Norman Invasion

So after we left Paris, my father and I began our journey westward to see the Rest of France. I was excited because Paris is so not representative of France as a whole, in pretty much the same way that New York City is not America. I have often visited the South of France and have also seen the middle of the country, but I had never before been to the North, which is where we visited. Our trip began in Normandy, which is on France's northern coast and is bordered by the English Channel (see photo below)

As you can see from the photo, Normandy is really not far at all from Paris and so we rented a car and drove there. It only took a couple of hours before we arrived at our first stop, the seaside village of Honfleur. Honfleur has a famously picturesque harbor, which I will show you pictures of, don't worry! The place's beauty is well-known in France and elsewhere, partly because it was a favorite subject of many famous painters, including Monet, Courbet, and Eugène Boudin (a native of Honfleur whom the city has honored with a museum). I'm sure you'll be able to see in the following photos why they were so fascinated by the place.

 The famous harbor...

The Lieutenance (Lieutenancy?...ya, I don't know either) of Honfleur.

Go here to see Monet's rendition of this building (it doesn't look quite the same cuz it's from a different angle but you'll get the picture).

Dad's best friend.

A typical Honfleur street. Monet painted a similar Honfleur scene here.

The lovely harbor again.

The next stop on our trip was a miniscule town called Vierville-sur-Mer, right on the coast. There is nothing in this town, except that it happens to be the home of Omaha Beach, the site of the D-Day invasions (think Saving Private Ryan). We stayed in a hotel overlooking the beach, which was pretty incredible, considering all the history and tragedy that took place there. 

See, I wasn't kidding...right on the beach

Being right on the ocean also meant that we got to see some amazing sunsets...

And sunrises...

(photo by Dad)
 

(photo by Dad)

 152 mm German naval gun at Longues-sur-Mer. This gun was part of the "Atlantic Wall" that the Germans had built along the European coastline to defend the continent against the imminent Allied invasion. If you view the full size image of this picture, you may be able to see a hole on the left-hand side of the gun. This is where the gun was struck by Allied fire on D-Day (June 6, 1945).

The American cemetary.

 As you can maybe see from the previous photos, all the graves are blank on the front, to send a message of equality. It is only on the backs of the graves that the soldiers are identified and lettered in gold if they were of high rank.

 A sculpture entitled "The Spirit of American Youth Rising from the Waves."

Pointe du Hoc, where United States Army Rangers landed and scaled 100 ft cliffs, under enemy fire, to engage the enemy at the top.

Upon seeing what the soldiers would have to face in order to scale this cliff, an intelligence officer remarked: "It can’t be done. Three old women with brooms could stop the Rangers scaling that cliff!"
Lieutenant Colonel Rudder, the head of the Rangers Battalion, replied to General Bradley: “Sir, my Rangers can do the job for you." And they did.

 Imagine climbing these cliffs with ropes, picks, or even with your bare hands, all while being fired at by the freakin' Germans above who you get to fight hand-to-hand if you're lucky enough to survive the climb. Makes your morning commute seem just peachy by comparison, doesn't it?

The above photos were all taken at the La Fière Bridge, a small causeway that crosses the Merderet River. On June 6, 1945, the 82nd Airborne Division defended this Bridge against the counterattacking Germans, preventing them from advancing to the other side of the river and capturing the town of Sainte-Mère Eglise. Many lives were lost on both sides here, and was described by S.L.A. Marshall, the Chief Historian for the European Theatre of Operations, as "the bloodiest small struggle in the experience of American arms." Read a first hand account of the battle here.

Utah Beach

 So, there's this tradition in Calvados (the region of France that the D-Day beaches are in) of racing horses on the beach. I'm not sure what it's all about, but I like it.

Nothin' but Freeze Pops

The day after our tour, we went to Bayeux, which is one of the larger towns around the Norman beaches and the home of the famous Bayeux Tapestry, the pictorial story of the Norman Conquest of England. There's not a lot goin' on in Bayeux, but it's quaint and has a nice cathedral and photographs well.

 Inside the Cathedral.