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| nuthatch | profile | all galleries >> France >> Normandy and D-Day Beaches | tree view | thumbnails | slideshow |
 our trip starts in historic Bayeux... |
 ...home of the famous tapestry |
 historic houses and buildings abound |
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 around every corner is something ancient... |
 ...here, a gallo-roman wall beneath the ground |
 but there are also many reminders of WWII |
 at the romanesque-gothic cathedral... |
 ...vestiges of structure date from the 12th to 15th centuries |
 inside, memorials to France's WWI dead and the British troops who fought here in 1944 |
 delicate stone reliefs distract us... |
 ...and even remind us of the opposite of war |
 time for a stroll through the old city streets |
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 it seems pretty quiet... |
 ...but at least a few citizens are on watch |
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 here's the park where deGaulle spoke to the French people soon after D-Day |
 this is one of many British military cemeteries in Normandy |
 here, more than 4500 British and Commonwealth soldiers were buried... |
 ...along with a smaller number of Allies and Germans... |
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 heading back into town at dusk... |
 ...it's pretty easy to keep our bearings |
 even after dark, getting around on foot is easy |
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 and if we get lost, there are helpful guides |
 the next day, we head first to Juno Beach near Courseulles-sur-Mer... |
 ...where Canadian and British troops fought to take or destroy the guns in the eastern half of the invasion |
 then we head west to Longues-sur-Mer... |
 ...where a battery of several guns rises out of the mist |
 Tom stands over 6ft; these guns were huge |
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 and in the surrounding area, underground communications boxes are still here |
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 from Longues, we drive to the American military cemetery near Colleville-sur-Mer |
 about 40% of the American troops who fell in Normandy on D-Day and the difficult weeks which followed are gathered here |
 the view out to Omaha Beach from the cemetery is foggy and quiet today |
 more than 9000 graves are here... |
 ...and a memorial for more than 1500 forever missing |
 many visitors leave markers... |
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 a small chapel stands at the center of the site |
 the ceiling mosaic depicts America sending a soldier ready to fight... |
 ...and France embracing a fallen one |
 we visit Omaha Beach and then walk the battle-scarred bluff above Pointe du Hoc |
 the Pointe was the site of a fierce cliff-face battle on D-Day... |
 ...for the capture of these gun placements |
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 from the installation... |
 ...the view over the Pointe and across the channel is long... |
 ...and the guns would have had wide coverage of the coastline |
 our day ends at the German military cemetery near La Cambe |
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 over 20,000 soldiers lie here, killed in Normandy on and after D-Day |
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 some soldiers had yet to reach 18 years; others remain unidentified |
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 night falls as we depart |
 the next day, we head for Utah Beach and its museum and memorials near La Madeleine |
 in the museum, some of the large equipment used in the landing |
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 this nasty little thing was a remote-controlled mobile bomb |
 French-language information dropped by American planes to encourage people in the occupied towns |
 detailed photos of all the landing sites were prepared in advance via dangerous spy missions |
 here's a display on the FAFL, French air forces which also supported the D-Day landings |
 here's some incentive to get the war over ASAP |
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 these dresses were made for young French girls from US parachute cloth, and worn for celebrations one year after D-Day |
 a Sherman tank at the museum site |
 'kilometer zero' at the Utah Beach landing site: start of the 1944 Liberty Way |
 the Utah Beach memorial stands on the site of a captured gun placement, turned Allied communications post |
 everywhere in Normandy, French gratitude to American and Allied troops was and remains very strong |
 Utah Beach is rather placid now |
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 the small town of Ste-Marie-du-Mont was a complex battle site for paratroopers following D-Day |
 today the town square remembers the time with many markers |
 every other house seems to have its own story |
 this water fountain was used as shelter by a US marksman during the fight for the town |
 even with its long history, this town remembers its liberation most |
 nearby Ste-Mère-Église was also a target for paratroopers... |
 ...one of whom got stuck for a few hours |
 the days of battle are remembered in the church windows |
 looking at old photos around town... |
 ...it's not hard to see the town as soldiers did... |
 ...and we wonder what other stories these streets know... |
 ...or for that matter, all the towns on the Cherbourg peninsula |
 the next day, the sky is clearer and we return to Arromanches near Gold Beach |
 there are still relics of the 'Mulberries' which made up the artificial harbor of Port Winston |
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 scars and fragments of war structures remain even up on this cliff |
 down in the town, the history museum has pieces of machinery... |
 ...and pier parts brought from England in June 1944 |
 pier pontoons and other hulks dot the beach and harbor |
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 heading southwest toward Bretagne, we stop at the German ossuary near Huisnes-sur-Mer |
 the remains of some 12,000 WWII soldiers were brought here from around France |
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 still too foggy to see Mont St. Michel |
 we'll end our trip at the Caen Memorial and Peace Center |
 the museum starts its story with the end of WWI and the build-up into WWII |
 it of course covers the usual suspects... |
 ...but branches to discuss economic pressures, collaboration in all forms... |
 ...resistance in many forms... |
 ...and the response to resistance around Europe... |
 ...propaganda by all involved governments... |
 ...extermination of Jews... |
 ...and Roms... |
 ...and communists |
 the D-Day story is told again, with some new images and info for us |
 1945 is marked by a study of destroyed cities... |
 ...including London... |
 ...and Caen, where the memorial is now |
 it's a topic much too large for one visit... |
 panorama of the American military cemetery near Colleville-sur-Mer |