Omaha Beach

I'm not an aficionado of the Second World War, so the idea of "doing the beaches" was not the reason we were in this part of Normandy. Still, you can't help but see the monuments, cemeteries, and historical markers when you are there. And they make you think about what took place there only sixty-three years ago.

The Norman coast at Omaha Beach.

We stopped at Omaha Beach. The cold January wind whipped along the coast and being outside was not all that pleasant. Taking photos was difficult, but I got some. The gray-brown water in the channel hit the rocky coast pretty hard that day, but the huge scale of the place made it all seem pretty mild.

The monument commemorating the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944.

There were a few other people there, too. We climbed in and out of some of the concrete bunkers and gun emplacements and made our way to the stone monument commemorating the soldiers, the event, and the place. It was somber and moving.

An woman braves the wind atop a gun emplacement.

We got back in the car and headed across the Cotentin peninsula and up its west coast to Cap de la Hague and on to Cherbourg for dinner and the night.

The meeting of land and sea near Omaha Beach.