Sailing On The Seine With A Bunch Of Old White People

We have completed two full days on the River Baroness and are enjoying this leisurely pace quite a bit. The ages of our companions range probably from the 40's to late 80's with the majority tending toward the upper end which makes me and Dianne fit into the middle aged group. Our room is small, comfortable, and utilitarian. The passage is very smooth, so no problems with motion sickness.
We set sail on Sunday at around 6:00 and made our way to our first port of call, Les Andelys. We saw the ruins of a castle that was constructed by Richard the Lion Heart in the late 12th century. Like many ruins of castles, it takes quite a bit of imagination to reconstruct the castle in your mind. We had lunch on board and set sail for our next stop, Rouen.
We arrived in Rouen and spent the night and today we boarded busses at 8:00 for our trip to the D Day beaches at Normandy. Along the way, we stopped in Bayeux where we saw the Tapestry that depicts the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It was quite interesting and enjoyable. After lunch we went to Omaha Beach and were quite moved by the thought that 66 years ago so many yonung allied soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice to liberate Europe. The highlight of the day was the visit to the American cemetery. There are close to 10,000 graves there as well as a memorial to the all those whose remains were never found. To see the rows of white crosses and Stars of David was indeed moving. I spent a good 45 minutes just walking among the grave markers and looking at the names. All nationalities are equally represented there. Our tour group, Uniworld, gave all of us a single rose and asked us to place it on the grave of the one of the heroes buried there. Dianne chose a man from California and I chose the grave of one of the many unknowns who are buried there. Before I left, I gave all of them a salute, probably one of the most meaningful salutes I ever have given in my life. When I was in the army, saluting was just for form, mostly to officers. Today was different and heartlfelt.
Tomorrow, we tour Rouen and then continue on our voyage to Honfleur and then to Giverny.
We are truly enjoying our time here in France and hope all is well with all.
Art