D-day..translation

Hejsa! er der en der gider se på flg??

Normandy
Diary, June 1984


It was an odd feeling to visit Arromanches today. Everything looked so peacefully. We first went for a walk along the beach to get an impression of the tide, which rises and falls several metres twice a day. After lunch we sat and sipped at a drink on one of the many little restaurants, which faces the beach. We looked on the children, who was playing on the beach and on a English tourist, who was standing trying to take picture of a very lively family, while he urged the family’s youngest member who had the giggles to look reasonable sensible.
But in the middle of these comfortable holiday activities, we pictured how this beach may have looked 40 years ago, where an Englishman in Arromanches had other things in mind. Here on “Gold Beach” were 25000 English soldiers was put ashore on D-day, the 6th of June 1944, and on the great grey concrete block, which the children now are using as a bathing jetty, is a part of Port Winston, a big artificial harbour.
When we were visiting the war museum in the town, we saw a model of Port Winston. The long row of pontoon bridges were put up on a wave machine, which was moving all the time, so we got an impression of the ingenious’ construction, which resisted the fiercely storms, which was raging in the Channel in June 1944.
When it was getting dark, we drove towards “Bloody Omaha”, where over 2000 American soldiers lost their lives. We should among other things see the sheer Pointe-du-Hoc, where the assault was starting. The air force had for several days bombarded the German battery’s. At 7 o’clock in the morning on D-day started the famous climb, where the “rangers” was climbing rope ladders, while the hand grenades was pouring on them. Meanwhile the first troops were trying to enter the ashore but they had troubles: they were supposed to be covered by amphibious tanks, but unfortunately 75% of these vehicles were sinking. Furthermore a strong stream was knocking the boats out of course. But they continued the attacks and in morning on the 7th of June was it clear that the landing wad succeeded. The actual battle of Normandy was about to begin.
The 6th of June was there commemorations on several landings and many surviving soldiers used the occasion to see again the beaches where they fought so intensely 40 years ago.

Hyggehejsa!