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Normandy D-Day Battlefields

Memorial Omaha Beach

To get to the Normandy D-Day battlefields, we booked a bus trip through a well-known internet site.  The trip was 14 hours in duration, with about three and a half each way journey from Paris.  When lunch and other times are taken out, we had about four hours in Normandy.  The tour touched on most of the major D-Day sites, but only that.  We would have appreciated more time to explore for ourselves.  As a result, we would have enjoyed ourselves more had we stayed in the area and combined this with other attractions, or tours we did, such as Mont Saint Michel.

Why Did We Go?

The D-Day landings and battlefields are historically very important and seeing them first hand would give us a good understanding of what happened.  It would also allow us to see the American Memorial near Caen, where many of the soldiers are buried. 

Our holiday was on a tight timeframe, so we did not have the time to see all of Normandy and experience what it had to offer.  Instead, we decided to do the bus trip.  It would take us to the specific areas of interest for D-Day and we could see the other aspects of Normandy on a return visit.

Unfortunately, we re-discovered that bus trips can be hit and miss, missing some sites, or limiting time at them.

Caen Memorial

The Caen Memorial has film and photographic exhibits covering World War Two, with an emphasis on D-Day.  This was all very interesting and comprehensive.  We specifically liked the underground bunker that exists on the same site.  You are able to walk through it at your own pace and see the displays of how it was set up to control the German troops in the area.

D-Day Museum Flags Normandy D-Day Battlefields
D-Day Museum Flags

For anyone wanting to know the story of D-Day and the preceding years of World War 2, this is an excellent place to visit.  You should probably go here before visiting the D-Day sites in the area.

Pointe du Hoc

This is the area where high cliffs with fortified gun emplacements overlooked the invasion beaches.  American Rangers scaled these cliffs on D-Day morning and disabled them, enabling the invasion to be a success.  Several of the gun emplacements are still intact, to you get to see a genuine fortification and what the soldiers had to contend with.  More impressive is looking over the cliffs to see what they had to scale before assaulting the guns.

German Bunker Omaha Beach Normandy D-Day Battlefields
German Bunker Omaha Beach
Omaha Beach Today Normandy D-Day Battlefields
Omaha Beach Today

The bunkers can be entered, giving you the viewpoint of the defending Germans.  The surrounding area has generally been left untouched so that the effect of the allied bombardment can be seen and many bomb craters are still visible.

Omaha Beach

We walked down to Omaha Beach where we could look up to some of the cliffs overlooking the invasion beach.  In 1944 these would have been defended by German soldiers.  This perspective really drives home what the Rangers had to climb to reach the German fortifications.  The beach is very peaceful now with no signs of what happened over 70 years ago.  Some Americans in the group took samples of sand home with them.

Omaha Beach Today Normandy D-Day Battlefields
Omaha Beach Today
Canadian Memorial Juno Beach Normandy D-Day Battlefields
Canadian Memorial Juno Beach

American Cemetery and Memorial near Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer

This is the final resting place of nearly 10,000 members of the US military. The cemetery overlooks Omaha Beach, where many of them fell.  The graves of many men who were killed in the surrounding area are also here.  There is a stunning sculpture of a soldier ascending to heaven as you enter the cemetery.  This sets an excellent atmosphere for the rest of the memorial.  It is a very peaceful place, with the numerous rows of headstones set in beautiful gardens.  Many of the graves hold the body of an unknown soldier, with the inscription stating that they are known only unto God.

US War Cemetery Memorial Omaha Beach Normandy D-Day Battlefields
US War Cemetery Memorial Omaha Beach
US War Cemetery Omaha Beach Normandy D-Day Battlefields
US War Cemetery Omaha Beach

Juno Beach

Juno Beach is where a combined British and Canadian army landed.  The Canadian Memorial consists of a howitzer, and stylised sculpture of two soldiers and flags of the participating Canadian Provinces.  We walked on the sand, which was very peaceful unlike June 1944.

