We had a
lunch date with John and Lynn this week, Monty’s previous owners, and it didn’t
take too long for the chaps to get under the bonnet and have a heads together
moment to discuss a point of interest. We enjoyed a leisurely pizza lunch at
Carentan Marina to hatch up a plan to get the old cars out and on the road for
the D-day celebrations and take part, as we have never done it before.
On the evening of the 5th June, the night before D-day we took a ride out with Graham and Anne to be on the Pegasus Bridge to commemorate the first glider landing at 00:16 hours on the 6th June 1944. The evening was filled with many re-enactors and many actual soldiers on parade. We watched Pipe bands march over the bridge and watched them march right back again, it was extremely entertaining and after we picnicked over a glass of beer in the beer tent we made our way to the original Pegasus Bridge which is now part of a museum. We sat in the garden area to watch a Yorkshire Police Brass Band present their best and not so best tunes but in that environment the atmosphere was wonderful and quite emotional.
The whole
concert was in English which I thought a little odd as much of the audience was
French but there was a contingency of Australian Navy sailors there so we
laughed at the jokes and the commentary but it was English northern humour which
left us a little wanting, at times and I did feel a little bemused that there
was no translation for our hosts.
The
drummers turned up and gave a very impressive performance and we were truly
entertained and invigorated as this is a rare type of music seen here in France,
or where we live anyway.
We had chatted
to a couple of the Australian Sailors and I was very touched when the band played
their national anthem and they all stood up and held their hearts and sang out
their love for their nation, it was a
very lovely moment.
We took
Monty into Carentan on the 7th and met up with other old car enthusiasts
to join in the WW2 vehicle parade through Town. Mike painted Monty with Free French
logos and we both dressed up in 1940’s and
joined the parade of over 100 vehicles.
We were
really amazed at the enthusiasm of the Carentan people on the street, thumbs up
and clapping and waving at us, yes us, in our little Monty dressed up as Free
French, and I had such a good time just being happy and uplifted. We drove
around the town twice and then all the jeeps and command cars and little tanks,
period motorbikes and even push bikes parked up in the centre of town for the
crowds to come and have a close up look. We met up with all sorts of people and
a man from way down south of France insisted in showing me the pictures of his
1936 Renault that he takes out on rallies and I realised that these people are really
out there, doing as we have done today. Both
Mike and I have hankered to do this for many years and are pleased to have
found the in-crowd, at last.
I saw this
1940’s gendarme and I just had to get him in the frame, so I went straight up
and asked if he would please be photographed with me in front of our Monty. As
we set ourselves up to have a photo taken we were suddenly surrounded with
clicking photographers. Mike was four cars down the row, saw the commotion and
came up to find that it was me and my gendarme in a Hollywood pose lapping up
the fame……
So Monty
played his part in the 71st D-day commemorations and we had a great
day out to boot. We met up with two veterans who both thanked us for keeping
the story alive, but I felt a little bit of a fraud as this is the first time
that we have participated, but it is most definitely not the last
Then back
to the ranch for a swim in the pool and a snooze in the sun …….
Lovely Sunday
day out.
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