When we arrived our hosts mentioned that a local tradition is to order your croissants and bread the day before from the local shop in their village. On our return from Mont Saint Michel yesterday we stopped in and asked Natalia, the proprietor, to reserve two plain croissants, one almond, and one chocolate for the next day - Sunday morning.
When the sun finally came up after 8 I drove the 2 KM into town. When I arrived there were several cars and a delivery van parked out front.
I parked, walked in, and tried to give the appearance that I was like every other local already waiting to have their orders filled.
There was the delivery man unloading his wares with Natalia checking off the orders.
He departed and she promptly started servicing the customers ahead of me.
I nonchalantly walked around checking out the bar, pretending to understand the signs written in French, and surreptitiously snapping a few photos.
She attended to Jean Pierre who walked out with his regular order of three baguettes.
It was my turn.
Just one baguette for me but don't forget the almond and chocolate croissants we ordered yesterday.
She protested, Oh No these were a special order.
With multiple hand gestures and some French sounding English words she remembered when Kim and I placed our order yesterday afternoon. Success!
A postcard of Champ du Boult from 1910.
I arrived home to Kim's waiting arms and salivating mouth.
For a picture perfect Sunday morning Petite Déjeuner.
This lovely town is known for its famous tapestry (actually embroidered) depicting the epic defeat of the English (Saxons) by William the Conqueror in 1066.
An amazing feature of this town is that although it is only a stones throw from the landing beaches of Normandy it escaped allied bombing. Turns out (as we learned in the museum) that a spy was able to relay to the allies that there were no Germans posted in Bayeux. No sense wasting bombs so the city was spared destruction.
It may be known for its tapestry but no self respecting city would be caught without a cathedral. This place is no exception.
After visiting the information center it was time for coffee. Tapestry can wait. Coffee was inauspicious and pastries were a no show, but while sitting outside we caught this couple putting their yippie yappie canine into a box on the the back and heading off to parts unknown. Actually we ran into them again at Utah Beach with pooch in tow. Nice "bike" if you are into those things.
Had to take photo of the cathedral. Bet it looks familiar, like all the other ones we have seen on this and past trips.
The tapestry (aka embroidery) is 270 meters in length. Like the dead sea scrolls it is long (very long) and about 24" high. Back in the days before the internet most people were illiterate and got their history from "picture books".
So this pictorial history of William's, Duke of Normandy, conquest of England (Saxony) tells the tale in vivid color. Considering it is almost 1000 years old it has worn well.
Turns out (as told by our audio guide) Edward the Confessor was without an heir so he decided to pass the crown to William, instead of Harold who was the son of Edward's former rival. He sent Harold to Normandy to tell William of his good fortune, and while there Harold swore allegiance to William. However, when Edward died he assumed the throne which did not go down well with William. So William launched a military campaign to depose Harold and establish his rightful claim to the English throne. One thing led to another and over 270 meters of tapestry we relived his voyage across the channel and siege and rout of Harold's forces at the battle of Hastings in October, 1066. There you have it (in less than one hour); I will leave the bloody details to your own research.
So in a nutshell Harold screwed William and paid the price. And that is the truth.
Before you go exit through the gift shop.
A wall hanging of one of the depicted scenes.
Or the charge up Hasting's Hill.
The town has more attractions like this old factory powered by a waterwheel from the flow of the Aure river.
One last look at the cathedral (notice the obligatory scaffolding) before moving on.
Well it was not the biggest (we know that from Amiens) but very quiet for a Sunday. Guess all the parishioners slept in and had croissants for breakfast.
A last look from another angle.
It was now time to drive to the coast and Utah beach.
But we needed to satisfy our hunger before tackling the museum. The name of this place is "Le Roosevelt" in honor of Teddy's son who was one of the oldest soldiers to come ashore on Utah beach. He is the only soldier buried at the American cemetery who did not die in France, but asked to have his remains interred there in honor of his wartime commitment.
The restaurant is built on a bunker that became the communications center after the Americans took the beach and headed inland.
The main attraction is the museum which was created by the local community of Sainte Marie du Mont to honor the Americans who liberated them from the Germans on June 6, 1944.
The grounds around the museum have many artifacts on display, including this anti-tank barrier which covered the beaches all along the Normandy coastline.
A Higgins boat which brought soldiers on shore.
Kim comfortably fell into line with the rest of the GI's.
I grabbed the wheel.
My favorite kind of boat resting on dry land.
The Red, White, and Blue along side of the Blue, White, and Red.
The museum is well done but far too long for us to conquer in our limited time. A film was one of the highlights with amazing footage of the actual landing and push inland. Some of the clips were actually in color. It was insightful of the planners of Operation Overlord to include photo and video journalist in the invading army to record the history for future generations.
One of the few remaining B-26 Marauders that survived the war. They led the advance bombing of "The Atlantic Wall" before the actual landing. This aircraft was painstakingly restored in the US but gifted back to the museum.
The museum is actually constructed on one of the 8000 bunkers the Germans built to protect the coast. New bunkers are still being discovered today as many were buried by bombing debris and only recently excavated.
Another Higgins boat.
The old and the new. The museum building was built to look like a bunker and incorporate the modern structure with the remains of the underlying bunker.
Utah beach, which today looks like any ordinary beach.
With Kim standing on the same sand that launched the final assault that ended WWII
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