Etretat

We took a train and a local bus to travel from Bayeax to Etretat. Etretat is famous for the tall chalk bluffs and stony beach. We got to the top of this bluff by taking the hop on/hop off mini train. The beach was crowded with people. I can't imagine the crowds in the summer. We watch two motorized boats help sailing students navigate the English channel.

This is a beautiful section of northern France.

Here is the view from the top of the bluff.

Also at the top of the bluff are the Etretat gardens. They had a dozen faces stuck in the bushes. Each section of the gardens had a sensory theme. We heard music.. We heard the word "art" spoken in 30 languages. We left Etretat on a Friday morning. As soon as I awoke I could see the farmer's market setting up in the town square. Besides vegetables and fruit they had flowers, leather goods, striped long sleeved shirts, scarves, scents, shoes, dresses, clothes in every size, food and pastries. I was able to successfully navigate a Americano coffee by myself and come back to our apartment without getting lost.

The author Maurice Leblanche lived in Etretat. We visited his house and saw where he wrote his mystery stories. His famous character is Lupin who was known as the gentleman burglar. For example he stole a necklace from the Queen when he was six. As an adult he returned the necklace and won accolades for finding it for her. The character Lupin has a series on Netflix which I plan to watch once I get home.

 

Mont Saint Michael

Today we took another tour about 45 minutes away via van to Mont Saint Michael. This church, Abby, fortress, former prison is on the coast of the English Channel. We came at low tide. During high tide the structure can be completely surrounded by sea water. We walked up about a thousand steps to get to a balcony. We saw great views of the English Channel and the Normandy countryside.

 

John Steele

On D-Day a paratrooper named John Steele got tangled on the steeple on the church in Sainte-Mere-Eglise. That night there was a fire in the town. The townspeople broke the curfew imposed by the Nazi's to fight the fire. The fire illuminated John Steele so he played dead. He actually survived this ordeal and lived into his 70's in North Carolina. He was awarded the Bronze star for valor and a purple heart. This town has an American Airborne museum that was very interesting.

 

Utah Beach

We also visited Utah beach which had better success on D-Day. The beach is straight and shorter in length than Omaha beach. The hills behind the beach are not as tall.

 

American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer

Next to Omaha beach is the American cemetery. The United States was the only ally that gave the families of service men and women the choice to leave their loved one in France or have their body shipped home. Sixty per cent of families had the bodies shipped home. All the white crosses are made out of marble from Italy which is the whitest marble in the world. The cemetery is very well kept up by the ABMC (American Battle Monuments Commission). Although these are government employees they do not have their salary withheld during government shutdowns. Years ago some veterans came to visit this cemetery and could not get in due to the shutdown. Congress approved a bipartisan bill to prevent that from happening in the future.

 

Omaha Beach

We took a tour with a Normandy World War II outfit. We drove in a van to Omaha Beach. The curved shape of the beach and the cliffs behind it made it more dangerous for Allied troops. Nazi's could shoot guns from either end of the beach and mow down people as they got off the boats. This was a sad place to visit.

 

Bayeux

We traveled by train from Paris to Bayeux. We passed through the countrysides. Lots of the farms have hedge rows to protect the fields from the west winds over the English channel. We saw fields of wheat and flax. Most beautiful of all are the fields of canola (also called rapeseed). Picture the brightest yellow in your box of 64 Crayola crayons. Canola is brighter than that. Once we got off the train we walked through town to our lodging. The lodging was a bit tricky to find. Then we couldn't get the door open. We went to an establishment next door that sold wine, beer, soda, tobacco, and horse racing tickets. We eventually got in and have a really nice place. As we walked around a round about we came upon a garden with three topiary horses with knights mounted on them. This town is famous for a 68 meter tapestry that tells a medieval story. Unfortunately that museum is under renovation. The tapestry won't be available until 2027.