D-Day landings, Bayeux, France

Bon Jour! Welcome to Bayeux…a famous town in the Normandy region of France. Only two and a half hours ago we were in Gare St Lazare in Paris , and now…

here we are at the train station in Bayeux.

Famous for at least two reasons...one, the Bayeux Tapestries. A large welcoming museum houses these famous historical tapestries in the downtown area. But that is for another day.

Today we visiting the D-Day Beaches which are just to the north of the town.

Hint: Click on any photo to enlarge it.

There are buses which stop at the train station and will take you close to the beaches, but we choose to take a guided tour of the Canadian and British Commonwealth landing areas.

Aside: It was difficult to find tours that focused on the Canadian involvement. Most tours seem to focus on American landings at Omaha and Utah. We went with Normandy Sightseeing Tours www.normandy-sightseeing-tours.com and were very happy with them.

Here we are at one of nine markers along the Normandy coast which were built to commemorate the landing of the Allies on June 6, 1944…forever to be known as D-Day. This is the marker at Bernieres-sur-Mer which is the sector where Canadian troops landed.

The flag in the background of the photo is the flag of the resistance movement in France.

This is a place which evokes thoughtful reflection.

Today this is a summer resort but on June 6, 1944 this is where troops were landing and where hundreds of young men lost their lives. This was the scene then.

Do you know the significance of this house?

I did not know when I saw the house, but as soon as I saw a picture of it during wartime I recognized it right away.

Click here to see that photo and learn more about Canada House.

There are several beautiful statues and memorials near the beach.

Click here to see some of them.

Canadian troops liberated Bernieres-sur-Mer and then moved towards Caen.

Learn about Hell’s Corner and the atrocity at le Jardin des Canadiens. Click here.

There was so much I did not know about the Canadian contributions to D-Day and the liberation of Europe. (And I realize there is so much that I still do not know.)

As Canadians we tend to take a laid back attitude towards most things and believe ‘let bygones be bygones’ but I, for one, believe we have make a more concerted effort to educate ourselves about our history and to do much more  to recognize the contributions of Canadians. We do not have to be (and should not be) over-the-top about it, but we also should not let our heroes and contributions go unrecognized.

The Juno Centre museum in Courseulles-sur-Mer does a wonderful job of highlighting some of the contributions of Canadians during World War II. Start your quest to educate yourself about Canada’s role in WW II by visiting it. Click here for a glimpse into our visit.

One of the Canadian War Cemeteries is at Beny-sur-Mer. Click here to visit it.

Visit other regions of France by clicking here.

Visit other countries by clicking here.