Mont St. Michelle & Normandy Part 2

After our stay at the hotel of many noises and smells we headed out for Omaha beach pretty early on Friday morning. It was only about an hour and half drive from our hotel to the beach and it flew by in the beautiful weather. Overall I can tell I am going to have a hard time with this blog because so much of what we experienced is pretty hard to describe, a very emotional experience. The beach itself was beautiful and peaceful but also overwhelming to think about all of what had happened on there. We walked a bit and collected a few sea shells and just stood for awhile enjoying the weather and trying to take in the realities of what took place there. I was impressed, the memorials were very tasteful and did not detract from the overall experience.

We headed from the beach up to the WWII cemetery on the cliffs overlooking the area we had just come from. It was one of the most emotionally difficult places we have ever been. Everything was so perfectly manicured and the location despite the tourists was extremly tranquil. The simple design of the rows of the headstones was very similar to Arlington Cemetery and very powerful. Frequently during our visit Keith and I reflected on the differences between WWII and the Iraq war. Although it was so difficult to see how many lives were lost, we found comfort in the fact that these men died for a real purpose, an important goal, and to the benefit of the entire world. We moved though the grounds to a few of the headstones to pay our respects and reflect on what they must have faced.

Our final stop was at Point du Hoc, which I was totally unprepared for. We walked down a path from the parking lot through some brush out onto the cliffs looking over Omaha beach from the other side. The cliff was completely littered with blown up concrete and grass covered fox holes. Hole after hole where there Germans laid to attack the soliders arriving by boat and plane. The complex structures for the large guns were still there. With all of the signs of war around us it was difficult not to imagine what it must have been like for the soliders involved. It was weird to be able to walk through one of the German structures to see the gun holes and stand in the bunkers that they had built.

After a very powerful day we headed home. We wanted to get home and settled in since my parents were coming on Saturday. On a side note Keith and I are feeling really lucky to have found the vet we have. She is really wonderful, and clearly loves Bailey, so we know she is in good hands whenever we go on these extended trips.