The French really do hate us

[[AK]Choozoo]

This is from Hammy, one of the Windhund, and his recent trip to Normandy for the 60th Anniversary of D-Day...

------------------------------------------------------------------------


So I just returned from a weeklong trip to Normandy and Paris, and thought I'd share all my pictures with those who can appreciate them.

We stayed in Cherbourg, and here is a picture of the group and buses. Note the guy in the black shirt. He is a captain in the 101st airborne, and was one of the guys injured last year in that grenade attack at the base. His left leg was badly injured, and he is still in pain, and still has a bad limp. He said he still has over 400 pieces of shrapnel left in him.


First stop was Utah beach on June 5.


Here's me at the beach:


We were honored to have this gentleman and his son and daughter on our trip.

Phillip Scaglione was a sergeant, and came onto Utah beach on D-Day (29th Division, 115th Infantry, M Company), and was injured twice in hedgerow fighting, getting shipped home on D +9. On D+3, he was with his unit when they came under mortar attack...all within his squad took shrapnel - the others all unable to walk. He goes back to an aid station to get help, but upon return to the other guys, finds them all turned face down and shot in the back of the head.
On D+6, he was sent out with 5 new faces on a recon mission 20 miles behing enemy lines at night. The 6 made it 18 miles before coming upon a German artillery convoy, most being bulled by horses. They all laid in a ditch hoping not to be noticed, but the last vehicle in the convoy was a halftrack with a panning searchlight on it's rear. One of the guys with him thought the ligth was going to spot them and began firing. The halftrack cut loose with it's mounted machine gun, and Sgt Scaglione laid still in the ditch pretending to be dead. After 15 minutes, we looked up to find the 5 others with him dead.
He made it back to camp wounded, and told them what he saw...the airforce supposedly acted on his report later on.

More pics from Utah beach:





Saint Mere Eglise...such a wonderful town! The entire atmosphere was so festive.

C47 circling the town just as we arrived:


The buildings to the right in this shot were shelled in the few days after D-Day, and 18 civilians were killed. On the left, there used to be a row of trees, and this is where several of the paratroopers landed, getting stuck in the trees, and subsequently being killed while still in their parachutes.


Reenactors in front of the church (of note, almost all reenactors I saw were either French or Belgian):


Front of the church (Replica of Private John Steele dangling from the tower):


Stained glass window inside church:




View inside a Waco glider at airborne museum:


A veteran of the 101st being interviewed:


It wasn't until I got home that I noticed his hat...he was in Easy Company, 506th...anyone recognize him?


At 2pm on June 5th, 600 US and French paratroopers jumped just outside of town near La Fiere...it was quite a sight:


Almost ever house and business in Normandy was decorated during this time. I saw more American flags there than I EVER see for 4th of July here.





A somber reminder we came upon while walking down one of the backstreets of Saint Mere Eglise:


More pics to come...