Having lived in Switzerland since last December, it had been a while since I had seen the American flag. What a welcoming site this was as I entered the American Cemetery in Coleville-sur-Mer, France.

In the front of the cemetery stands a statue which represents "The Spirit of American Youth." The statue is 22-feet tall and is made of bronze. In a circle around its feet is the inscription "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord."

The land for the cemetery was a gift from the French to the American people, in honor of their sacrifices during World War II. It is maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission, an independent agency of the United States federal government.

The cemetery sits just above Omaha Beach and offers a breathtaking view of the English Channel.

Situated on 172 acres, there are 9,387 American soldiers buried here, including four women. Three times as many soldiers died during the WWII battles in Northern France, but many families chose to bury their loved ones at home. Thus, each cross symbolically represents three fallen soldiers.

The inscription on the graves of the unknown reads: "Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms, known but to God." There were 1,557 whose remains were either not recovered or unable to be identified.

Each grave is marked by a white marble headstone, a Latin cross for those of Christian faiths, and a Star of David for those of the Jewish faith.

It appeared to me that the headstones in this cemetery were facing backwards. Our tour guide explained that the soldiers are buried facing their home country, the United States of America.

Every year on Memorial Day, two flags are placed in front of each headstone--one American and one French. I can imagine that this is a stunning sight.

Please click here to go to Part 2 of Remembering Normandy