DDay 4 You - Magali Desquesne 2.54

My name is Magali Desquesne and I was born in Saint Lo, and have also lived in Villers-Bocage, Caen, Saint-Marcouf and Bayeux - all towns in Normandy made famous in 1944. I also lived in California, USA for several years, where in fact the first of my two daughters was born! It was in California where I improved my spoken English, a language I now love to speak!

My family have personally experienced the effects of war in various forms. My parents were children and witnessed the occupation and eventual liberation, my father going on to serve in the French Army in Algeria a decade later. My older brother is a combat-veteran of Bosnia with the French Foreign Legion and my partner Paul Woodadge is one of the most renowned DDay Historians and we sometimes work together on tours. I have been lucky enough to become friends with authors, historians, WWII veterans and many people who share my interest in WWII and especially in guiding visitors around a now peaceful and beautiful region.

I like to show people not only the famous DDay sites but also to talk about the suffering and hardships endured by ordinary people - the men and women who fought and the civilians who saw such destruction but found their freedom.

I am not and do not wish to be a WWII geek. I am not an expert in different types of tanks and weapons. There are other guides for whom that is an essential element to their tours. Being female and with children my focus is on the human story of DDay and the effect on ordinary people.