I have a number of war memorial themed geocaches around Otago/Southland. I set them up because for me remembrance is not about glorifying war. Rather, it's about reflecting on its horror, its sacrifices and hoping never again. "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
The cache is a short distance away (less than 15min walk from GZ there are paths to the hide location, which will not require you to cross graves). Remember to bring your own pen/pencil to sign the log, as the one in the container can go missing. Photo logs will not be accepted.
You can find the cache at;
South 46 AB.CDF East 169° VW.XYZ
Note when asked a=0. b=1, c=2 etc
A= How many soliders are standing on the top of this war memorial
Under died on the field of honour;
B= How many people have the surname Johnston?
C= What is the digit value of the first letter of the surname of the person out of alpabetical order?
D= Number of people with the surname Smith?
F= How many people have a surname starting with N?
Under Second World War
V= What is the seventh digit on this plaque?
W= The number of names with the first intial A.
X= The number of letters after the surname Petrie.
On the marble plaque which starts 'In Grateful rememberance...'
Y= What is the sixth digit on the plaque?
Z= How many letters are in the last word?
Check A+B+C+D+F+V+W+X+Y+Z = 38
When I was in the UK I came across the war memoral series, which uses the same theme as their micro church series; https://www.warmemorialseries.co.uk/ . I delayed publishing this multi from recent adenture lab along the same theme, as I was hoping this series creators were opening this series to outside of the UK. The answer was sadly no, they were only keeping it to UK. Maybe something we can do in NZ, but unfortunately right now I don't have the time.
If you are intrested in knowing where other war memorials are located in Otago you can find them at https://nzhistory.govt.nz/map/otago-memorials
The red poppy has become a symbol of war remembrance the world over. People in many countries wear the poppy to remember those who died in war or are serving in the armed forces. In many countries, the poppy is worn on Armistice Day (11 November), but in New Zealand it is most commonly seen on Anzac Day, 25 April – as it marks the anniversary of the landing of New Zealand and Australian troops, popularly known as Anzacs (the acronym for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps), on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey in 1915. While the campaign ended in military defeat, it is widely claimed that the Gallipoli experience helped foster a sense of nationhood in both New Zealand and Australia.
A half-day holiday for 25 April was gazetted to allow everyone to attend the remembrance. A typical commemoration begins with a pre-dawn march, a short service follows, with a prayer, hymns and a dedication that concludes with the fourth verse of Laurence Binyon's ‘For the fallen’:
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
The last post is then played as the sky starts to light up with the first rays of the sun, followed by a minute's silence and the reveille. The service concludes with a prayer and the singing of the national anthem.
2024 should be a great year for Geocaching in Dunedin because we plan on hosting a large event labour weekend 2024 - check out details in the link below;
