Normandy –Day 5. D-day beaches part 1.

 

The day started with an overcast sky and spots of rain that progressively got heavier, so once again the play barn with all it’s facilities came to the rescue. Sylvia and I took on Helena and Naomi at table tennis doubles, we won both matches but the way the girls have progressed that will not be a foregone conclusion for long. With the extra bats that we had purchased yesterday both tennis tables were being utilised together with the table football machine while the toddlers and Poppy played with the multitude of other toys available. What a great asset to have for a rainy day!

Today is July 14th, Bastille Day, and so the main shops all close at lunchtime as it is a national holiday. Sylvia and I decided to go for a drive and to stop for some bread and cider on the way, the rest opted for a quiet day at home walking and playing. We would eat out while Victoria was going to cook pasta for the remainder of the Robbins’ house.

We headed north to visit some of the D-Day museums, the first stop being the Pegasus Bridge.

The Pegasus Bridge was the site of the first landings on D-Day by the glider corps of the British army and was a vital crossing point of the canal system. The museum acts both as an historic record of these events and as a memorial to the thousand lives that were lost in the ensuing battle. In addition to containing large memorabilia from the time such as this jeep…………. 

and half track……………………………………………………

the museum also contained many moving personal remembrances including letters written by soldiers to their loved ones at home.

The original bridge had to be pulled down in the early 90s but is preserved within the museum and this is me walking on it.

Across the canal sits the first building liberated by allied troops which is now a cafe, we had a look at eating here but decided on the much cleaner newer establishment over the road.

After a light snack of Croque Monsieur [Sylvia] and Croque Madame and chips [Me] we returned to the car to continue our journey along the coast. We passed Sword and Juno beaches but as the traffic was now getting busy with bank holiday visitors to the shore we decided to return home and save the remainder for future days. As we drove down the suburban roads a camel followed by a zebra came into view both tethered by the roadside, the circus was in town.

At the close of the day we could hear fireworks being let off in the distance in celebration of France’s national day.