Days 3 & 4 – October 9 & 10 in Normandy

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The weather was going to be cloudy with a chance of rain so we decided to take a drive to see some of the sites in Normandy. Our first stop was in Honfluer above the town to see Cotes de Grace. This site provides a beautiful view of Honfluer below and the Normandy Bridge. There is a tiny chapel built in the 1600’s by mariners and the people of Honfluer – Chapel of Notre-Dame de Grace. Outside the chapel is a wooden structure supporting approximately 30 stainless steel bells. The bells went of every 15 minutes. Nice and peaceful here but it is time to move on.





We then headed west along the coast to visit Trouville and Deauville. Both towns are close and separated only by a small river. Trouville is a beach town and during the hot summer months it gets very popular. Across the river is Deauville and this is where to go if you have a lot of money. The houses and hotels are huge and the casino is there to take any disposable income one may have. We decided not to visit the casino. In the heyday of Napoleon it was accepted practice for the men to bring their wives and families to Trouville and stash their mistresses in Deauville. Lisa was having none of that so we hit the road.



Back on the road Jim convinced Lisa to visit the town of Livarot to visit a fromagerie where cheese is made. Of course when we arrived it was closed for lunch so we ventured into town to get a bite to eat. We must have looked out of place as the townspeople we came across gave us a look like we did not belong. We found a patisserie and purchased a pan du chocolate, chocolate croissant, dessert before lunch, why not? After lunch we headed back to the cheese factory and were the only visitors except for an older French woman who mumbled in French as we walked through the self guided tour. The cheese of Livarot has a distinct odor and if not used to it you would think it went bad. It takes some getting used to and even though we had it a few times we still did not get used to the odor, the taste is OK. We made the mistake of leaving it in the car and let’s just say there is not enough car freshener to get the smell out, we had to drive with the windows down even though it was cold outside.



As we are driving through a roundabout, Jim exits one turn short of our exit. As Lisa points this out, Jim points at a sign – Boucherie and Charcuterie (butcher and salami). We went into the store and Jim was in heaven. There was a large meat case with all kinds of cuts, even some we have not seen before. The nice surprise was cured meat selection. Jim asked the butcher about a particular sausage and through hand signals and noises figured out it was some sort of pork salami so he bought a chunk. Of course he had to give it a try in the parking lot and discovered it was very tasty, now all we need is a hunk of bread and a bottle of wine!



When we saw the Normandy Bridge earlier in the day, we decided we needed to cross the bridge. It is a BIG bridge. We head over to Le Harve to see if that town has anything exciting to offer. It is pretty much an industrial town so we headed back to Honfleur and across the bridge again. The bridge toll was 5.2 euros each way so it was an expensive detour.



We decided to stay in that night and enjoy the cheese, cured meats, wine, and desserts we picked up at a local patisserie.





Day 4 – October 10 – D Day experience

We tried to plan this day for the best weather, as we will be exploring monuments and museums all day. While it is overcast, it is not raining. We first arrive in Arromanches where the British landed. We view the artificial harbor that was constructed and while exploring the area, Jim slips in the mud and takes a tumble. He is fine but a mess as the mud is disgusting. After attempting a cleanup, we head to the theater for a short movie. The movie is displayed on 9 screens around the room giving you 360 degrees of viewing. The movie was fine but nothing grand. If anyone plans to come this way, our recommendation is to skip the movie and watch Band of Brothers instead.



From there we drive down the hill to Port Winston and the D-Day Museum. We watched a movie about how the artificial harbor was constructed. There were 17 ships that were intentionally sunk bow to stern to form a barrier. Then cement blocks called Mulberries were also brought over from England and sunk. There were floating steel pier heads with extendable legs that were set up to make roads. All of this created an artificial harbor with piers to bring supplies into the area. Within 6 days of operation, 54,000 vehicles, 326,000 troops, and 110,000 tons of goods had crossed the English Channel.



Some of the Mulberries and other items are still in water. One block even has an anti-aircraft gun still attached. This was all very impressive to see.



