National D-Day Memorial

[TheAxeman]

On the recommendation of Jim Meadows (SPKLBUK) I decided to stop by the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia on my way to EOM. Who even knew this place existed? Granted that it was a Thursday, but there was only a handful of people there. I thought I was going to stop in and take a few photographs and be out of there in 1/2 hour. Little did I know that the place is HUGE so I ended up spending the better part of 2 hours there! The 1/2 mile driveway leading into the Memorial should have given it away. The whole Memorial is superbly done with the arch being the centerpiece. As you walk underneath the arch you come across the traditional display for a fallen warrior in bronze....helmet on top of rifle. Of course I had to leave a flag in honor of Jordan and all the others who have perished. Directly behind it is a lifesize sculpture of a soldier coming over the top of the wall, rifle in hand. Very powerful. Below the wall there is a granite landing craft with more sculptures heading for the tan granite "beach" and more clambering up the wall. Air jets below the water line fire random short bursts of air so it looks as if bullets are hitting the water. Beyond the landing craft a semi circular wall is covered with bronze plaques with the names of those who died in the invasion. Beyond that a rotunda with a bronze statue of Ike and a mosaic tile ceiling depicting a battle map of the invasion. The grounds were meticulously maintained. Go check this place out if you are in the area. Its a well spent 5 bucks. Thanks Jim.

Of course the road there wasn't half bad either.....

 

[rnees]

wow. Going to have to put that on my list of places to go see.

Thanks for the great pix!

 

[Fubar]

wow. Going to have to put that on my list of places to go see.Thanks for the great pix!

Ditto... Going to have to stop and see that next time.

 

[Slow Ride]

My Wife and I were there Labor Day 2007 and I couldn't agree with you more.

This place is one of the places you should see if the opportunity arises.

Chuck

 

[wfooshee]

Wow! Never knew that was there. When I was a kid we lived in Germany for a couple of years and we visited sites all over France, including Normandy. Out of all of our tours, which includes places like Paris, Brussels, Copenhagen, Rome, Zurich, Milan, Florence, Venice, Vienna, the war memorials and cemeteries always made a special impression on this 7- or 8-year old American kid. Thanks for sharing, and thanks for adding something to my must-do list!