Sunday and Monday in Normandy

15 April Sunday

Today is moving day. We were off to Dean’s Manor and our apartment. After packing, it was off for some coffee and breakfast. Then we decided to go and see what we could find at the Memorial Museum of the Battle of Normandy in Bayeux. However, it closes from noon until two, and the young man advised us to return then for a longer visit. We made a trip to the local grocery store, which is open on Sundays from 9 until 12:30. The trip was fast because they were closing as we entered.

Then, we headed to our new place to live for the next week. We met a lady walking along the road as we were hunting for the manor, and she turned out to be the housekeeper for Mrs. Chilcutt. Since she was in Caen with her sick husband who is hospitalized there, the housekeeper got us in the apartment and oriented (all in French).

The “Manor” is a large stone house of three stories with a two-story annex attached that is our apartment. It looks like a functioning farm with two barns, a pond full of carp, geese, and other animals as yet unseen. The whole place is old and rustic. To those seeking a condo on the beach, it will be a distinct disappointment. To those wanting the atmosphere of old France close to Bayeux, it will be nice. It seemed like home to me, as it was a near copy of the Idyll apartment I spent a week in before the Alsace tour opened in 2000. I could see that Hal Taussig, our old Idyll friend, would be completely at home here.

After getting into the apartment, we headed back to town (about a four minute drive). It was still early and a good time to explore the practically traffic free old village. This was also a good time to hit our favorite watering hole and Lotto kiosk, La Gitane. It is a favorite of mine because they have Guinness on tap. Barbara likes Stella, a local French beer. Our thirsts slaked, we then drove back to the museum for an enjoyable two and a half hours.

The museum is a nice and extensive exhibit of the battles that took place in and around the area. There is a twenty-five minute film in English three times a day, and all the plaques of explanation are in both English and French. There are several rooms with both equipment (tanks, artillery guns, bulldozers) and poster exhibits. The photographs alone are worth the 4.5 Euro admission fee. It was easy to spend almost three hours there.

After the museum, we drove the circumferential road around Bayeux. This was originally built in the weeks after the D-Day invasion so that all the heavy equipment did not have to travel the narrow streets of Bayeux. Then it was back to the manor for unpacking, happy hour, and supper of fresh fish, purple potatoes, and a dessert of cheese and fruit.

Mrs. Chilcutt had returned from Caen’s hospital with a good report on her husband who has been a diagnostic challenge there for some months. She is a very pleasant lady who has been here with her Colonel husband for 16 years. We enjoyed a glass of Calvados with her, and then prepared for tomorrow’s visit to the American beaches.

16 April Monday

We were up and out after breakfast at home. On the expressway to Sainte Mere Eglise, this is the village near Utah Beach where the paratroops dropped just before the amphibious landings began. A replica of this on the church immortalizes the one man who fell on the local church steeple, then slid downward until his parachute hung on the roof today. It has a nice but touristy appearance even today, and we found the people cordial. The place is a favorite of tours, and you get to see some of the remaining few WW II vets walking around. Not all that come here are veterans of D-Day, but there are vets from WW II. I heard one lady ask a couple, “Were you here?” The man answered, “ No, I Was a pencil pusher. I never saw combat.” She quickly assured him that they were all important.

There is free parking (an anomaly most places), and we visited the tourist office, where a nice lady guided us to restrooms and ATMs. Then we entered the Airborne Museum, which is a great place to spend some hours. We have learned that the museums have great displays and movies well worth the price of a maximum of 11 euros to a minimum of 5 euros. They all have gift shops but you do not have to buy.

We then rode out to some places in the countryside where various monuments to other heroes (they were all heroes) were situated. Then on to the beach called Utah. As we arrived there, it was past lunch. The Le Normandie Restaurant was in front of us. The menu was full of seafood, so we shared some scallops and stuffed clams. This with salads and a coke/beer were a fine lunch.

Just down the path from the restaurant were some old German bunkers, and our first view of the landing beaches with the bunkers built to last (so far) over 67 years. Off then, we went to the Omaha Beach museum. The road along the beach is nice, and this area is basically a summer beach resort with condos like one sees at Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, etc. Little do some of the people know about the history of these beaches. The road is simple but direct. The season was not high, so we enjoyed our ride

Next, we came to the UTAH Beach museum. I liked this because there is a nice museum, but one can wander out and see the vast expanse of what our soldiers came in upon sick from the sea, God can only imagine how scared, and yet ready to fight for us at home (I was 5 years old). WW II is to me, is the first time and the last time that I saw my country meld together in a common cause. We spent a couple of hours there and enjoyed our time. Barbara’s father was a USN Chief, and all she can wonder is where he was on that day. He lived, but no one knows where he was then. There are questions that a lot of us would like to ask.

After a rather circuitous ride through the countryside, we got back on the autobahn and made our way a few kilometers back toward La Cambe. This is the site of a German war dead cemetery, and I found it most impressive. The German War Graves Commission, an organization that maintains German War Cemeteries all over the world, maintains it. There are sites in Europe, Africa, the Far East, and even one in Chattanooga, Tennessee (186 graves). There are 21,139 German soldiers in La Cambe, both known and unknown. Since 2001, there has been 1200 maple trees planted in this memorial. It brought home to us that a soldier, no matter who he fights for, has parents, siblings, spouses, children, and girl/boy friends. Some or all of these are grieved at the loss. To me, it was a bit like going to Arlington.

On a more practical level, we then found ourselves at LeClerc, a grocery store, which could house a subdivision. The variety and choices were staggering. Needless to say, we had an interesting supper before preparing for tomorrow’s adventures.