Thank you for bringing this thread out this year (my first as a PPRuNe member).
For the past few years I have lived in Germany where there does not appear to be a day of Remembrance.
However, a few days before Remeberance Day last year I had to go to the north of Germany. I stayed in a bed and breakfast just south of Hamburg. The family were very friendly and accepted my bad German with good grace.
I had been sent a poppy from home and was wearing it. On my last evening the landlady asked what it was and why was I wearing it. Suffering from a certain amount of embarrassment I explained that the tradition started after WW1 an that we wore in respect for, and rememberance of, the fallen and that I had relatives who had died in the two world wars and friends who had died in wars since.
She then said that her father had been killed fighting for the German army in WW2. Thinking that I was about to be thrown out I was surprised when she said that it was good that we not only rememberd our dead, but also that we had a visible symbol to wear as they deserved all of the respect that we can give them.
To my mind a woman of great understanding and intelligence.