From the office of Mr Beefy McManmeat.

So I am at the shops yesterday and I overhear these two young gels talking about their recipies for ANZAC biscuits and how they are looking forward to making them and trying each others' biscuits. It occured to me that this is a tradition that they have probably had handed down from their great grannies. I am really impressed by this act of tradition that these gels, who were only in their late teens or early twenties, have chosen to maintain. One doesn't really expect that teenagers are going to be interested in something that happened to their great grandparents.

For those who don't know, this year (Monday 25th April 2005) marks the 90th anniversary of the attack on the Turkish peninsular at Gallipoli, by the combined forces of the Australian and New Zealand Armies Corps ( or ANZACs ) The attack went on for several months and the ANZACs never got past the beach. The Turkish soldiers were resolute and were ordered to die where they fought rather than surrender. They did that in their thousands as did their enemy. The Turks were under German orders at that time and felt very resentful of this, as they and the Australians had previously enjoyed a very close relationship. Today, partly because of this battle Turkey and Oz enjoy a strong friendship. 

 The ANZAC biscuit was invented using sugar syrup ( Golden Syrup ) and coconut and was designed to stay moist for the several weeks it might take to get to the soldiers. It is a soft and chewy biscuit and is still very popular here in Oz.

So the recipies these gels were talking about were prolly very old family recipies and it makes me kinda proud that we have traditions that are still being kept alive today. I don't agree with war and I don't agree with aggression, but I do like the idea that kids my sons age know where they came from and what kind of people their great grans were.

As a footnote to this, Australia lost her only two submarines at this place and both were found as recently as ten years ago.