Bill Greenwood wrote:
Did you ever take your lady to Paris and Normandy? How was it? I hope to get there next summer.
I highly recommend everyone goes to Normandy eventually. Some time ago I had a client close by (outside Le Havre) and took off early one afternoon to drive down to the beaches. It was truly one of the most sobering and humbling places I have ever been, particularly the American Cemetry. Many of the floating docks are still rusting away in the water off the beach.
I did find that the signage and such to the various beaches was somewhat disorganized, so be sure to get some kind of tourist map (which I didn't have). Also, there are some trashy French beach towns nearby, which clog up in the summer, so, like all other travel advice for Europe, go in the late spring or early fall. Also, when I went on a weekday, everything was deserted, which really lets you soak in the place.
For me it was especially meaningful to go to the beaches as my grandfather had led one of the first companies of tanks onto Omaha Beach. I scooped up some of the sand into a film cannister to take back to him. Unfortunately he died before I saw him, but I was able to pour the sand into his grave at the funeral.