Mark and I visiting Omaha Beach in Normandy, France. Today, we took the all-day tour of WWII sites with Operation Overlord Tours. Our guide, Stephan, was knowledgeable and friendly. We enjoyed the tour very much, and got to see a lot of the Normandy countryside in addition to the war sites. The crowds are lower now that the big 70th Anniversary of D-Day has passed (6 June). We were here at low tide. When the tide comes in, the water will be all the way up to the pebbles.
One of the German gun emplacements on the ridge overlooking Omaha Beach. Originally, these were covered on top with soil and grass, to make them less conspicuous.
The sand and pebbles of Omaha Beach.
Just alongside all of the monuments and rusting war machines, the beaches of Normandy are now used like any other long, beautiful beach -- for fun!
At the American Cemetery, this is on the large memorial wall. The maps on the walls show the movements of the Allied and German forces.
Omaha Beach again. Mark is standing on the only visible part of the Mulberry Harbors here. These were manmade harbors placed here and off the shore of Arromanches as part of the D-Day landing strategy. Unfortunately, the Omaha Beach harbor did not last long enough to help in the landing, as it was destroyed by a big storm just days after it was placed offshore.
Pointe du Hoc. This is where the U.S. Rangers had to scale the cliffs to destroy German guns placed above the cliffs. With a fast-changing tide and shifting sands, it is amazing that anyone could scale these crumbling cliffs.
This gun emplacement is just one of many waiting for the Rangers when they reached the top.
Inscribed inside the concrete bunker are the names of the Rangers. One has my maiden name, Dailey, same spelling (which is not common). I don't think we are related.
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