Yesterday was so emotional with the D-Day stuff that I forgot to mention that we went to see a German battery before we went to the American Cemetery. It was near a town called Longues-sur-Mer (Longues by the sea). The battery consists of four large gun emplacements facing Gold and Omaha beaches, but you can't see the water from the battery. Although the beaches were their targets, they were set far enough back so the ships couldn't see them and fire on them until we had spotters or French Resistance on the ground to radio coordinates back to the ships.
These emplacements were really big and so interesting to walk through. After the four big guns, we walked on a path through fields of yellow flowers with a few bright orange poppies sprinkled throughout. It was hard to imagine these beautiful fields bearing witness to horrific explosions and allied soldiers marching inland from the beaches.
After the flowers we were at the high bluffs looking down onto the beaches and there was a huge lookout bunker the Germans used to spot incoming ships. Beautiful views of the water until you remember what happened there.
This is a picture of a typical narrow road we've been driving on between towns, and it's bordered by the tall hedgerows that you've probably heard about if you study WWII. These hedgerows border everything - roads, farms, etc. Some of the hedgerows that are used as fences on farms are about half this height, but it was still tough for the Allies to get through/over them as they moved inland.
Today's itinerary was pretty busy. We started off by walking down the street to see the big Bayeux cathedral, Notre Dame de Bayeux. It's as big as the famous Notre Dame in Paris, but it's much lighter and brighter inside (again because a lot of the destroyed stained glass was replaced with clear glass). It's absolutely beautiful, and it's one of my favorite cathedrals that I've ever seen. There were so many interesting details in the ceiling and walls. And the light streaming in the clear glass windows made it look like a postcard inside!
The pic below is from underneath the church in the crypt. It was really dark so the flash changed the colors a bit, but I wanted you to see how cool it looked!
Next we headed further down the street to see the famous Bayeux Tapestry. These are a couple of scenic pics on the way.
Here's a bit of info on the Bayeux Tapestry from its museum website:
"The Bayeux Tapestry (Calvados) is an embroidery, 70 metres long, made in the 11th century. Celebrating the conquest of England by William, Duke of Normandy, this linen canvas was embroidered after the Battle of Hastings on October 14th, 1066, probably in a monastery in the south of England. Vikings ships, Norman and Saxon cavalries illustrate the exploits of William and his opponent Harold, another pretender to the throne of England." http://www.tapestry-bayeux.com
You can't photograph the tapestry so this is just a little pic from online. But imagine 50+ scenes like this all in a row for over 70 yards! Very impressive! And as you walk through the darkened exhibition room, we got to listen to a narration/explanation of each scene on an audio guide. I'm a museum nerd, so I absolutely loved it!
After the tapestry, we headed to Arromanches to see the remains of the temporary harbor built by the Allies right after D-Day. (I say temporary because it was only supposed to last for 100 days, but a large portion of it is still there 69 years later.
All of the following information is quoted from the website http://cruises.about.com/cs/europe/a/normandy_2.htm
"Winston Churchill had the foresight to recognize the need for the creation of an artificial harbor in Normandy. He knew that the thousands of troops landing on the beaches of France could only carry enough supplies (food, bullets, fuel, etc.) for a few days. Since the Allies were not planning to invade any of the major existing ports on the northern coast of France, the troops would suffer without reinforcement of supplies. Therefore, engineers took Churchill's concept and built huge concrete blocks that would be used to create the docks needed for the port. Because of the secrecy required, workers in England built the giant blocks without even knowing what they were!"
"The museum sits right on the beach at Arromanches, and by looking out the windows that go all the way across the museum's beachside, you can still see the remains of part of the artificial harbor. Many of the huge concrete pieces were used elsewhere after the War, but enough are left to get a sense of how the harbor looked."
"More than just the floating blocks were needed to create the artificial port and harbor. In the first days after the invasion, the Allies sunk several old ships to make a breakwater. Then the blocks built in England were towed across the English Channel to Arromanches where they were assembled into the artificial harbor. The port was operational soon after the invasion."
"Arromanches was not the only artificial harbor built by the Allies. Two harbors were originally constructed and were named Mulberry A and Mulberry B. The harbor at Arromanches was Mulberry B, while Mulberry A was near Omaha Beach where the American forces landed. Unfortunately, just a few days after the harbors were built, a major storm struck. The harbor at Mulberry A was completely destroyed, and Mulberry B was severely damaged. After the storm, all of the Allies had to use the harbor at Arromanches. I found it interesting that the harbors were named "Mulberry" because the mulberry plant grows so fast!"
I know these pics probably don't look like much, but these were as amazing to see this time as they were ten years ago when we were here. I get goosebumps just walking through all of them! If you are a history buff, you should read more about this miraculous harbor. It's one of the most amazing accomplishments of WWII!
Part 2 of the blog will be about the afternoon and evening experiences.
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