In Which We Storm the D-Day Beaches and Besiege Le Mont-Saint-Michel
This past weekend, we hopped a train to Northern France with Matt and Brad to check out the Normandy region of France. Our first activity was to pick up the aqua box otherwise known as a Renault Kangoo.
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| From Weekend in Normandy |
The ‘Goo was one of the most atrocious cars I have ever seen, but it had tons of room and it served us well. The ‘Goo is a manual, so Sean took a couple of practice laps around town before we set out on the highway. It’s like riding a bike, Sean told us. To his credit, he only stalled once. In some of the towns, the roads were so narrow that the stone buildings jutted out in into the roadway, but Sean informed us that the ‘Goo felt like she was on rails.
We headed out to the Gold Beach first, where the ships the Allied forces purposely sank to create an artificial harbor on D-Day were still protruding from the water.
We then drove through the French countryside to Omaha Beach, which is one of the beaches where the American platoons landed on D-Day. There, we explored the memorial museum set up by the United States on the land granted to the country by France. Following the museum, we headed to the cemetery, where thousands of crosses and Stars of David were perfectly aligned in rows, marking the graves of 9,387 American soldiers who died in France during World War II. The orderly rows, with the ocean waves in the background, belied the chaos that occurred on D-Day.
The hometowns of the soldiers were listed on the markers. It was all too easy to find graves of men from Pennsylvania. I was reminded of the line in Our Town where the narrator observed that many times soldiers fight for the freedom of people they’ve never met in places they’ve never seen.
We then wandered down to the beach itself, where two German bunkers still remain. Looking at the peaceful coastline, it is hard to imagine the fighting, death and destruction that occurred just over sixty years before.
From Omaha Beach, we headed to Pont du Hoc, a sharp cliff that American Rangers had scaled while under fire on D-Day to reach and destroy German weapon stockpiles.
You were able to climb in and out of concrete crevices and holes, many of which were still lined with the original barbed wire. In America, a site like this would be fenced off from the public. In France, only the deepest holes were blocked off, and by blocked off, I mean that the government evidently inserted some newer barbed wire to deter people from going near the area.
The D-Day beaches, a significant part of World War II, were interesting to see with our own eyes. Perhaps it is because any of the war-torn sites in the United States happened many years before our lifetime or the lifetimes of our family members, with the exception of Pearl Harbor.
However, we all agreed our favorite part of the trip was visiting Le Mont Saint Michel. Mont Saint Michel is an island. The first building on the island was first inhabited in 708. The Benedictine monks settled into the abbey at the top of the mountain in the 10th century, while the village grew up below its walls. The abbey and village are still here today, which is almost incomprehensible. What is further incomprehensible is that the island was under siege from the British for 30 years during Britain and France’s 100 year war – almost our whole lifetimes.
We could see Mont Saint Michel way in the distance before we arrived in the town of Saint Michel. There are no other way to describe it other than majestic. In the late day fog, it looked like something from Disney Land, soaring high above the rest of the land. The island itself raises high into the air. When you got up close, you could see lots of old stone buildings jutting into the air around the island, culminating in the giant abbey at the very top. On the land leading up to the island, sheep graze in the grass, most of whom barely paid attention to us as we photographed them.
I was expected Mont Saint Michel to be a cluster of old, unusable buildings, so I was surprised to learn that there are approximately 51 inhabitants on the island. When we entered through a stone gate at the bottom of the island, I was even more surprised to see what looked like a quaint little European town, complete with gift shops, creperies, brasseries, a post office, and a hotel.
We followed the narrow, rambling cobblestone path up the hill. Periodically, one of us would exclaim, wow. This is really cool.
Up the hill, past the buildings, we climbed endless amounts of stairs, until we finally reached the abbey. At the very top, light streamed through the windows of the otherwise dark chapel.
We then wandered through the stone rooms, each one more fascinating than the next. We never did figure out how someone seamlessly integrated modern technology into the building.
I am sure we will be saying this a lot on this trip, but le Mont Saint Michel was one of the coolest things we’ve ever seen. It is one of those places where it is impossible to capture the awe you feel when you see it up close, despite the hundreds of photos you take.
Gorgeous, gorgeous photography ~ I think the heck with being an attorney, Amy, your future career should be a travel advisor/photographer. Great job!
Still waiting though for a picture of Ste. Jeanne d’Arc (St. Joan of Arc), my patron saint. 😡
Oops, that was supposed to be a smiley face with a heart, not a mad face ~ can you erase it?!
These photos are particularly cool…some really beautiful and interesting shots!
OMG–I tried leaving comments before your site was fixed–they are lost, but not lost, is my admiration for both your writing talent and your photography. I smile so much as I relate to some of your thoughts–like my trip with two female friends was done using “Europe on $5.oo a Day” and your fascination with food (not to mention the cheap wine) is oh-so-understandable. I’m happy about your comedic streak–just makes it so much fun to read. Your attention to the details and the pictures are outstanding. Wishing you good health as you go forward and loving the opportunity to hear all about it, I am —
Cousin Noreen
This place is so beautiful! I visited here when I went to France in 9th grade with Shaler’s French club. I loved it! It really is one of the most unique places I’ve ever seen.
I guess I should admit that Sean took at least 2/3 of these photos!
Noreen, I am glad you are enjoying the blog. I guess my food obsession is very obvious. : )
Tracy, who knew Shaler had a French club that actually went to France! I should have taken French. I tagged along on a Spanish field trip with Peggy once. Ms. Israel took us to Oakland. We convinced her that Teleropa was a restaurant!
I found your pictures and comment of the Normandy area very interesting. I remember seeing some of the scenes when I was there nany years ago for work; unfortunately I did not have a camera with me on that trip. And the information about the Benedictine monks reminded me that I still have a partial bottle of Benedictine liquer, made by the Benedictine monks that was given to me by my hosts. If you get a chance to try any of while you are in France, it’s great stuff. If not, I’m sure that I’ll still have some left when you finally get home. Enjoy!!!
Amy,
I am loving living vicariously through you. I love the pics and info about Normandy. My Grandfather was part of the second wave of the invasion of Normandy and he always talked about it and showed us pictures. He loved the French and even went back before he died. Thanks for the updates. The blog will be a great reminder to you of everything you did years from now. Keep the updates coming. I think your amusing more of us than you know. Enjoy Morocco!
Suzie