We would have taken a taxi but all the taxis we saw had no drivers. Again, they decided not to be working this morning. When we flagged a few down, they all wagged their fingers at us like they were unavailable. I did have a bus map but nothing seemed to go where we needed to. So we decided to walk but, unfortunately, I had no map of the city so I had to try and use the Metro map to guess where we were and where we needed to go. We were double-timing it and I could feel shin splints in creation as we were rushing through the streets for a good half hour. But nothing was looking right and when we asked a man for directions to the train station, we arrived instead at our original Metro stop right by our hostel. All hope of catching our train was gone at that point.
There was another train leaving in about 90 minutes so we went back to the hostel to ask for suggestions. This girl gave me a map of the Metro in response. Well, yes, I agree the Metro would be best… if it were working!!! We did get a little map of the city and thought about our options. We knew it would be a long walk but we could probably make it to the train station in time if we hurried. Maybe if we took the bus and walked the rest of the way then we could do it.
So we went to the bus stop but the traffic was terrible and the buses were stuffed full. We figured even if we could fit on the bus we would still go faster if we walked. So we half walked half ran to the train station which took us just about an hour, during which we did pass two buses so there ya go. We arrived with ten minutes to spare and caught our train, everyone else bundled up in their jackets and scarves and us two Americans fanning ourselves and sweating bullets.
I am very glad we eventually made the trip though as it turned out to be one of our better days thus far. We arrived in Bayeux around 12:20pm and then had to figure out how to get to our final destination: the beaches of Normandy. We had originally wanted to rent bikes for the day but since we arrived so late that was definitely out of the question. And a taxi ride would be a good $75. So we checked out the bus and there happened to be one leaving in about 20 minutes. Okay then! That worked out and was a much cheaper option.
Our bus ride was quick – it felt like a rollercoaster and my life flashed before my eyes a few times – and we arrived at the American Cemetery at Omaha Beach around 1:15pm. That gave us about 3.5 hours to see the place. I would have liked more time but at least we were there!
For those of you who don’t know, this is the cemetery where American soldiers of WWII have been buried. There are over 9000 graves here just above the infamous Omaha Beach where many American soldiers died on D-Day. The whole cemetery is about a half mile long and is filled with row upon row of white marble crosses.
After a quick run through of their museum, we went on a free tour of the place which turned out to be very nice. The weather, after so many cold days, was clearing up. It was pleasantly cool and peacefully quiet. You could hear only the chirping of birds and the soft break of waves from the beach below. What a perfect setting and a perfect day to honor these men who gave their lives for liberty.
The tour took us first to the wall of 1500 names of men who died in the war but their bodies had not been found, most likely lost at sea. Just above the wall is a large statue of a youthful man flying up triumphantly out of the water. The statue represents the resurrection and I was very moved when learning its meaning. Then you come to the rows and rows of crosses, all perfectly aligned and stretching as far as the eye can see. The guide stopped by a few crosses to tell the story of the people buried there. One I found most interesting was the story of Teddy Roosevelt Jr. who was around 55 years old and stricken with arthritis during the time of the war. Despite his age and condition, he wanted to be on the front lines on D-Day to help give courage to his men. He actually survived the invasion only to die a month later from a heart attack. I was moved by his willingness to sacrifice and to give courage to all those young men, many of whom would meet their end on that beach.
From there we stopped to overlook the beach where the guide spoke of the D-Day operation and how many things went wrong. I actually knew a lot of the details because I taught a lesson on D-Day for my student teaching just two months ago. Many men died just because the weather was so bad, causing bombers to miss their targets and rough rides onto the beach.
Our tour ended there and we were left to wander. I wanted to go down to the beach, which I didn’t know was accessible to the public. I took my shoes off and walked through the sand, thinking of all the sacrifices made there and what a horrible scene it must have been. After months of training and preparation, many these boys landed only to be quickly shot down. What a loss and what a sacrifice that was made to liberate Europe.
I wanted to go and put my feet in the water because I wanted to experience as much as I could of this historic place that was pivotal to the ending of the war. The beach was different because it had two sort of mini-valleys – there may be a technical name for it but I don’t know – running along the length of it, both filled with water. The first we were able to find a place to cross but the second, closer to the ocean, I had to wade through. Nick decided to stay behind while I went on my mini-excursion.
