Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations D-Day

Let's take a minute to remember all who sacrificed so much so long ago, and those who live with the memories. May they always be remembered for the good they fought for.

Pics from trip to Normandy. Hard to realize the carnage that happened that day till you see the thousands of American graves of heroes that never made it home that day.

Bomb crater Pointe Da Hoc



German tunnels. Pointe Da Hoc if you ever go bring flashlight. They let you run wild underground in these. Did not have flash light but went through all anyway. Creepy down there.

Omaha beach
American cemetery at Omaha Beach. It's now American soil. Nice to step back into America in France.




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American Heros.
German cannons
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Very chilling feeling to see in person. The cementary is where the beginning of saving private Ryan was recorded. I could not imagin what was going through those boys minds. American Heroes.

More Pointe DA Hoc

My great uncle flew in a B-52 on D-Day. I wish I had talked to him more about it before he passed. I was just too young I guess. Those Americans exemplify why America is so great.

I was there a few days before 911. Very moving! The topless woman sauntering down the beach on the right side of the tour boss - while the guide pointed out the gun emplacements on the hillside facing the beach - was kind of distracting though. All the males on the right side of the bus weren't listening to the guide.

The sight of all those graves brought tears to my eyes.

Thanks for starting this Brian.

Brave Heroes. I know of no other way to describe the men who ran off the landing craft onto the beach in a hail of bullets.

My grandfather went ashore at Omaha beach...made it through the European front then came home. Managed to avoid the pacific altogether, thank goodness.

He died when I was overseas - he was one of the main reasons I joined the military out of high school.

The most telling comment I ever heard about the veterans who did not come home was by an English infantryman interviewed on the 50th Anv. of D-Day while visiting the graves of his comrades in Normandy cemetery . Still visibly shaken by the events 50 years before he managed to say to us ,when ask what he would tell people , " Just remember that they willingly gave up all of their tomorrows so you could live free today !". A strong reminder of their sacrifice.

Thanks for your service George. Everybody involved were heroes. I think sometimes D-Day overshadows all the other battles of the war. Every time I see a veteran wearing one of thos WW2 hats anymore I say Thank you. Theirs not too many of them left. My mother works at the Missouri Veterans home. Those guys have some stories to tell.

Thank you for your service George.

D-Day - June 6, 1944
If we had today's information technology at that time in history, we would be speaking Japanese with a German accent.

Many of us in the Pacific Theater did not even know about D-Day until much later - we had Midway, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Iwo Jima and others as a distraction.
Just add up those casualties!

Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June – 9 July 1944
IIRC, it sure was hot on that troop ship on June 6, 1944..
I had not even remembered until today this coincidence...
George

HEY, I was just a grunt, but thanks for your thanks anyway!
I was attached to a special Corp of Engineer unit and landed after the Marines and Soldiers secured the beach.
Scary - yeah - ever try to disembark side of troop ship on rope netting with full gear?

Now back to D-day topic...
G/

I have a small rock that some friends brought me back from Omaha Beach. When my wife handed it to me and told me where it came from chills ran down my body. To this day it still does the same thing everytime I touch it. I can't imagine how much blood may have washed up on it. We owe a lot to those men. God Bless Them ALL

I've been to Normandy too, and the American Cemetery is truly beyond words. Staring at the ocean through a pillbox is sobering, and even more so is staring up at one from the beach.

I watch Saving Private Ryan every D-Day, and I watch this too.

In my opinion, this is how an American President shows proper respect for the anniversary of one of history's most pivotal events...this is President Regan at Pont du Hoc, and it is well worth the ten or so minutes to watch it:

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=eEIqdcHbc8I&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DeEIqdcHbc8I

http://youtu.be/eEIqdcHbc8I


Sorry...here's the link...

I brought back a few rocks from bomb craters and some sand from Omaha beach. Our tour guid gave us containers for sand. I never even thought of it. Great guide. I put some of the sand in small vials and gave it to friends and family that was chilled by the sand. Brought back hundreds of dollars in souvenirs from Paris and everybody wanted the sand.

Normandy is one of those places every American should have to visit, and Arlington national cemetery is where every naturalization ceremony should be held.

I like that thought about Arlington, hf.

Ditto!

I'm going there too when my daughter gets a little older. I did get a lot of why would you go to a cemetery on vacation? I Also like that thought about naturalization so people can see how many paid the ultimate price for America.