In Remembrance: The Beaches of Normandy

We selected this Uniworld trip because it included a visit to the beaches of Normandy, where so many gave their lives in the name of freedom. For those of us with fathers who fought in World War II, this visit was emotional and very special. It didn’t matter what part they played in the war or if they were part of the Normandy Invasion.

It was a long day to and from our port where the SS Joie de Vivre was docked in Rouen. Our all-American group was visiting the three American sites. It was cold with grey, cloudy skies and somehow seemed appropriately somber.

 We began at Utah Beach and the nearby village of Sainte-Mère-Eglise, where an incoming American paratrooper was famously caught on the steeple of the church. A monument to him is permanently in place as is the beautiful stained glass in the church commemorating the airmen. The Airborne Museum was crowded with French children and their parents during their fall break. The three parts of the museum provided very visual representations of the invasion and the men who fought and died. Ultimately the Americans freed this village from Nazi occupation.

Our next stop was Pointe du Hoc, where so many Army Rangers lost their lives scaling the cliffs directly into German fire. The information reported by the surviving Rangers about the location and condition of German artillery was key to making the landing a success.

This invasion took three years to plan and being here, it’s hard to comprehend the scope and details. It’s also hard to believe they kept it a secret. So many things went wrong, from the bad weather, missed landing site, tanks sinking, and thousands of lives lost – it’s a miracle they prevailed. But they did prevail, and as we all know, it was the turning point of the war.

We concluded our tour with a visit to the American cemetery and the landing site of Omaha Beach. The cemetery is a beautiful, magnificently maintained tribute to the men who died here. Families were able to make the choice of bringing them home or burying them where they died. Forty percent chose this cemetery, which also honors those missing in action.

I didn’t realize until our visit that all these sites are American property, having been given to the U.S. by the French government. The individual who manages the cemetery even has diplomatic status.

At Omaha Beach, Uniworld arranged a ceremony at the base of the beach-side monument and gave us each a perfect white rose. To begin, a bugler played our national anthem. As we turned and faced our flag, we joined in song and the man standing behind me had the most beautiful voice.  One of our guides read a letter she had sent a former Uniworld guest.  It was an absolutely beautiful, moving, tribute from a French woman in thanks to Americans.  I can’t begin to describe it here. I don’t believe there was a dry eye among us. The bugler played taps and we had a moment of silence before placing the white roses as we wished. We walked ours out as far as we could into the tidal area.