It is almost the 80th anniversary of D-Day, so could not resist trekking to Normandy!

Our first stop is the US cemetery near and above Omaha Beach.

Almost 10% of the soldiers that arrived on June 6, 1944 died that day and 40% are still buried here and not repatriated back to the US.

Myself and two other veterans were asked today to assist with the daily ceremony of laying flowers at the memorial.

It was a very moving moment and I was honored to have been asked and able to participate.

There is also a wonderful visitor center that has numerous exhibitions and artifacts to tell the whole story that many have only seen in movies.

From there we went down to Omaha Beach where 30,000 US soldiers came ashore that day. In the distance you might be able to see the high cliffs where many Rangers climbed and lost their lives to reach the previous cannons that used to be on that site.

When you actually visit the beach during low tide, it is hard to believe how anyone could have survived the 250+ meters from the water to the shore. When you watch the Saving Private Ryan movie, you might get a hint of how hard it was.

Most of the bunkers and cannons are long gone and destroyed, but a few remain.

These 150mm guns were what threatened all ships and were the biggest targets that the Allied planes had such a hard time finding and destroying due to camouflage, etc.

So much history along the miles of coastline and historical villages where the Nazis occupied the homes of the local French population under their control.