Sword Beach and Juno Beach are two of the five D-Day beaches where Allied troops landed in the early morning of 6 June 1944 during the invasion of Normandy. Sword Beach was the British-French beach, where the landing went smoothly. Juno Beach was the beach where Canadian soldiers landed and where the fighting was heavy.

On 6 June, in the afternoon, Hitler gave the order to advance a large number of divisions towards Normandy. But it was already too late; the battle had been decided. By midnight, more than 150,000 Allied soldiers, 23,000 paratroopers and 20,000 vehicles were in Normandy. 12,000 men were killed, wounded or taken prisoner.

Main image: Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer, monument to 48th Royal Marine Commando’s

During our holiday in Normandy, a visit to the D-Day beaches was a must. From our accommodation in Ouistreham, we took a bike ride along the coast to Courseulles-sur-Mer (Centre Juno Beach), passing Sword Beach and Juno Beach.

We were impressed by the large number of monuments, memorials and military vehicles along the road. We live in Apeldoorn (the Netherlands), a town that was liberated by Canadian soldiers. No wonder we were particularly interested in Juno Beach with the Canada House - the first house liberated by Canadian troops on 6 June 1944, during Operation Overlord - and Juno Beach Centre, a Canadian museum dedicated to the landing beaches.