Normandy, France Day 2

Bonjour! I have been without wifi for a few days and finally have the opportunity to blog...

Monday was our second day in Normandy, and we started it off with a quick 15 minute stop at Omaha Beach...

Unfortunately, it was a rainy, icky day and that put a hindrance on all our outdoor activities for the day. It didn't stop us from going to the beach though!

When we went to Omaha Beach, the tide was very low, which was interesting because we had just learned that on D-Day the tide was very high and the soldiers didn't have much beach to cross in order to get to the German/Nazi forces.

After our quick trip to Omaha Beach, we went to the American Cemetery where many of U.S soldiers from WWII are buried.

The veterans in our group all stepped forward to take part in the flag raising ceremony.

We spent some time in the museum at the cemetery, and then went to the coast again to look at some of the remnants from the Nazi/German troops. It was really cool to have a look inside the structures and see how they were built.

We actually got to go underground inside one, which was one of my favorite parts of the day!

Looking out to see if the enemy troops were approaching...

Besides being a place of historical significance, it was also a beautiful place to look out over the ocean..

For lunch, we stopped in the small town of Sainte Mere Eglise and had a margarita pizza which was delicious!

Margarita pizza is evidently just cheese and sauce with an olive on top- pretty plain, just the way I like it.

The church in Sainte Mere Eglise has something interesting hanging from the steeple- can you spot it?

There is a silhouette of a paratrooper hanging from the steeple. Apparently, when the paratroopers came to Sainte Mere Eglise one man landed on the steeple and was captured by the German force and held prisoner.

There is a beautiful stained glass window in honor of the paratroopers that came and gave France back their freedom.

We also visited the Airborne Museum where we saw a ton of information on the pilot and airman outfits from WWII as well as some life-size models of cars and planes.

Then went to yet another beach, Utah Beach. It was just as beautiful as the others.

Our last stop of the day was at Ferme de la Sapiniere, a local cider farm. We were able to tour the facilities and had a tasting afterwards.

We tried different things at the cider farm. The apple juice was alright, the cider tasted like beer and I didn't care for it all that much. We tried two hard alcohols, one was delicious and one was VERY strong. I believe the picture above was after the last sip- one lady on our tour remarked "That'll start your car up!"

Dinner was at the hotel and I picked chicken and french fries.

Tea after dinner came in a strange little cup...

Have you ever seen anything quite like that before? I hadn't!

And who can have dinner without a candy for dessert?!

The hotel is just beautiful and we had such a lovely view throughout the dinner.

Back soon with the next leg of our trip!!!

Normandy, France

The third day of our adventure in France began with breakfast in our hotel breakfast bar.

I enjoyed crepes with syrup, potatoes, a chocolate croissant, and cantelope, A delicious breakfast all around. Everyone else also gave the selection rave reviews throughout our entire stay at the Paris Hyatt. It was nice to have so much to choose from for breakfast.

At 8am it was time to board the bus and head towards the northern coast of France.

On the way to Normandy, we watched as quite a bit of rural scenery pass us by. We saw a ton of livestock, particularly cows. It was really interesting to see what the different houses looked like. There were sections that had very similar houses- all the same color and shape while once in awhile we saw really medieval-looking houses.

During our rest stop, we enjoyed poking around the store and I found some interesting games..

I thought it was very interesting that they had the same games that we do in America. I have to say I really enjoy the name Pictureka!

I wonder what a psycho test is..? =)

Our first stop in Normandy was the Caen Peace Memorial Museum.

The museum was an interesting, history-indulgent stop which really educated me on WWII, a subject I have never been too familiar with. I had no idea what D Day really was until walking through this museum and now I know more then I ever thought I would.

It was a very sensitive subject reading and hearing about the Holocaust and Hitler, Stalin and Mussolini's reign over their respective countries. It was horrifying to hear accounts from survivors in the videos we watched while inside. I felt sick several times while working our way through the displays.

We ate lunch in the museum cafeteria and although I don't have a picture of it, I practically inhaled my sandwich. It was basically cheese on a roll, however it was a local cheese and was absolutely delicious. It was number #7 on the menu, if you ever go, I highly recommend it!

After the Peace Museum, we made a stop at Juno Beach which is the beach that the Canadians overtook during D Day. We have a few ladies from Canada on our tour, and Jeff, our tour guide, thought that they would appreciate seeing the beach their country overtook. We all enjoyed a nice walk on the beach and seeing the monuments that now stand there.

It was absolutely gorgeous there! I picked up a bottle of sand for my sand vase, and also plucked a few shells from the beach.

We also stopped nearby Juno Beach to look out over the cliffs.

Our last stop for the day was at the German Cemetery. This cemetery is a very solemn place where the Germans buried their soldiers who lost their lives during D Day.

Finally, it was time to go to the hotel!

We stayed in Mercure in Omaha Beach which is a beautiful resort that once upon a time was all farm land. The family decided they wanted to do something different then farming, so they decided to turn their farm into a resort. It is quite spectacular. There is a view of the ocean, a beautiful restaurant, a spa, and a full golf course all on the premise. Apparently the pope has been here! We also saw a picture of Arnold Palmer near the restaurant since he apparently stayed here as well!

Oh and the hair dryer?

Is crazy and looks like a vacuum!

Now for some scenic pictures of the hotel...

Beautiful right?! 

Well I'm off to bed, but I will be back soon to blog about yesterday's Normandy adventures! (Tomorrow we are heading to Blois and have a very exciting plan that I am pumped about!)

Hope you are all having a great start to your week!