Normandy

[Pie man]

So I decided to take a few days away and headed off to Normandy. A full car to myself - then again it was 05:50 - the return though was somewhat different -  

  

I will add more pictures once I can work out how to keep the image the correct way. Also just realised wrong thread, 

 

 

Edited July 11, 2022 by Pie man

[Stu]

1 hour ago, Pie man said:

I will add more pictures once I can work out how to keep the image the correct way

 

This will be down to the phone/camera 

 

Is it an iPhone by any chance? 

[Pie man]

3 hours ago, Stu said:

 

This will be down to the phone/camera 

 

Is it an iPhone by any chance? 

No, it is a cheap Samsung A12 

[Stu]

1 minute ago, Pie man said:

No, it is a cheap Samsung A12 

 

Odd! Samsung are usually fine 

[Gerontious]

Just now, Stu said:

 

Odd! Samsung are usually fine 

 

So are iPhones.. its extremely simple to reorientate an image on the phone in 3 clicks. takes about 2 seconds.

[Pie man]

I am using my laptop - my phone automatically syncs to the laptop 

[Pie man]

After a trundle through the French countryside and small villages I finally arrive at the campsite.

Once set up and showered I have a short ride to Bayeux for some supplies - weather has been kind. 

[Stu]

21 minutes ago, Gerontious said:

 

So are iPhones.. its extremely simple to reorientate an image on the phone in 3 clicks. takes about 2 seconds.

 

The software is supposed to put them the correct way without you having to mess about but iPhone seems to do things a bit different at times 

[Pie man]

The Following day was to be my first day exploring the area, well I haven't been down this part of the country since 2017 with the kids and it was 2005 when on the bike. 

1st Port of call was the American Cemetery, this place is kept pristine and immaculate. 

 

[Pie man]

In stark contrast!!

The German Cemetery lies SW from the American Cemetery

[Gerontious]

Ive visited many WW1 + 2 cemeteries and Ive always found the German ones very understated. On 'enemy/occupied' territory... often an enemy territory where the population was brutalised and yet here they are given some respect in death. Ive never been to one where there was another visitor. I don't tend to walk among the graves though as there are certain grave markings I don't want to see. I made that mistake once and came away feeling sick to my stomach, somehow soiled just being there among the murderous fanatics of the schutzstaffel.  Cured later by visiting their victims murdered during the dash to the beaches at Dunkirk.

 

 

[Pie man]

The Commonwealth headstone holds more detail than any American or German markings. What is so sad, not many had a choice, every man capable had to fight this war even if they liked it or not.

And on to Point du Hoc - hard to comprehend that each time a ranger fell there was another at the bottom awaiting their fate. Time for a coffee stop. 

 

 

 

 

[John Metcalfe]

Me and the wife visited the WW1 memorial in Soissons France while we were riding over here back in November last year. I had always promised myself that I would visit as my great uncle is named on it as he was one of 3987 officers & men killed there in 1918 and their bodies never recovered. It's a sobering thought when you see a family member on one of these knowing that they gave everything and never came home to their family. 

[Pie man]

After my coffe break at Omaha beach. I head  over to Carentan and stop off at Sainte Mere Eglise and meander around the town and museum. 

[Pie man]

The museum mannequins are actually dressed in original issued uniforms

 

[Pie man]

Headed into Bayeux, which is a beautiful town in its own right. I had a walk around the town, with a visit to the musee de la Tapisserie de Bayeux. Well I thought my mother could darn socks, the tapestry its a great piece of Romanesque art depicting the conquest of England by the Duke of Normandy, you walk around the display with a handheld phone which narrates the story as you move along. No photography allowed. A delightful walk around the town, later in the evening I have a need for pizza, not a bad view from my table. Just a short walk around the corner a band had set to play in the square.

 

[MikeHorton]

9 hours ago, Pie man said:

Headed into Bayeux, which is a beautiful town in its own right. I had a walk around the town, with a visit to the musee de la Tapisserie de Bayeux. Well I thought my mother could darn socks, the tapestry its a great piece of Romanesque art depicting the conquest of England by the Duke of Normandy, you walk around the display with a handheld phone which narrates the story as you move along. No photography allowed. A delightful walk around the town, later in the evening I have a need for pizza, not a bad view from my table. Just a short walk around the corner a band had set to play in the square.

 

Looks great I want a pizza now but it's tuna pasta bake tonight so I've been told