Day 6- The Beaches of Normandy

So of course last night I didn't have internet, so that's why the no update. Anywho, Normandy! This was the part of the France trip I was most looking forward to, and it didn't disappoint. We drove the two hours to the beaches and started in Arromanches which was the site of one of the artificial ports put up to support the Normandy invasions.

A little background for those of you that don't know, the Germans had heavily fortified every port in that part of France, so to take an existing port, we would have had to essentially destroy it, and then rebuild it. This could have taken years. Instead, we built pieces of piers and waterbreaks in England, and then towed them across the sea. Two days after we invaded, Arromanches was being turned into a ready made port. Old ships were sunk to provide a break water, and piers were built from prefabricated sections that ran from the beach into the sea. They would float on the tide, and so they could be used 24/7. More break waters were put into place, and the piers were capped with pieces that ships could dock with.

Just a handful of days after we stepped foot on French soil, the harbor was open and bringing in hundreds of tons of supplies and vehicles a day. This allowed the assault to continue, and France to be freed. Its sort of an unknown part of the Normandy lore, but it was very important. To this day there are pieces of the old harbor still there, as you can see below.
This is one of the pieces of the pier. In this picture below you can see part of the old break water.
There was a museum explaining all this with some really cool dioramas that I probably should have photographed. I DID grab a photo of a jeep they had, cause it was cool looking.
After that we headed to the German gun battery at Longues-ser-Mer. This was a grouping of 4 anti ship guns set back from the cliffs and an observation post in the cliffs themselves. These guns were hit by planes and naval bombardment before D-Day, but weren't knocked out. They dueled with warships throughout the day and also fired onto the invasion beaches. Eventually they were put down by naval guns. They were later captured with no resistance.

This is a rare sight because the guns are still in the bunkers, and it was very cool to see. Here you can see the bunker rising out of the hill, its mouth pointed at the sea.
This one contained the only gun actually destroyed, as you can see here in these pictures.
It is sort of hard to see, but you can see the ruined cannon, and the light streaming in the back where the roof caved in.
Here's a shot from inside, and you can clearly see the damage done to the back of the bunker.
Anyone standing in here when that happened probably didn't walk away.
Here is what the bunkers looked like normally, and even on this one you can see the pitted walls and roof. The people standing next to it on the right are full grown, and give a good idea of how large these guns are.

This picture is what the gunners could see from their position. Of course they had an observation post too, which did most of the spotting.

Here's all four bunkers in a row.

And here is the observation post, built into the cliffs by the sea. Also you can see Claudio. The post is two levels, one is completely enclosed and has only a forward viewing slit (maybe for a machine gun?) seen below, and the top level was covered by a sort of concrete umbrella.
As you can see, this too was hit several times, but nothing penetrated its thick armored shell. Below you can see what a German gunner would see looking out of this vision slit.
And in the next picture you can see what the observers up top would see.
A pretty good view of the ocean, which is what they needed I suppose.

Our next trip was to the U.S. Military cemetery that is on the heights above Omaha beach, where so many of our brave soldiers died. We walked down onto the beach before we went into the cemetery proper, and even though little of the battle remained visible, there was still a feeling in the air. Standing on the beach you saw the heights in front of you. During the war they would have been covered with bunkers, machine gun emplacements, and razor wire. It was an ordeal for me walk all the way up and down, let alone take it from a deeply entrenched enemy.
It may not seem like much now, but this was hell seventy years ago. After the arduous walk back up, we went to the memorial which stands at the head of the cemetery. It had detailed maps of both the Normandy invasions and the greater battle for Western Europe. It was a lovingly tended for place of beauty and solemnity, as is fitting.
Here you can see the flowers and some of the crowd. In the picture below, you see the cemetery from the memorial. Bear in mind that the Rotunda at the back is only the middle of the cemetery, a like number of plots are unseen behind it.
The beauty of the reflecting pool and the perfectly kept lawn and trees, the simple austere grave stones, white crosses for the Christians and white stars of David for the Jews, it was all very striking. It was a very solemn and meaningful experience. I walked through the cemetery, occasionally reading a gravestone, surrounded by nearly 10,000 American dead. I felt sad, even though I'd never met any of these people, especially when I came across a gravestone such as this.
The inscription reads, "Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms known but to God." There were many such stones in the yard. Many such soldiers who died for their country now lie unnamed and unknown in foreign soil.

We walked through the cemetery for a long while, not saying a word, not wanting to spoil the solemnity of the place. Eventually we left, but it was a while before I could again make myself speak.

Full of somber thoughts, we made our way to Pointe du Hoc, but stopped at a restaurant nearby for a bite to eat. I had duck cooked in cider, with a glass of cider to drink. Judging from the number of signs with Cidre on them, this part of France is known for such things. It wasn't like American cider, it was thinner, and slightly alcoholic. Still, it was good, and gave the duck good flavor.

After lunch we continued to Pointe du Hoc. For those of you not in the know, this was the spot of a small but fierce battle on D-Day. Pointe du Hoc is situated right between the two American beaches, and had several 155mm guns that could be fired at either site. Three ranger companies assaulted it. They landed on the beaches and had to climb up steep cliffs to reach the spot, and when they finally gained the summit, they found that the guns had been moved.

A small team went in search of them and found them sitting a mile inland. The team destroyed the weapons with thermite grenades, and even though they did this but a stones throw from 100 Germans, they did it without getting caught.

Their mission completed, the rangers then held Pointe du Hoc for two days against several counter assaults, and at the end, only 90 men of the original 225 were still fit to fight. It was an amazing feat, and afterward our government turned it into a monument. The field was left like it was, strewn with destroyed bunkers and shell holes.
Here is a view of the field, clearly visible are the many large holes that bombs had caused.
Here is a picture of a destroyed bunker, with Claudio in the foreground.
Here is a picture of the cliffs that had to be scaled that day, not pictured, Claudio.

It was a big day. I saw a lot of things I've wanted to see for a while. Again I've walked the same ground as some very brave men, and I feel honored for the experience.