Before meeting up with the lady who would be our tour guide for Normandy, several of us located a popular boulangerie(bakery), Paul. Paul is a French chain that was established in 1889. It specializes in breads, crepes, sandwiches, macarons, and so much more. I ordered a pain au chocolate and a cafe allonge with creme. Superb!
It was another perfect day with the high of 72 degrees and a nice breeze. I made sure I carried my jacket, as I do get a little chilled going in and out of the museums.
Our tour guide, Evie and our driver, Lucas were waiting for us when we got back to the apartment. Evie has been a tour guide for about five years now. She greeted us with "Bonjour" (hello/good morning).
I had mixed emotions about today. Mixed emotions in that I get so teary-eye when I think of the soldiers who have sacrificed their lives so that I can live in a country of freedom. When I saw "Saving Private Ryan" with Tom Hanks, I cried from the beginning to the end. I have quit going to Fourth of July concerts because my heart is so pricked that I cry through out the whole concert. As I type, I am an emotional wreck and I can barely see what I am typing.
I am typing about th virtual tour and Is am not even in Normandy and I am a wreck. Boy, when I do go to Normandy, I better carry a box of kleenex with me.
We will tour the five D-Day Beaches(Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword), the Caen Memorial Museum and the Normandy American Cemetery.
Just to think seventy-six years ago today, the military officers were planning the "Invasion of Normandy". On June 6, 1944, the Allied Forces of Britian, America, Canada and France attacked German forces on the coast of Normandy. Over 425,000 Allied and German troops were killed, wounded or went missing during the Battle of Normandy.
We drove to the museum. The museum is dedicated to the history of the twentieth century, mainly focused on the fragility of peace.
As I walked the beaches, I looked out into the ocean and I could see the landing crafts that carried the American troops ashore. These young boys/men had fear all over their faces and they did not know what awaited them as they drew close to shore. More than 2,000 Americans died on the shores of Normandy on June 6th, 1944(D-Day).
We ended the tour at the Normandy American Cemetery, which honors American troops who died in Europe during World War II. The cemetery contains the graves of nearly 9,400 war dead and nearly 1,600 names on the Walls of the Missing, most of whom lost their lives in the D-Day landings and ensuing operations.
It was interesting to get everyone's perspective of how they felt about our tour for today. In our group, Becca and Erin are in their thirty's, Cindy in her fifties, Joyce(Mel's mom) is eighty and the rest of us are in our sixties. We have all seen history take place throughout the years, but none of us can actually comprehend how the Invasion of Normandy changed history for our best. What if Germany or Japan had won? Where would we be now?
1 comment:
Such an interesting post
Post a Comment