Early on the Monday morning we packed up Ziggy and prepared for a long day. I emptied our fridge of the milk and cheese – gave them to a pair opposite who would use them. (There have been UK government restrictions for some time now – and I think its important to follow them – I remember the devastation that Foot and Mouth caused in the UK). The plan was to drive up through Brittany and to arrive early at the Overlord Museum, then to go onto the American cemetery made famous in Saving Private Ryan. I felt that this might be emotional and i was not certain how i would feel – war is often glorified, and perhaps we should remember the sacrifices made.

As we arrived at the museum, we saw a lot of signs for other museums and points of interest. The museum itself was a walk through, with much of the exhibits being presented in diorama form, which did bring things to life. The initial planning of D-Day was explained very well, and i did not realise that Eisenhower had pushed for more beaches – from four to five; i also did not realise how long it took all of the beaches to become a joined up beach head – six days! There was also a good explanation of life under the Third Reich – and the rise of the French Resistance . The early parts of the museum focused on the initial attacks – there was a collapsible boat that linked to the path finders who landed first, and there was an explanation of Pointe du Hoc which I was not even aware of.

large parts of the museum were reconstructions of events – and I appreciated that the Wehrmacht and the Waffen SS were also represented in their dioramas – and the massive battlefield crane used by the Germans to maintain tanks on the battle field certainly made my jaw drop. There were also some personal stories listed that made the museum more personal.

After a fascinating hour or so, we came towards the end of the museum and came to a corridor of photographs – people who had landed on D-Day and then come back to visit the area – the photograps were of these men from June 1944 – and then when they returned. Several of the photo frames had French Tricolour ribbons that revealed when they had passed away. It was to poignant to photograph – and seemed that these old boys had lost their youth in that battle. we left the museum and drove a few kilometers towards the sea for Omaha Beach and the American Military Cemetery.

Again the French organisation of the car park was wonderful – clearly designated spaces for Motorhomes, cars and coaches, and very well marshalled. The walk from the car park led to the visitor centre – we elected not to visit it, but the still pond that looked toward the sea was when i began to appreciate the peace, and the respect. There were many nationalities visiting – and some were from the USA; on the whole of our trip I noticed that many of our colonial cousins were keeping a low profile – I guess its to do with how the rest of the world views that Orange Faced Baboon’s Arse. But enough Politics – as I looked across the lines of white crosses and Stars of David of all those who died fighting Fascism, i wonder what they would make of Trump and Netanyahu, both somewhere to the right of the right wing.

In the centre of the cemetery is the memorial and assorted buildings that celebrate the sacrifices made – and i think its important to say just how respectful the visitors were – it was quiet, peaceful and very reflective. The Cemetery overlooks the beach and as i looked across the sand dunes it was hard to envisage how it looked on D-Day. As we paid our respects we were both quiet; we left and did the short drive to Pegasus Bridge – which will be the next blog post.