From the 14th Floor: WWII Trip - Omaha Beach & the American Cemetery, 11/12/13

We managed to arrive on Omaha Beach early in the morning in order to catch low tide. The invasion began during low tide to take advantage of the long stretch of beach. During high tide the water line can reach the cliffs. One reason I wanted to visit Omaha Beach as I recall being told that one of my best friend's dad from Sherman, TX, Dr. Tuck, was one of the medics who landed here on D-Day. He later became a doctor and mayor of my home town. Here are a few of the photos taken on the beach.

Notice the storm coming in from the Chanel.

Look closely and you can see a German bunker near the road going up the cliff. Note how it is not aimed out at the beach but across the beach. This made it more difficult for the Allies to find the bunkers, especially those ships offshore firing at the beach before the landing.

This is a close up shot of the same bunker shown above. Obviously there was no TV disk at the time of the invasion. I was surprised that the beach is occupied with homes, B and B's, restaurants and a thriving tourist business during the summer. While it is significant ground, life must go on. I am grateful that what could be preserved has been.

The photo below is the 88mm gun mentioned above. It was hard to find from the ships in the Chanel who were firing on the beach because at the time of the invasion the bunker was hidden inside the remains of a hotel. Again, the gun was pointed across the beach, not out to sea.

This is part of the lovely memorial to the National Guard units that landed on Omaha Beach.

This plaque shows a list of National Guard units by state and I noticed that Virginia had six shown.

After our visit to the beach we moved on down the road to the American Cemetery. Upon arrival you knew you were at a US installation because it was the only facility we visited related to D-Day that required you to go through security. Before going to the actual cemetery there is an excellent museum dedicated to those who are buried there. Overhead you can hear the reading of the names as you review the exhibits.

Inside the museum

Leaving the museum, you walk down a lovely path.

Scenes in the cemetery:

Family members gathered at one of the sites.

It appears that someone visited this grave site on Armistice Day.

We were unable to linger at the cemetery because the storm finally arrived with a vengeance. We returned to our favorite restaurant to plan the rest of the afternoon.

Because of the weather we decided to visit the town of Bayeux, the home of the famous tapestry depicting William the Conqueror's victory over the Saxons, making him King of England. Photography was not allowed in the museum housing the tapestry, but we found the area around the museum interesting.