Day 5 Thursday 25 September - National Memorial Arboretum

Today, we kept the boat moored in the same place at Alrewas & we planned to take the bus to the National Memorial Arboretum.  Having checked the bus timetable a couple of months ago when I was first planning this trip, we knew that we needed to catch a bus at 10am which would get us there in time for 11am when they had a small service including a two minutes silence but when we got to the bus stop we discovered that the bus only went that way on a Sunday....so we walked!

The National Memorial Arboretum is home not only to memorials to the Armed Forces but also memorials to others who have lost their lives which is set within 150 acres of beautiful woodland & gardens.  NMA Website

The Naval Service Memorial - A new memorial unveiled by Prince Michael of Kent this June.

A Memorial for the Twin Towers

The Normandy Campaign Memorial which was unveiled yesterday

Looking up at the Armed Forces Memorial a 43 metres in diameter memorial which commemorates those who lost their lives on duty or as a result of terrorism from the end of the Second World War to the present day

The body of a warrior is being prepared for burial by female and Gurkha soldier. The figure before the double doors points to a world beyond where the warrior will rest as another figure chisels the name on the memorial.  The sunlight shines through the gap on the 11 November at 11am.

 A Serviceman is raised aloft on a stretcher by comrades. On either side family members look on - a mother clasped by a child and an older couple clutching each other in anguish. It bears witness to the cost of armed conflict to those left behind - the families, loved ones and friends who live with the pain and consequence of their loss for the rest of their lives.