Although D-Day, the day of the Allied invasion that brought liberation to France and eventual destruction of the Nazi regime in Europe, was not taught in depth in school when we were growing up, the French people have not forgotten. Each year, a D-Day festival is held, graves are decorated constantly, signs are everywhere that commemorate the event.
We visited not only the American Memorial and Cemetery, but also the museum in Arromanches-les-Bains, where the Allies built a massive false harbor, and unloaded tons of vehicles and supplies after D-Day to facilitate the invasion. Remnants of the harbor still line the Arromanches beach. We also were able to go into a German fortification on Omaha Beach, from which the Germans fired upon our landing soldiers. It is a peaceful place now, where swallows build their nests, and wild flowers grow.
9,387 Americans are buried at the cemetery. It is in a beautiful place by Omaha Beach, heartbreaking acres of stone crosses and stars of David, some identified only as Unknown But to God.
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