March 13, 2015 - A Friday the 13th we'll never forget

This is certainly one Friday the 13th that we'll never forget!  We began our day around 9:00 AM with Gisselle, a private tour guide that we shared with the Stewarts and one other couple from TN. Gisselle is an amazing gal from Brazil who came to France to study history, and she eventually married a French fellow and settled in his home town of Bayeaux.  We started our tour at Utah beach, at the 00 KM marker of liberation.

The weather was dismal - dreary, wet, and chilly.  Rob felt that it was perfect because it closely paralleled the weather on D-Day. 

 We listened to interesting story after interesting story of the invasion. Ari, you would be proud of the 4th Infantry Division's role.

The museum was incredible and we could have spent so much more time there.  Eventually, we needed to move on to a delightful place that the WW II troops enjoyed, for lunch.

Just standing on the beaches, looking at the harsh landscape that the men had to confront was staggering.  We toured Pont du Hoc, Omaha, and Gold Beaches.

We spent time touring several of the German bunkers that littered the Normandy coast.

Around 4:00 we arrived at the American Cemetery for the Retreat/Flag lowering ceremony.

This cemetery is pristine! The grounds are immaculate.

Each grave is adopted by a French family who routinely bring flowers and say prayers.
Four Medal of Honor winners are buried here, including General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., a 4th Infantry Division Commander who insisted on landing with his troops on D-Day.

The various memorials within the cemetery are awesome.  Rob particularly liked the one depicting his former unit, Third Army.

It was a day that made this entire journey worthwhile!

Back in Bayeaux, we enjoyed another fabulous dinner at Domesday where we had the BEST dessert of the trip - a crepe with chocolate chip/mint ice cream and chocolate sauce.  WOW!!!!