OMAHA BEACH

May 6, 2018

Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial
Headstones: 9,387
Latin Crosses: 9,238
Stars of David: 149
Missing in Action: 1,557
Sets of Brothers: 45
Medal of Honor Recipients: 3

In one month it will be the 74th anniversary of the D-Day landings at Sword, Juno, Gold, Omaha, and Utah beaches.  In the town of Arromanches is a mural of two little girls who have written on the wall, “Please, no more war!”

I have never served in the military.  No one in my family – either by blood or by marriage – died in either of the last three wars.  Standing today at the major turning point of World War II, I was proud to remove my hat when the majestic notes of “The Star Spangled Banner” echoed across the memorial to the dead and the missing.  Our national anthem was followed by the haunting sounds of a bugle playing, “Taps.”

It wasn’t Flanders Field, but here too are crosses, row upon row.

It was strange walking out onto Omaha Beach and watching people in bathing costumes frolicking in the sand, and diving into the waves, while the silent grave markers stand just up the hill above them.

Please!  No more war!

It was a good day.  A beautiful drive through the French countryside, down small roads and around very tight corners that were never meant for large passenger coaches. 

We saw black and white cows fresh from the morning milking, and I remembered a farm set Kyle and I had which accompanied the Lionel train set.  I remembered Dad painting the white spots on the black plastic cows. 

We passed many churches that stood in silent testimony to the power of the Gospel and in Arromanches, slipped away from the hustle of snack stands and souvenir shops and walked to the Church of St. Peter.  We slipped inside and sat for a few moments before going back into town and to Sword Beach.

Sword Beach was the place where British troops came ashore, and constructed an artificial port, including incredible ships and ramps that brought the tanks and jeeps ashore that the Allies drove into Germany, chasing the fleeing Nazi soldiers.  The museum there was too crowded – it was hard to look at the exhibits, but maybe that was appropriate for all of the men who worked and fought there.

For lunch we had very good hamburgers accompanied by real French Fries, washed down by Cokes, and topped off by gellato.

We got back to the Zuiderdam about 10 minutes before all aboard and went straight to Table 125 where Chrestian and Gaspar served us good meals.  We went back to our stateroom and dropped off our traveling things and went to the theater for the most disappointing show of the cruise.  The musician was pianist Julian G.  His talent on the keyboard is incredible, no faulting his technique.  His choice of songs was distracting because everything he played – and flawlessly – sounded the same.  His patter with the audience was inane, we weren’t even amused by the pictures of his children.  Oh, well, with all of the super entertainment we’ve had, one less than spectacular show is not all that bad.

My cruise buddy’s neck is hurting her tonight and she has taken an Oxycodone, and is sitting on the couch behind me with her eyes closed.  I’m pretty sure she’s not just checking them for holes, but has drifted off into the arms of Morpheus.  No, she just moved.

It’s Zeebrugge, Belgium tomorrow and a canal cruise to Ghent.  Tune in tomorrow for our ongoing adventures.

TTFN

As we walked into the theater to wait for our tour to be called, they were calling our number. We were early and so were they. So today it was bus 9. Off to the bus and out of the port we went. It was just 9 am. The roads we traveled were indeed very narrow. We started on a divided highway but soon left it for the French countryside. Many freshly plowed fields, horses, cattle, and large expanses of yellow plants which we were told were the plants from which the french made mustard. The streets in the little towns through which we drove were almost narrower than the bus.

When we arrived at the first beach there were about 4 busses unloading and in the 2+ hours we were there more than 20 buses loaded and unloaded. Not counting the people arriving in cars, in campers and on motorcycles. The main street by the beach was restaurant after restaurant, souvenir stand after souvenir stand, bus after bus, people on top of people. The walk on the beach was spent taking pictures and gathering some shells with the quiet interrupted by children running, kicking soccer balls and playing.

The quiet streets above the main street was a nice walk and we saw many B&B’s and offers of rooms to let, etc through out the town. The ride to the cemetery was accompanied by our guides continuing talk. A very knowledgeable older French lady she was sometimes hard to understand, but she kept us informed for the whole ride through out the day.

The cemetery was hard to look at. So many crosses. We couldn’t walk on the grass and get close today because of the latest weather they had that made it not possible to walk on the grass. Sad. I would have liked to read some of the name on the crosses. We did read some of the names from the list of the missing. Finding some from Georgia and South Carolina.

As we were driving back to the ship we drove past the cemetery where the dead German soldiers were buried. It was different. Here the crosses are all black and much smaller than the American, French, Canadian and English, etc crosses. The guide said that when you read the ages of the young men in this cemetery you see that almost all of them are very young, 17-18-19. By the time these battles were happening most of the soldiers from Germany were very young men.  

We were the last tour to return and we went straight to supper and we had barely sat down and ordered when the captain came on and said we were leaving. As David said we have a late arrival tomorrow so we can , I should say, I can sleep in. I hope the oxy will put me to sleep. Old Arthur in my neck has really been hurting.

He was right about the show. I really did not like the between song stuff he did. And he played all classical pieces and they did sound exactly the same. No variety. No nothing.

Our tour tomorrow will take us to Bruges and to Ghent where hopefully we will be able to see the famous altarpiece of Ghent, from the Monument’s men, go watch the movie. And to take a canal boat ride, just like in Venice and to buy some famous Belgium chocolate which I will share when I get home. I will try to get it home with out melting it.

Well, I am fading fast and I sill need to take my nighttime pills. Love you all. Amy don’t forget to take Maggie and Rachel shopping, please.

Love Mom, Granny and Bonnie