavernous holes were from underground bombs laid in tunnels.
Once there we spent a few minutes reviewing the many names etched on the memorial. It was a somber reminder of the number of Canadian men killed defending our way of life. Although I knew that my grandfather, and his cousin Merrill, survived I was still moved to tears by the sight of Baldwin engraved in the cold stone three times. Whether they were relatives is forever unknown.
To shield my tears I hid behind my phone snapping pictures of Ken. A very nice gentleman approached me and offered to take a picture of the two of us together. “Thank you”, I managed to get out between sniffles and a polite smile, “I don’t think I would take a good picture right now. My grandfather…”. That was as far as I got before he laid a gentle hand on my shoulder, nodded only once and walked away to give me privacy. I hope he understood that I wasn’t sad or ungrateful for his offer. I was just in the moment.
One the walk back we stopped to tour the Canadian Cemetery. We walked solemnly among the headstones, all gleaming
white in the spring sunshine, well tended rows already abloom with flowers. Many of the stones displayed the names, regiments and dates of the fallen. Others were marked by the phrase “Known Only to God”. We paused next to those the longest, silently offering our appreciation for their sacrifice, even if we were over 100 years late.
The Vimy Memorial is a powerful reminder of the Great War and all it represented. Even if you are not Canadian, or do not have a family connection to the Battle of Vimy Ridge, it is worth the day trip from Paris. Lest we forget.