We head out to the American Cemetery and Memorial but stop at Longues-sur-Mer Gun Battery along the way. There are four German casements (three with guns intact) that you can explore. We walked up to the first casement and it is crumbling and there is very little left of what was the gun. We are still in awe anyway. As we approach the second casement, we see it is in very good shape and even the gun looks like it could be used. That is until we get in the casement and see the back of the gun. Lots of rust but we could envision the guns being used and the noise they must make. The guns could hit targets 12 miles away with shells that weighed 40 pound and it took seven soldiers to operate the gun.



We move on to the third casement and Lisa walks around to the backside of the casement to discover an opening. She goes down the steps to find another opening but it is pitch black inside and she cannot see. Luckily we have a flashlight and we go exploring. Lisa was surprised to see Jim coming along as well. He does not like small spaces. We think the underground rooms are where they stored ammunition.



In addition to the casements, there was a lone observation bunker right next to the shore. There was the slightest opening but a good view of ships and planes that may be approaching. Radios with underground wiring were used to communicate back to the men in the artillery casements.



Next we arrive at the American Cemetery and Monument. The government of France granted use of this land, in perpetuity, as a permanent burial ground without charge or taxation. The visitor center is where we started and it provided a very poignant overview of the days leading up to D-Day and afterwards. Among the displays were the stories and pictures of just a few that made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom. As we left the visitor center we climbed the walkway up to the cemetery and monument. The grounds are well kept and all you see are rows upon rows of grave markers for the soldiers who died during the invasion. The cemetery as it is today was dedicated in July of 1956, not all who died are buried here as the surviving families had the choice of bringing their loved one home to be buried in the States. In all there are over 9,000 interned at the cemetery and the list of names of over 1,500 who were never found and still missing in action.





Our next stop along the way is the Pointe du Hoc Ranger Monument. This is where the American Rangers scaled steep cliffs to disable a German gun battery. For the American landings to succeed, the Allies had to take over this area. They had just 30 minutes to get up the hill or all the men below would be taken out by the high tide. There are signs stating you can explore the bunkers but picnicking here is not permitted as it is considered a burial ground. The entire landscape is full of craters from bomb impacts. It is amazing anyone survived.



Our last stop of the day is Bayeux. Bayeux was spared the bombs of WWII after a local chaplain made sure London knew that his city was not a German headquarters. A scheduled bombing raid was canceled. This made Bayeux the closest city to the D-Day landing site not destroyed. Nice little city but too busy for our taste so we headed back to Honfluer.



All throughout the day, we saw memorials everywhere and the general feeling is that Americans are still appreciated here.



We made it back to Honfluer and decided to go out for a nice dinner for our last night, and because Thursday is our 15^th anniversary and we will be traveling all day. We picked a small place in town and for the first hour we were the only customers in the restaurant, apparently 7PM is early for dinner as more people showed up as the night went on. Lisa had the three-course menu and Jim had the four-course menu. We started with a Fois Gras appetizer and Sausage and Potatoes, Lisa had a steak and Jim chose the special of the day, Coquilles St Jacques, fresh scallops in a wonderful sauce. For dessert Lisa had her favorite, chocolate mousse, and Jim chose the Pommes Tart. In all it took about two hours to eat and it is a wonder there are not more fat French people if they eat like this often. Tomorrow will be a long day so we headed back to our hotel for a whisky. We highly recommend the Hotel Monet as it is close to town and the rates are reasonable, about 90 Euros a night.

Oh yea, did we mention vacation is much more fun than working?

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Photos

The Bells of Cotes de Grace
Above Honfluer is Cotes de Grace and these bells ring every 15 minutes

Graindorge Cheese Factory
The home of Livarot cheese and its distinctive smell

Diner in the Hotel
Jim was in heaven

Dessert in the Hotel
Lisa's is on the left, guess which one was Jim's

Winston harbor
Where the British landed and setup a temporary harbor

German Bunker
One of four bunkers above the cliffs

Temporary Road
Piece of what was used to build a temporary road over water in the harbor

Comments

[Max Kennedy]

France
Hi Lisa and Jim, Thanks for giving us the preview and reminding me that I need to start in on my French review. Zut Alors! Are we going that soon? It looks like you are having yet another gourmet adventure--it is so tantilizing to view. We noticed in England that there were War Memorials in every little town, it is sad that we do not revere our veterans the way they are remembered in Europe.Keep up the good work, troopers. Maybe you should get a top of the car cheese carrier?