Normandy, France. 360 mile coastline, home to World War II landing beaches, lush farmland and the bocage, market towns and historic cities: Caen (Caen War Memorial), Giverny (home of Claude Monet) and the Flowered Coast. www.europeantravelcheap.com

Normandy is “the” battle ground for the allies in WWII. To think over 4,900 US soldiers alone were killed on D-Day is mind boggling... and even more sobering is the fact over 425,000 Allied and German troops were killed, wounded or missing makes every step you take in freedom an honor.

I drove along narrow roads in an area of mixed woodland and pasture, the roads are bordered on both sides by tall banks with thick hedgerows grown on top of them... which limit visibility. It was in the “bocage” that some of the wars fiercest fighting took place and just thinking about what happened there made my skin crawl.

A stop a the American cemetery in St. Laurent is a beautiful place overlooking the English Channel... it’s also the final resting place for 9,387 brave men killed liberating Europe (not to mention the 1,557 listed on the Walls of the Missing). It is a truly sobering experience.

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		Parts of Normandy consist of rolling countryside typified by pasture for dairy cattle and apple orchards.