If there was one essential and strategic point during the invasion of Normandy, also known as D-Day, by the Allied troops, it would have been the capture of the two bridges in Benouville and the neighbouring Ranville. The two bridges were essential for the liberation of France and the rest of Europe. The operation was called […]

The names Omaha, Utah, Sword, Gold and Juno are names that many WWII buffs will know very well since those are the names of the landing beaches during the D-Day, the Allied invasion of German occupied Europe. 4 years of World War II lead to this massive invasion, by sea and air, of occupied France. […]

Normally speaking the village of Sainte-Mere-Eglise should mean nothing to most people. Unless you are a WWII buff or a movie buff. The movie in question is “The Longest Day” starring none other than John Wayne trying to get to Sainte-Mere-Eglise during D-Day. The village itself nowadays consists of some 2,500 inhabitants (that is, after […]

Dieppe is a city that was exposed early on to the WWII invasion when the Canadians attempted an invasion called the “Dieppe Raid“, also known as “Operation Jubilee“. It was a sort of “test case” to see if it could be done, and unfortunately, it cost a lot of lives; 1400 died and1946 were captured. […]

Although the Lower part of Normandy saw the biggest brunt of the WWII battles, with D-Day and the immediate battles that followed, the Upper part of Normandy saw its fair share of fighting. And during WWI, it was one of the battlefronts. Therefore throughout Normandy, at almost any hamlet, village, town and city, you will […]

Montbard is a small city of some 5500 inhabitants, a river and a big canal flowing through it and an incredible abbey close-by. It also has a castle perched high on the hill overlooking the city.   The small city is dominated by a big hill, and on top of the hill, perched as high […]

The Bayeux War Cemetery is also referred to as the British War Cemetery of Bayeux. And that is because the majority of soldiers buried here are British and British Commonwealth soldiers who died while trying to liberate France during WWII. Some 4,640 soldiers are buried here, most of them died during the World War II […]

There is a very unique memorial in Bayeux. All over Normandy you will find all sorts of memorials (and cemeteries) for all nationalities that have died during World War II, but this one is different; it’s a memorial for fallen reporters. Journalists that have been killed while doing their job of reporting the truth. But this […]

Veules-Les-Roses in Upper Normandy is one of the best kept secrets for most tourists, especially the foreign ones, but as a place to visit, it is most interesting and rewarding. It’s a very small village (some 600 inhabitants) that is foremost a beautiful, scenic and very photogenic village. Although notable visitors like Victor Hugo stayed here, you really […]

If there’s one thing to be seen in Caen, it’s the Memorial. No kidding, even if you’re not in the region, it’s worth a side trip. And for all of you visiting the D-Day debarkation beaches, you’ll need to pass through Caen anyway, so stop here.   Mind you, you’ll need to change your mindset […]

Caen is one of those cities you can have a problem understanding or coming to grips with. The 110,000 people city is a medium sized city dating back to the beginnings of the Iron Age, but the first real settlements where to be found in the 1st century AC. It was also William The Conqueror‘s […]

Dieppe is a small harbour city (some 40,000 inhabitants) with an active fishing fleet, a ferry to the United Kingdom (Newhaven), an enormous fortress/castle and a nice looking inner city. Dieppe was founded in the year 1060 as a small fishing village, but already in 910, the Vikings started a settlement.   Dieppe, like most of […]

If there is one place in France where you are automatically silenced, it’s the Omaha beach cemetery. This is the place where US soldiers who died during the World War II D-Day are buried (not all of them, “just” 10,000).   After the Allies liberated France (and the rest of Europe), the French government donated […]

  Transport Getting There Getting there is quite complicated unless you have a car or are on a tour. The closest motorway is the A13/E46 which brings you into Caen from Paris. From there you will need to take the secondary roads. You can drive up to Bayeux on a good road and from there […]