Serenity in Sandakan: Memorial for WWII POWs

The city of Sandakan is in Borneo. It had been on my travel wish list for quite a time as it was the place for a remarkable story of a forced march from Sandakan to Ranau that was made by Australian and British Prisoners of War under the Japanese in World War II.

ARRIVAL IN SANDAKAN

We arrived from Kota Kinabalu on our Air Asia flight, luckily only 2 hours long, as hubby, being typically taller, was squashed into a seat custom designed for a smallish built person... perfect for me!

Arrival in Sandakan.

At once, the oppressive heat hit us like a wall, the humidity was so bad that I reneged on some of our usual long walks and sat in air-con admiring the foreshore from our lovely waterfront hotel with a cool drink.

Admiring the view from our hotel on the Sandakan waterfront.

Peaceful waterfront scene.

At this stage I wondered how on earth the Australian and British Prisoners of War from WWII in this heat, on rations, weak and in barely liveable conditions, could have survived at all for any length of time.

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Sandakan itself is a very picturesque town and our Swiss Inn Hotel was pretty luxurious for us. Our room overlooked the bay, such a peaceful spot.

High on the hill is Agnes Keith's house. Agnes was a famous American author who wrote autobiographical accounts of her life in Borneo pre-WWII, during her imprisonment there as a Japanese prisoner of war, and her life afterwards. Three Came Home, her second book, was later made into a film.

We were infuriated to find that after walking quite a way and climbing a huge number of steps in the heat, the tickets we had bought in Kota Kinabalu were only valid for the day before we got there!

Agnes Keith's home in Sandakan.

WAR MEMORIAL

Next morning we set off in a taxi for the War Memorial in the suburb of Taman Rimba, as the heat prevented walking long distances. The memorial has been funded partially by Australia. It is the most moving memorial I have seen in Asia, with stained glass windows portraying the beauty of Australian flowers. It is an area of reverence and peace where not a word was exchanged while reading the harrowing story of how the men were forced to march from Sandakan to Ranau.

Only six men escaped from this camp in 1942. With local help they stole a boat and sailed to the Phillippines. They alone survived out of the 2400 British and Australian POW soldiers. Originally the internees were sent to build an airstrip at Sandakan, but by 1944 Allied forces were advancing towards Borneo and the Japanese decided to send 2000 Australian and British prisoners to Ranau in the interior jungle. Many died on the 240km walk, sick and weak before they even started out. The "death march" as it became known was the greatest single wartime atrocity against Australians in wartime.

Every year, Australian veterans or their relatives now, attend a memorial service here. We kept thinking as we trekked back a kilometre in the heat to find the local bus, how these prisoners did not have the benefits that we had of a hotel, cool drinks and wonderful food to look forward to.

The approach to the well kept tropical garden  Memorial.

The beautiful reflection pool which is a feature of the well kept gardens.

Lest we forget.

Rusting remains of an excavator at the site.

Map of the compound as it was in 1942-1943.

The memorial was a perfect area for reflection on the heroism of wartime. While this type of destination may be off the usual tourist route, we really enjoyed our visit and it certainly is well worth the effort to include some important wartime history in your travels. Lest we forget.

Is there any place or memorial you have visited that affects everyone so much that words are not necessary?

Five unsung gems of Europe Part 5: Crete

Crete is a beautiful Greek Island in the Mediterranean Sea not far from Athens. It is often overlooked by the hordes of sun-seeking tourists who descend on more popular islands such as Mykonos. Crete exceeded all my expectations, both in beauty and friendliness! It is a short overnight ferry ride from the port of Piraeus.

A wonderful mountain view from a Cretan village.

Heraklion

We left Athens on a huge inter-island ferry full of cars, trucks and passengers. The ferry was packed with backpackers determined to stay up all night and party around the pool area! We had a cabin below that I had booked from Australia. It was fairly small but clean and reasonably comfortable, much better than the reclining chairs upstairs that others chose! The view leaving harbour was beautiful, but not as beautiful as when we arrived in Heraklion. The sun was just rising and the dawn revealed a beautiful harbour and fortress.

Venetian Fortress at the Old Port entrance.

Overlooking the sea and harbour, Heraklion has the prettiest aspect of any Greek island. Our hotel was the shortest walk from the centre of town, which is full of outdoor cafes and small shops - all bustling with young and old. There are many lovely embroidery and craft shops in between the lovely local coffee shops.

There are many restaurants also to choose from, but I particularly liked the ones outside where you sit watching the passing parade. One had beautifully placed bicycles with flowers placed on them. Another was set up inside a boat decor with the waiters and waitresses having to dodge the traffic with trays as they crossed the main road to deliver our food! The food on offer is superb and has that Mediterranean style that is so famous!

Our favourite outdoor bicycle themed café!

 

Close to the town and within easy walking distance on the edge of the city harbour at the old port, is a Venetian fortress, the Castello a Mare. It was built in the 1500's by Venice and armed with 18 cannons on the ground floor and 25 on the pathway leading to the roof. It has been restored and has many rooms complete with cannonballs and some cannon remain there also.

View over the harbour to the fortress and ferry berth.

View from the Fortress of the boat marina.

Palace of Minos at Knossos

The next day was the highlight of the trip for me, a visit to the famous Minoan Palace of King Minos! If you know your Greek history, you might know this location as the place where Theseus fought the Minotaur in the labyrinth!

I had told my family about how wonderful this palace would be, and I think they were greatly surprised to find my prediction right! The Minoan culture goes back to 1500BC and the palace has frescoes well known world-wide for their great beauty and these paintings show great details of everyday life in ancient times.

The Minoans were also known for their first use of paved roads and their use of a sewage system before Roman times and the palace was designed around this wonderfully inventive water system.

Restored fresco in the palace.

Colourful pillars used throughout the Palace ruins.

 

The famous beautiful dolphin fresco on the inside walls of the palace. 

The paved road predating the Roman roads used throughout the ancient world.
 

 

Top tip: Hundreds of tourists descend on the palace throughout the day, so I made sure we were there early to escape some of the crowds from the many buses that come from the big centres for the day.

North to South Crete

After this, we travelled from the Northern part of the island to the coastal South by hire car. We ascended steep winding mountain roads that seemed to climb into the heavens. They gave equally heavenly views, but I was a bit worried looking down steep cliff faces at times!

Here is an island population that survived terrible hardship during the invasion of Germany during WW2. The liberation of the island by British, Australian and Canadian troops is remembered as if it's yesterday. During our trip by hire car around the mountain villages, we were very much welcomed by the local villagers.  From the steep mountain sides, during WW2, the Cretans were able to strike and terrorise the Nazi invaders and quickly withdraw to their defensive positions high up in the mountains.

Unique Memorial to the fallen from 1943 is placed high up in the mountains in a secluded spot.

Coastal views in the south of the island.

 

On reaching the coastline, we celebrated with a beverage or two and then made our way slowly back to our accommodation in Heraklion, stopping off in a few small villages for exploration and more food highlights!

Have you ever visited the Greek Islands and if so, which one did you like the best?