April 2024: As part of a three-week baby bonding trip across Europe and Morocco, my family and I traveled to the Normandy region of France for three days from Paris. We rented a car in Paris, and after I spent the first night of our trip in the illegal Paris catacombs, we set off on the three-hour drive to Mont Saint Michel. This scenic tidal island features a 1,000-year-old abbey and a medieval village rising from its center. The next day, on our way back to Paris, we stopped to visit the World War II invasion beaches around Normandy, including Omaha Beach and Pointe du Hoc.
Normandy Region
We were tired and jet-lagged, but we were determined to see Mont Saint Michel, a 1,000-year-old medieval village and abbey perched on a tidal island, arguably the most beautiful historical site in France. The island is so stunning that even the Nazis, during their occupation of France in World War II, turned it into a tourist attraction for German visitors.
At times of the day, the tide rises, making it only possible to reach the island via an elevated roadway that is reserved for tourist buses to reduce vehicle congestion. On certain dates, the tide can rise high enough to completely submerge the roadway, effectively cutting off access to the island. When the tide recedes, however, it sets a deadly trap for unsuspecting visitors. The thick, wet tidal sand can become quicksand, which has claimed lives of those who wandered out alone. Once trapped, they are unable to escape before the tide rises again and drowns them.
Mont Saint Michel is popular with tourists and is best visited during the shoulder season, like April. The downside of visiting in April, however, was the freezing cold and brutal winds. Still, the absence of crowds made our experience magical, especially at night when we strolled around the island by ourselves.
Initially, we had planned to stay on the island, but once we realized we would have to haul all of our suitcases up a hill over cobblestone streets to our hotel, we decided it would be more practical to stay on the mainland in one of the easily accessible tourist hotels. While the hotel was sterile and lacked the historical charm that staying on the island would have offered, certain sacrifices need to be made when traveling with a baby.
Once we dropped off our bags at the hotel, we took the tourist bus to the island for dinner at a restaurant overlooking the bay. I savored oysters sourced from the local waters, which were delicious. Unfortunately, by the time we started our ascent towards the abbey at the top of the hill, we found ourselves too late—the abbey was closed. However, we thoroughly enjoyed exploring the dark alleys and smaller cathedrals that dot the island. Mont Saint Michel possesses a sacred atmosphere, drawing thousands of pilgrims each year who walk barefoot between the cathedrals to reach the abbey. We even stumbled upon a group of pilgrims angelically singing hymns. To avoid interrupting their reverent moment, we sat back and listened to their enchanting music.
The return journey on the tourist bus at night proved challenging. The freezing wind lashed at us as we walked quite a distance along the exposed roadway from the island to reach the bus pick-up location. This caused considerable concern for Indie, and we worried she might become sick from the cold.
Nightime exploring at one of the cathedrals on the island that remained open. Pilgrims singing angelic hymns in the background
I am fascinated by all things World War II, and I couldn’t pass up the chance to visit the invasion beaches of Normandy. These beaches were where thousands of American and Allied troops first landed in Europe, sacrificing their lives to turn the tide of the war against the Nazis. To me, these sites represent a profound sense of American patriotism and sacrifice. I wanted not only to visit them and experience their significance firsthand but also to share this moment with my family and my daughter.
However, the reality of our visit differed significantly from my expectations. We were exhausted from travel, the drive was long, and the weather was harsh, with bouts of freezing rain and fierce winds whipping in off the ocean. This made it challenging to fully appreciate the historical weight of these locations. Despite the conditions, we made the most of our time and were still able to visit Omaha Beach and Pointe du Hoc before embarking on the long drive back to Paris. It may not have been the experience I had envisioned, but it was still meaningful to be there together as a family.
Pointe du Hoc, a fortified cliffside overlooking the beaches of Normandy, was a crucial site that the Allies needed to capture to ensure the success of the beach landings in the area. The Nazis had fortified the position so heavily that the mission to scale the cliffs by American special forces was practically a suicide mission. Ultimately, the Allies succeeded in defeating the Nazis in one of the most heroic battles of the war, but it came at a great cost.
Today, many of the Nazi bunkers are well-preserved and accessible for visitors, providing a haunting glimpse into the past. The entire cliffside is still pockmarked with bomb craters, a stark reminder of the intense fighting that took place there. We attempted to explore Pointe du Hoc, but the cold weather made it difficult to fully enjoy the experience. Despite the chill, being in such a historically significant location was still impactful, a testament to the sacrifices made during that pivotal time in history.
Paula and Indie in front of one of the German Bunkers of Pointe du Hoc
The region of Normandy was beautiful, and we drove down small country roads that wound through quaint villages adorned with châteaux and old stone churches. There was so much war history in this area and numerous places of interest that I ended up feeling terrible for not allocating enough time to properly explore it. However, there was one place we absolutely had to visit: Omaha Beach.
Omaha Beach was the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting during the D-Day invasion, where approximately 2,000 Americans lost their lives. The battle was so intense that reports indicated the water was tinged red with blood. Even today, about 4% of the sand at Omaha Beach is composed of shrapnel remnants from the war.
We stopped for lunch at a café overlooking the beach, which provided a serene view of the desolate landscape. There were still bunkers clinging to the cliffs, and the beach felt far more haunting than I had anticipated. To me, Omaha Beach resembled a graveyard, a solemn reminder of the countless men who met their end there. I had hoped to dip my daughter’s feet into the water and capture a photo so that one day she could appreciate the immense sacrifices made for her freedom, but the biting cold and fierce winds thwarted that idea. It was a bittersweet moment, recognizing the importance of the site while grappling with the harsh conditions of the day.
Omaha Beach-Paula and Indie
Driving across France presented its own set of challenges, particularly during rush hour in Paris. The drivers there were aggressive and impatient, which made navigating the busy streets quite stressful. Additionally, fueling stations were less common along the highways than I had anticipated. This became a problem when I found myself with just 100 miles left in the tank and multiple unmanned stations that didn’t dispense fuel.
Despite these hurdles, we managed to figure it all out and eventually made it back to our budget hotel near Paris Orly Airport. After a long day, we settled in for the night, ready to embark on our early morning flight to Morocco the next day.