Saturday = WWII appreciation day. Did we have a map? No. Did we know how to get anywhere? No. But there was a map on the hotel wall and we figured out what highway we needed, and the rest was cake. I banked on there being those funny brown signs everywhere for the important exits, and to my surprise there were a great deal of signs directing us to our destination. Our first stop was the American Cemetery. The cemetery itself was quite impressive. We checked out the exhibit/movie/museum part first, which was very well done. One quote that I found quite moving was from Sergent John B. Ellery (US 1st Infantry) who said, "You can manufacture weapons and you can purchase ammunition, but you can't buy valor and you can't pull heroes off an assembly line." I don't think this is in any way "romanticizing" war, but rather a reminder that sometimes there are things worth fighting for, and even more often there is a dearth of people willing to fight for those things. I'm just thankful for those who did. For what that's worth, anyway.
When you walk into the actual cemetery part, you are blown away by two things: the size, and the immaculate condition. It's overwhelming to see the rows and rows and rows of crosses and stars of David, and because its so well kept it appears almost new. If I didn't know better I would think the cemetery was only a few years old. It seems almost paradoxical that on the very land where so much blood was shed (the cemetery overlooks Omaha beach) there could be graves standing up neat and at attention, with grass so green and sharp that one would think the land has never seen sadder times. It's all very strange. It's almost impossible for me to picture what actually happened there, but maybe I'm not supposed to be able to. Anyway, we found the grave of my grandfather's uncle, making us the first visitors he's ever had. John D. 
Mitchell from Alabama, killed a week or so after the initial landing. We hadn't found a florist shop on the way, but we found one later and came back to place some flowers on his grave. As for Omaha beach itself, well it looks like any other coastal scene, with the exception of the bunkers and random aritllery holes that have remainded untouched. I'm not sure what they all were for, truth be told, but it's clear they played an important role during the invasion.Afterwards we continued northbound towards a small town called St. Mere Eglise. It is a non-descript, typical Normandy town, except for the famous parachuter. The wikipedia version of the story is as follows: "The early landings, at about 0140 directly on the town, resulted in heavy casualties for the paratroopers. Some buildings in town were on fire that night, and they illuminated the sky, making easy targets of the descending men.
Some were sucked into the fire. Many hanging from trees and utility poles were shot before they could cut loose. The German defenders were alerted. A famous incident involved paratrooper John Steele of the 505th PIR, whose parachute caught on the spire of the town church. The paratroopers were easy targets and Steele was one of only a few non-casualties. His parachute was caught on the steeple leaving him hanging from its roof-top to witness the carnage. The wounded paratrooper hung there limply for two hours, pretending to be dead, before the Germans took him prisoner. The less fortunate hung from the trees all around the square where they had been shot. Once the last of the paratroopers were killed or captured, the German garrison turned in. Steele was rescued when US troops of the 3rd Battalion attacked the village capturing thirty Germans and killing another eleven..."And that's about it for Caen, at least all I can remember at this point, and it was also the last stop for my family and where we had to say goodbye. We had our highs and lows, the grumpy tifts and the goofy jokes, but one thing is sure: family is family. No matter what happens, even when we don't get along, and esp when we do, everyone needs family, and I certainly need mine. It was great to see them, because sometimes you need some family insanity to bring you sanity in a foreign land. I'm not sure that made sense... but there you have it. More to come. Maybe today even (no class and I either write, worry about admissions, or clean...).
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