Mr. Johnson in Normandy

Bayeux in relation to Omaha Beach sites.  Bayeux was our home for five nights. It reminded me a lot of York, thought that English city is larger. I would also suggest that Bayeux is less touristy and more authentic than York. Perhaps its small size permits that. Monument at roundabout entering the town from the west memorializes invasion as well as De Gaulle's proclamation of the restored Republic.  Interesting trivia fact: Bayeux is where Charles De Gaulle proclaimed the re-establishment of a provisional French government in June 1944. He did so in a square not too far from the cathedral. La Pommelier We ate out for five nights in Bayeux. The best food came at Le Pommelier on the first night. Lauren knew of it from her previous visit and led me there. I enjoyed the meal and hearing her perspectives on the trip so far there. That meal was also the most expensive one, but I can’t complain. The institute provided us with an allowance, so to speak, with ...

If one has ever seen the movie The Longest Day there are a few scenes and stories that stick in one’s head. For instance, one probably can recall the clickers that John Wayne’s character introduces to his paratroopers. One can find those in souvenir shops here (€3). Many students bought these things. They’re a little bit like Overlord’s Fidget Spinners©. More to the point, we did get to Utah beach, which is famously enshrined in The Longest Day when Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., lands to find his unit has landed in the wrong spot. That’s okay, “We’ll start the war from here.” He then proceeded to lead his division in a flanking maneuver that, at relatively low loss of life, neutralized the German defenses there, clearing the way for Utah’s successful landing. General Roosevelt's grave at Normandy American Cemetery.  Ironically, at Omaha beach, missed landing destinations paved the way for near-catastrophe. Lauren and I talked a little bit about why Roosev...

As I near the end of my Normandy Institute experience, it seems appropriate to share with my readers some of the more fascinating artifacts I've had the chance to see over here. A Jeep. This one is mocked up as a British Jeep, which reminds me of how our supplies often went to our Allies. According to readings, the Jeep also amazed the French civilians (as did the staggering amount of stuff our soldiers brought, handed out, and left behind). The Jeep might be the best symbol of our industrial prowess.  The actual Pegasus Bridge. This is a bridge seized by British glider troops. It was moved a short distance from the canal. This might have been the first part of France liberated in the early of D-Day.  A C-47 with its victory stripes. I've seen C-47's (workhorses for the U.S. Air Force) before, but I've never had the chance to get up above. I got that chance at the Airborne Museum.  Artifacts from occupied France: money and ration coupons. At today...

Historical museums can be many things. In some instances, they're collections of great stuff. Artifacts, I guess, would be the more appropriate term. Historical museums can also be more deliberate in teaching about an event, which sometimes compromises the sheer amount of stuff that they can exhibit. We're seeing examples of both types of museums on our trip. Yesterday, there was a particular artifact that I found quite fascinating.  What first drew me to World War II was the aircraft of that war. I've moved on to find other aspects of the war more fascinating (for me now, the most interesting involves the diplomacy of the war), but aviation remains the old passion that every once in a while reignites. This happens when I get to see an aircraft I've read about but never saw before. Yesterday I saw just such a plane, the B-26 Marauder on display at the Utah Beach Museum.  If you ask nicely, sometimes you don't have to settle for a selfie.  The tail g...

Our final visit of our long day was at a Canadian War Cemetery here in Normandy. This was our first visit to a cemetery on the trip. Visits to a German cemetery and (I think) a British cemetery is also on the agenda. Of course, a visit to America's Normandy cemetery takes place on our final full day here. The visit was surprisingly powerful. The British Commonwealth handled burial of their dead in a different manner from the Americans. The families in Canada, for instance, weren't given the option to repatriate their loved ones' remains. Families could, however, have an inscription made on the tombstone of their soldier. Lauren found these inscriptions particularly moving. Here are a few examples. There were also some other ways in which the grave markers showed care and nodded to the diversity in Canada's armed forces. Most graves were in English, but quite a few were in French. At first I thought it would just be in English or French given the soldier...