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Some ways Anzac Day is commemorated

- Dawn Service.The Dawn Service is one of the most revered and popular ceremonies that takes place on Anzac Day. The Dawn Service is thought to have originated in the military routine known as the “stand-to.” Opposing armies often attacked in the partial light of dusk and dawn. Ever vigilant, the Australian military made it a practice to wake the soldiers and prepare them at their posts with weapons before the other armies could strike. The stand-to technique is still used by the Australian military to this day. The Dawn Service seeks to recapture those quiet moments in the near-darkness, when soldiers had an opportunity to bond and reflect. While the first Dawn Services were vigils performed only by veterans in complete silence, all Australians are encouraged to participate. Today, some services feature readings, hymns, and riffle volleys.

- The Last Post.Often heard at the Dawn Service and other memorials on Anzac Day, The Last Post is the tune that is played over a bugle to signify the end of the day, or the final post. The soldiers could then take their rest. At memorial services, this melody is played to suggest the last post as a metaphor. The soldiers who are being honoured can hear the tune and know that all duties have been completed, so he or she may finally rest in peace.

- Marches, Memorials, and Exhibits.Throughout the day, many towns host marches that feature veterans and members of The Returned and Services League. Thousands of people gather to give their thanks and respect along the parade routes. Memorial readings where well known poems such as “For the Fallen” and “In Flanders Fields,” help the community to honour and remember those who have served in the military, and better experience what they went through. Haunting verse such as, “Take up our quarrel with the foe: / To you from failing hands we throw / The torch; be yours to hold it high. / If ye break faith with us who die,” cause those in attendance to take a moment and really consider what roles the soldiers play in the greater context of Anzac Day. War memorials and museums also host exhibits on Australia’s military history to deepen our understanding.

- Red Poppies.The lines that follow in Canadian Colonel John McCrae’s poem, “In Flanders Field,” mention, “We shall not sleep, though poppies grow / In Flanders fields.” Red poppies were the first flowers to bloom on the battlefields of Northern France and Belgium despite the bloodshed in the First World War. It was a popular tale among soldiers that the flowers gained their bright red hue from the blood of the fallen that had soaked into the ground. These red flowers are placed on war memorials as a symbol of remembrance, and perhaps a reminder that out of sacrifice, new hope emerges.

- Anzac Day Football.Although football had been played on Anzac Day for a number of years, the match between Collingwood and Essendon did not become a standard recurrence until 1995. When Collingwood and Essendon first squared off against each other, it was not uncommon for AFL matches to occur on Anzac Day, as donations from the day went to benefit the RSL. However, after that first match between the classic rivals, it became clear that this annual match was a special way to pay tribute to the values of Anzac Day; while deployed across the globe, football played by Anzac soldiers as a way to sharpen their skills, keep up good humour, and forge better connections with one another. That same vein of spirit, courage, mateship, and fairness runs throughout the day, at the end of the annual match, the Anzac medal is awarded to the player who best demonstrates these highly valued Australian qualities.



- Catafalque parties.A catafalque is a raised structure that holds a coffin. At a funeral as a sign of respect, four soldiers stand about a meter away from the catafalque, facing in four different directions, with their heads lowered and weapons held at reverse. Mourners pass by to say farewell to the departed. On Anzac Day, you may see soldiers standing in such a position again as a sign of tribute.

- Anzac Biscuits.These treats had a very practical beginning. During the First World War, the friends and families of soldiers sent care packages overseas. Since any food they could send had to be resistant to spoilage and full of nutrition, a biscuit made from rolled oats, sugar, flour, coconut, butter, and a few other ingredients became a popular pastry to pack in boxes. To this day, Anzac biscuits are one of the few product approved to bare the Anzac acronym, which is protected by Federal Legislation.

 

On Remembrance Day (11 November), which is not a public holiday, a two-minute silence is observed in remembrance of the Australians who fought and died in wars.

2. Australia Day

Australia Day is Australia's national day celebrated on 26 January annually in all states and territories. 26 January was chosen because it is the day of the establishment of the first English settlement at Port Jackson by Captain Arthur Phillip in 1788.

Recorded celebrations date back to 1808 in Australia, and in 1818, Governor Lachlan Macquarie held the first official celebration of Australia Day. It was made a public holiday in New South Wales in 1836, and Victoria adopted the day as a public holiday in 1931. It commenced to be celebrated by all states and territories in 1946, but began to be actually celebrated on 26 January from 1994.

Most Australians attend festivals, fireworks, community and sporting events or gather for family barbecues at homes, parks or on the beach.

The public holiday of Australia Day is always celebrated on January 26 no matter what day of the week it occurs. Many people become citizens of Australia on Australia Day at Citizenship Ceremonies across the nation. It is also the day that the Australian Government awards the Order of Australia to selected Australians, which is ‘an Australian society of honour for according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or meritorious service’.

Christmas

Christmas is celebrated on 25 December each year to commemorate the birth of Jesus. In Australia, it was brought over as a matter of course with white English settlement in 1788. Though a Christian religious festival, it does not breach the constitution's separation of Church and State provision, because it is declared under State law, which is not subject to the provision.

While historians estimate the year of Christ’s birth to be somewhere between 2 and 7 BC, no one can pinpoint the exact month and day. Meanwhile, the Bible does provide other specific details deemed more important. According to the Holy Scriptures, Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary inside a stable, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laid in a manger, and surrounded by farm animals. Upon hearing the news of the young Messiah’s birth and led by the Star of Bethlehem, a few wise men came to visit the newborn bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. To this day, Christians and non-Christians carry on the tradition of gift-giving during this special holiday season.

Australia, Christmastime (or the Season of Advent) is also the weeks and months leading up to Christmas which, over the last century, have become a season of family holidays, shopping for food and presents, and the sending cards. For retailers it is the boom season.

Christmas in Australia is a bit of a curiosity. The country is in the southern hemisphere meaning that 25th December falls in mid-summer, rather than in mid-winter like in Europe, the UK and the USA. So it is not unusual for shop windows to be full of toys and displays that are covered with fake snow spray and for there to be icicles in the windows, even if it is sweltering outside.

The insides of homes are usually decorated with a pine tree covered in trinkets, tinsel and fairy lights in red, green and gold, and often with a small nativity scene under the tree or on a coffee table. And outside, many homes are transformed with amazing displays of light and colour.

Traditionally, Christmas lunch is a gathering of large family groups who eat roast turkey, ham and vegetables and finish the meal with hot plum pudding, fruit mince tarts and cream or custard. But many Australian families now opt for the more comfortable means of cooking in hot weather – the Aussie BBQ with various meats, seafoods and salads. More likely than not, carols play somewhere in the house throughout the day.

Key Christmas highlights:


Date: 2016-03-03; view: 862


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