Memorial at Juno Beach Normandy D-Day Battlefields
Memorial at Juno Beach
Howitzer at Juno Beach Normandy D-Day Battlefields
Howitzer at Juno Beach

Arromanches Harbour

We had hope to stop here and inspect the remains of the artificial harbour, as it was on of the great planning and engineering feats of the invasion.  Unfortunately, being on a bus trip and constrained by time tables, we were running late and had to miss this part, so only saw it as we drove by.

This is one of the great drawbacks of participating in a bus trip.  An area of specific interest to you can be missed, and cut from the tour due to circumstances.  Had we been travelling by ourselves, this would have been something we would not have missed.

What Did We Think?

What we saw was excellent.  From the Memorials to the fortifications and the beaches, we gained a great understanding of the events of June 1944.  If we had more time, spending more time in the area and not travelling back to Paris in the same day would have been better.  We would have combined this with our trip to Mont Saint Michel and the Loire Valley Chateaux.

Bus trips will always be problematic, as you can’t control who you go with, or the time-table if things go wrong.

HMAS Newcastle Arriving in Newcastle Harbour

HMAS Newcastle FFG 06 Entering Newcastle Harbour Royal Australian Navy Warships Warship Ship Ships

HMAS Newcastle FFG 06 arrived in Newcastle Harbour today for what will probably be its final visit before decommissioning.  

We arrived early and spent a relaxing afternoon walking on the foreshore.  We had a very nice steak pie at Harry’s Cafe De-Wheels and an ice cream from across the road.  The foreshore was a very pleasant backdrop to sit and eat lunch next to.

While eating we watched the coal ships coming and going and had a great view of Nobby’s Headland.  Then we walked up to Nobby’s Surfhouse and had a nice coffee until the ship was due.

HMAS Newcastle arrived around 3:30PM, to a large crowd all along the break water and foreshore.

An in all a very relaxing afternoon.

Nobby's Headland
Nobby’s Headland
Tug Boat Newcastle Harbour
Tug Boat Newcastle Harbour
Coal Ship Newcastle Harbour
Coal Ship Newcastle Harbour
HMAS Newcastle FFG 06
HMAS Newcastle FFG 06

To see what else there is to do in the Hunter Valley, please see some of our other stories.

Avalon Airshow – Melbourne March 2017


Travelling to the Avalon Airshow

We went to the Avalon Airshow, just out of Melbourne on Saturday 4th of March.  Getting there was very easy.  We bought tickets from VLine online which covered the train from Southern Cross Station and a shuttle bus from Lara Station to Avalon.  The trains were running every 20 minutes to cater for the demand.  At Lara, there was a queue of buses ready to take people.  All very well organised and it ran smoothly.

There was an easy to follow map provided at the gate when we arrived at 8:30AM. There were also several large bill boards around the airfield with maps on them.  The ground displays were very well set out, usually with defence force personnel around to talk and answer questions.  The weather could not have been better.  A top of 28oC.  A little cloudy in the morning, but this was mostly gone by midday.  We remembered the sunscreen, and were very pleased we did.  Some people didn’t bother and by mid-afternoon, a few very red a sore people were standing around.

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter

Most of the current RAAF aircraft were present.  The main draw card was the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.  We headed there first to avoid the crowds later in the day.  The barriers let people get quite close, so you could see a lot of detail and take some great pictures.  At one of the two on display, you could reach up and touch the wing if you were tall enough.

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Avalon Airshow March 2017
F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Avalon Airshow March 2017

F/A-18

All three types of F-18s operated by the RAAF were on display, the classic F/A-18A Hornet, the F/A-18F Super Hornet and the new F/A-18G Growler.  The Super Hornet also put on a fantastic flying display showing off its abilities.  Watching it climb vertically to 10,000m was spectacular.  Having never seen one fly before, its maneuverability was surprising and watching it fly down the runway with a 50-degree angle of attack very impressive.

F/A-18A Hornet Avalon Airshow March 2017
F/A-18A Hornet Avalon Airshow March 2017

F/A-18F Super Hornet Avalon Airshow March 2017
F/A-18F Super Hornet Avalon Airshow March 2017

F/A-18G Growler Avalon Airshow March 2017
F/A-18G Growler Avalon Airshow March 2017

Royal Australian Air Force

The old P-3 Orion anti-submarine and patrol aircraft was there, along with its new replacement the P-8 Poseidon.  The other Boeing 737 derived aircraft operated by the RAAF the E-7AWedgetail was sitting nearby.

