THE BEACHES

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There is no way to describe today as a fun day but it was a wonderful day nonetheless. We started our day with a visit to Mer St Englis where the 82nd airborne parachuted into town. Unfortunately there was a fire in a house next to the church and all the civilians were manning the bucket brigade. That meant that the Germans were out in force monitoring the crowd. Two unfortunate men landed on the steeple. One played dead for four hours and though wounded he survived. The other poor soul died. Today, hanging from the steeple is a parachute and soldier to simulate that horrific experience.



From there we went to Utah Beach where the invasion forces were made up of Nation Guard forces who had never seen combat before. Here their inexperience added to the casualties. Then we drove though the hedgerows and got a real sense of the terrain. Next we stopped at the gun emplacements and bunkers at the top of the cliffs. Intelligence reported four 155mm cannon with a range of four miles were in place. That range would cover both Utah and Omaha beaches so they had to be taken out. Here the ground has been left as it was with bomb and shell craters pockmarking the land. The story of the engineers that scaled the cliff is one you should research.



Lunch was next and we stopped at a quaint cafe and I enjoyed one of the best quiches I have ever had it was so light and fluffy. Everyone's lunch was a work of art and delicious as well. Our guide, Ann Sophie, excused herself for a smoke and she rolls her own. No, not the funny tobacco. It was strange seeing a young woman do this.



Omaha beach is quite lovely. A beautiful long stretch of sand with a wonderful view of the Cherborg peninsula and blue-green water all the way to England. Anyone who has seen Saving Private Ryan knows what it was like on June 6. We visit the memorials and I imagine the horrifying sounds coming from the beach, screams, gunfire, cannon, cries for help...........



Our final stop is the American Cemetery. It is meticulously cared for. I wish our schools were cared for a nicely. The man in charge is the former Senator for South Carolina who lost his legs in combat and was shamefully vilified by the Republicans in his last race. It is fitting for him to be here and doing a great job. We are close to June 6 and there are flower tributes from individuals and also from the villages nearby who honor our dead still.



It has been a long day but very rewarding. I'm so glad I was able to stop here.

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