France Trip- Part 3- WWII Sites
If you go to this region of France, you must visit some of the military sites. I was really impressed with one museum in particular, the one at Pegasus Bridge. If you go to Omaha Beach, I'd do the beach and the American War Memorial, going back to the museum there only if you've got time, but the Pegasus Bridge Museum is well worth a trip.
Omaha Beach
The American Military Cemetery
The cemetary is truly awe inspiring and beyond lovely. You cannot not be struck by it.
Pegasus Bridge
Omaha Beach
The American Military Cemetery
The cemetary is truly awe inspiring and beyond lovely. You cannot not be struck by it.
Pegasus Bridge
posted by Annie at 5:03 AM
7 Comments:
The beach is gorgous. I am having a great time reading about your trip, I look forward to more posts!
It's kind of strange. First, you see a picture of a beach, the kind of thing you find in travel brochures, usually with pretty-looking young women in swimsuits, children with beach balls, and just generally people having a great time. It makes you want to go for a swim.
And then you realize it's Omaha Beach. You realize that this is one of the beaches where the water ran red with blood, where bodies floated and lay everywhere. It's the most incongruous thing in the world.
It's always interesting to come across things that make us realise how history is shaped in our minds. To me, it is obvious that there are numerous very important WWII sites in France, but reading your post, I realise that, as a Canadian, my mental list of these sites is different than yours. I had never heard of Omaha Beach or Pegasus Bridge, while Dieppe, for example, is the first place that comes to mind when we talk about Normandy and WWII - and even as I type this, I'm wondering if it is the case for English-speaking Canadians (because this site has such a huge and obvious importance for us Quebecers (and other French-Canadians), it would be easy to think it does for them too, but I guess it's not necessarily the case). Anyways, thanks for giving me the opportunity to fill in a few of the blanks in my list.
I'm just getting caught up on blogs and was excited to see 3 posts from you and about your trip! Yay! Glad it was a great time. Hopefully you have more pics and posts to share!
Looks like you had a great time! Beautiful photos!
Glad you're back.
In high school, I went to France on a school trip and went to those same places! (Along with the Canadian cemetaries and memorials...Vimy Ridge, etc.) The things that affected me the most: watching 17 year old boys looking at the graves of 17 year old boys...and standing in the huge, gaping holes left by bombs. So many memories... I didn't fully appreciate the experience until a few years ago, when watching the D-Day 60th anniversary ceremonies on TV. Called my parents up to thank them for the gift of that experience.
The pictures are great, Annie. What a wonderful trip. I would love to be able to visit those places sometime, but it's nice to live vicariously through your travels.
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