The RAAF’s lead-in jet trainer the BAE Hawk put on a flying display.  Although impressive, it showed the huge gap between trainers and a real combat aircraft like the Super Hornet which had flown earlier.

BAE Hawk Trainer Avalon Airshow March 2017
BAE Hawk Trainer Avalon Airshow March 2017

Singapore and New Zealand sent Hercules transports.  The RNZAF put on a very nice flying display with theirs.  Singapore also sent F-15s which looked very impressive on the ground.

United States Air Force

The US had some of the best aircraft there.  Three F-22s were the highlight, along with a B-1 bomber.  The F-22 looks a lot sharper than the F-35 and its pilots were very proud of their machines, willing to talk and answer endless questions from spectators.  Several older F-16 jets were parked up near the F-22s giving a stark contrast to the old and new technology.

F-22 Raptor Avalon Airshow March 2017
F-22 Raptor Avalon Airshow March 2017

F-16 Avalon Airshow March 2017
F-16 Avalon Airshow March 2017

B-1 Bomber Avalon Airshow March 2017
B-1 Bomber Avalon Airshow March 2017

Antonov An-124

What looked to be the biggest aircraft there was the Ukrainian Antonov AN 124.  A very impressive looking transport.

Antonov An124 at Avalon Airshow Melbourne March 2017
Antonov An124 at Avalon Airshow Melbourne March 2017

Antonov An124 at Avalon Airshow Melbourne March 2017
Antonov An124 at Avalon Airshow Melbourne March 2017

Helicopters

Many helicopters were also on the ground display.  The Tiger battlefield helicopter looked very lethal, despite the problems that the Army has had with its implementation.  The nearby NH-90, which has also had its fair share of issues was also open for a close look by the public.  The US contribution to this section was the Apache attack helicopter, always a great sight in its dark grey camouflage.

Tiger Helicopter Avalon Airshow March 2017
Tiger Helicopter Avalon Airshow March 2017

NH-90 Helicopter Avalon Airshow March 2017
NH-90 Helicopter Avalon Airshow March 2017

Apache Helicopter Avalon Airshow March 2017
Apache Helicopter Avalon Airshow March 2017

Historical Aircraft

Many historical aircraft were on display from many Australian collections.  Airworthy examples from RAAF Point Cook, Temora and HARS put on some very nice displays.  The Super Constellation, looked huge (and it is a big aircraft), as it circles the runway.  On static display were a Harrier jump jet, Canberra bomber and what looked like half of the Temora Aviation Museum’s collection, including the Boomerang, Meteor and Hudson.

C-47 Dakota Avalon Airshow March 2017
C-47 Dakota Avalon Airshow March 2017

BAE Harrier Avalon Airshow March 2017
BAE Harrier Avalon Airshow March 2017

Canberra Bomber Avalon Airshow March 2017
Canberra Bomber Avalon Airshow March 2017

BAE Harrier Avalon Airshow Melbourne March 2017
BAE Harrier Avalon Airshow Melbourne March 2017

Training Aircraft Flyby Avalon Airshow March 2017
Training Aircraft Flyby Avalon Airshow March 2017

Australian Army

The army had an M-1 Abrams tank on display, along with the types of shells it could fire.  They had many other types of vehicles on display, but most people were interested in the tank.

M-1A Abrams Tank Avalon Airshow March 2017
M-1A Abrams Tank Avalon Airshow March 2017

Getting Back To Melbourne

When we left at 2:00PM, there were still hundreds of people streaming in from cars and buses and the car park was almost full.  Some had decided to watch from the boundary fence, and along the roadside.  They would have seen the flying displays, but not well, and missed all the ground static displays.

The trip home by train was as easy as the journey in.  Arriving back in Melbourne, we had a quick freshen up at our hotel, a bite to eat at a nearby restaurant, and got ready to see a show at night.  Overall a very satisfying day.