How can such a small Bridge be so important.

Sainte Mere Eglise (the 1st town to be liberated after the D-Day invasions) is a great place to start looking for the "military experience." Museums, points of interest, and even military shops selling everything from Crickets* to German SS Helmets. But what most people miss is the area around Sainte Mere Eglise where a huge part of the action took place. These are sites like Amfreville, Picauville, Pont l'Abbe and La Fiere.

*(ID sounders used by the US Airborne troops on D Day, which make a sound like a Cricket. One click should be answered by 2 clicks. Many soldiers lost or broke these on landing so the back up was an oral ID. Upon hearing the word "Flash", a response of "Thunder" was promptly expected. If no response came a hale of bullets usually followed). The place is full of little gems like this!

Quick Tips:

Must see places include the La Fiere Bridge, where a most important objective was achieved (a place often overlooked by the tourist). Over the 5 days that followed the D Day landings 60 plus percent of the soldiers involved were killed or injured in the blazing battle:

"In all of the airborne operations of the ETO, the Merderet Bridgehead (La Fiere Bridge) was the one attended by the greatest difficulty and hardships of the individual assemblies...these conditions so frequently brought forth the finest characteristics of the American soldier." The words of S L A Marshall

If you want to see an amazing collection of photos from the War/La Fiere battle, Cafe La Fiere which has the famous bridge in its grounds is a wonderful place to spend the day, or even the night. B&B €40-€50 per room (00 33 (0)2 33 40 1968). The cafe also has a fantastic Modern based Menu to make the hungriest Americans, Italians, Brits and French all feel at home.

Best Way To Get Around:

La Fiere is a 3Km walk or drive from Ste Mere Eglise, which is 1 minute from the N13 'motorway'. From the port of Cherbourg it takes no more than 30 mins in the car, 1 hours drive from the small airport at Caen.

One room has a double and single bed, the other has two single beds. They are very clean, modern and decorated each year. The cafe downstairs is where your breakfast is served each morning (for a small extra charge, you can have a full English big breakfast). The cafe is also open all day, a novel experience in France. The tourist office in Ste Mere Eglise is a good source of B&B's, or ask in the café, as they seem to know all the best places.

You must buy their house salad dressing, as it is amazing. If you need to make a reservation try cafelafiere@hotmail.com.

European food, which is unheard of in this area. A great place for Italian (Chicken Parmagana 10 Euros), French (Pork Fillet Mignon 11 Euros), English (English Big Breakfast 8 Euros as massive!), and American (Cheese & Bacon Burger 8 Euros) hearty food. The Cafe is open all day, every day in summer, which is great for sightseers and travellers, as most places in France stop serving at 2pm. E-Mail cafelafiere@hotmail.com for reservations or rooms, they are very helpful.

A beautiful, high, grassy knoll above the landing zones of D-Day near Ste Mere Eglise has a monument known as 'Iron Mike,' a tribute to the many US Airborne Troops that died on 5th/6th June 1944. Possibly the best place in Normandy to watch the sun setting over the trees, and think of all those brave people who gave everything for everyone else.