God's Acre, CFB Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum, China Town

Our contact at the CFB Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum suggested we preface our visit by calling in to God's Acre, the Veteran's Cemetery.  We met Dave Smith there, and he was a fount of information about God's Acre which has been under his care for about 15 years.

 A fascinating memorial to some fairly young sailors from the 1860s buried on Dead Man's Island.

 The chapel is still used today, with special permission, for marriages, christenings, memorial services, and other special events.

 Several lamps from wooden ships adorned the chapel walls.

 The white ensign of the Royal Canadian Navy can be seen above the altar.

The large cross of sacrifice is a monument found in all war cemeteries in the British Commonwealth.

The cemetery has been an honoured final resting place for those who served at sea since 1868. Today, more than 2,500 military personnel and their family members are buried at God's Acre.

We had some fun at CFB Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum completing a self guided tour search of the facility.  Among other things we found out about the dirtiest job in the navy, what a Carley float is, and the name of Victoria's very own ship. Some of the ladies thought the lifelike manikins in the officers' mess display  were "well fit!" Congratulations to Louise and June for perfect scores.  They both won "valuable" and slightly naval linked prizes!

The "secret agent" attache case radio in one of the photos below looked as if it would be a bit of a giveaway - not something I'd like to be caught with.  The medals room complete with two (replica) Victoria Crosses reminded us of the courage of the Canadian veterans and our debt to them. The helpful guide, a volunteer at the museum, told us that, while all the other medals were genuine, the VC.s were worth approximately half a million dollars each and so replicas had to be used in the display.

The cafeteria in the Nelles block lived up to our expectations - it's well worth a visit in its own right.  We rounded off our trip with a browse in Chinatown and some of us had a quick cup of tea at the Venus Sophia Tea Room before heading back to the centre. Thanks again to John and to all the Let's Do It Day Trippers who joined us!