Panoramic view of a scenic coastal town with sandy beaches and rugged cliffs along the turquoise ocean shoreline.

This is Gold Beach in Normandy, France. It was one of the British landing sites during the D-Day landing of World War II. When I shot this image, I did not realize that this was such an iconic photographic location. When we got back to our room, I saw this same shot in our travel brochure. This photograph provides a view of the famous beach with remnants of WWII vessels left stranded at the water’s edge. The town of Arromanches-les-Bains is also prominently featured. In the background is the infamous Pointe du Hoc promontory which American soldiers scaled to overtake Nazi forces and clear the way for a successful D-Day invasion.