In some ways this day seems to be more significant for Israelis than Yom HaShoah, and I found it hard to relate to this day in the same way as Israelis. All Israelis go through the army, and nearly all have a story about friends or family lost at some point throughout Israel's history. I don't have that and can't relate to it in the same way, but listening to the stories and accounts made the day all the more moving and emotional.
We visited Mount Herzel, the military cemetery and witnessed the hundreds and thousands of families paying their respects to the mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters and children lost whilst serving in the Israeli Defence Force. When we came in we were handed flowers to take inside with us so we could lay them on graves and memorials if we so wished. Each grave had been given a memorial candle as well as an Israeli flag tied with a black string. We all wandered around individually and looked at all the graves. It was sad to see both the graves which had crowds of family standing by them and also the graves which had no one. I was surprised to see such young ages on many of the tomb stones - aged 16, 17, 18 - one aged 15 from 1948.
Even more surreal, was the transition from Yom HaZikaron, to Yom Haatzma'ut, Independence Day, later that same evening.

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