I stood there and let the water flow over my feet. It was cold but pleasant. It was hard to imagine that in this beautiful and peaceful setting, so many men had landed with their lives at stake. I tried to recreate the scene in my head, with battleships out in the distance, little boats near the shore, obstacles everywhere on the beach and gunfire coming from the hills above. I imagined the fear those boys must have felt, completely exposed and riding on luck and God’s grace to get them across that beach.
Well I felt a little bit of fear myself after that. I’d been looking out over the sea for about five minutes and I turned around to see Nick much farther away than before. The water between us looked twice as wide as it was earlier. I yelled over to him, “Did you move?” He shook his head and I looked at my feet to see water trickling up very rapidly toward me. The tide was coming in and it was coming in faster than I’ve ever seen. It was flowing by from the ocean and filling up the little valley separating me from Nick. Whoa.
I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t tell how deep the water was between us and I was pretty nervous about wading through, especially since the beach was littered with jellyfish waiting for the rising tide. Yikes! So I walked along the beach to try and find a better spot but nothing was looking any friendlier because the tide was coming in so quickly. After about one minute of searching, I decided it was better to just go now than wait even longer when the trip across would be even deeper. And in the meantime, my stretch of sand was quickly disappearing.
So I started across and all the while Nick is bent over laughing at me. I was kind of annoyed because I really was nervous, taking one step after another not knowing how deep it was or if I would run into a jellyfish. He took pictures of my journey across and laughed about it the rest of the day, assuring me that my plight was quite funny to watch. OK, it’s funny in retrospect but it wasn’t so much then. Seeing myself get swallowed up by the sea isn’t my favorite thing.
After our beach experience, we rushed back over to the cemetery where we had just ten or fifteen minutes to walk through before heading back to the bus stop. We walked through some of the rows of headstones so we could read the names. I tried to imagine people standing there in place of a headstone - all these people who gave up their future for ours and all of Europe. Nick said, “All these mothers had to be told terrible news.” My heart went out to those mothers, some who lost more than one son on that soil.
As we left the cemetery, I touched every headstone I passed and in my heart I thanked each soldier by name for their sacrifice. It was definitely the most moving thing I did as my heart was filled with both sadness and gratitude.
It was a wonderful trip and very emotional. Nick said it was his favorite thing we have done so far. I asked him why and he said because it had the most meaning. That it did.
PHOTOS:
The wall with the names of those men lost in the war. It must be difficult to come to terms with a death when you never get to see the body.
The wall with the names of those men lost in the war. It must be difficult to come to terms with a death when you never get to see the body.
The statue at the head of the cemetery, representing resurrection from the waters. Fitting for so many men who lost their lives at sea during the war, many of which were never found.
The rows and rows of graves. It's not something you can easily capture in one photo. As I mentioned, I tried to imagine people standing there instead of headstones.
Here is the headstone of Teddy Roosevelt Jr. who went to the front lines on D-Day despite the fact he was 55 years old. He survived the invasion only to die from a heart attack a month later.
There are a lot of graves marked like this, with no name and only a body. I was touched that someone had left a flower for this soldier "known but to God."
I like this picture. You see the men who lost their lives with the ocean in the background where the fell and the people walking by who they sacrificed for. It's a peaceful and solemn place.
A view of the beach from the cemetery.
Here I go on my mini-excursion to put my toes in these historic waters, not knowing I would face my own crisis soon thereafter.
As you can imagine, I was thrilled to be wading nearly waist-deep in jellyfish-filled waters. I have never seen tide rise that fast.
Nick looks out over the beach from an old bunker. He was commenting on how beautiful it is there.
Nick found a little fox hole where they would peak out and shoot from.
It was obvious Nick was moved and fascinated by the place with its history and monuments such as this. So many men sacrificed everything.
1 comment:
All I can say is this...I was brought to tears. How amazing. I must go. Now... about the tide and the whole water comment you made...ummm. you live in HI! Hello!!!! But haven't you heard about how fast the waters come in over there? Silly girl.
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