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#One of the most interesting and exciting times that I remember was in the marshalling area in England prior to the Normandy Invasion.
The preparation consisted of many dry runs packing and unpacking and driving the back roads in England. The talks given to us by our officers who had no idea of what to expect and had not experienced preparing for an invasion. They did know about prophylactic kits but little else. They did tell us that all allied planes would have white stripes painted on them so that they would not be shot at by our own troops.
We had no idea as to what to expect from the loading of equipment on to LCT and the crossing of the channel and the actual landing on the beach in France. We were told that a bridge would be in allied hands and to proceed to that point. The bridge had not been taken and we were not told of that possibility,
We lived in pyramid tents with a soft coal (coke) burning stove in the center which had a small chimney that vented at the top of the tent flap. We were issued impregnated clothing and an armband to detect gas. We were required to put on the smelly and uncomfortable clothing and wear the arm band.
The nights were foggy and cold in South Hampton and the vent pipe on our stove was not efficient due to the tent being almost air tight when all the flaps were closed. Each morning we awoke it seem that we were dizzy and woozy and felt like we walking on air. I noticed that my arm band had turned red as it should in the presence of gas and realized that we were being gassed by our coke burning stove. The next night we slept with the tent flaps open at the entrance which ventilated our tent properly.
At the marshalling area we were served the best food we ever had, including steak, fresh milk and fruits, fresh eggs almost anything that we wanted. New movies and lectures while waiting for our turn to load onto an LCT (landing craft tank) which had a barrage balloon attached to it by a long cable to protect it from low flying aircraft. We were instructed on how to water proof our equipment and told that after landing to go to a de-water proofing area and remove the water proofing material. Every vent on the engine had to be covered with a special compound and all air intakes had to be vented by a flexible pipe and attached so that it was above the vehicle so that we could drive through water and not flood the engine, We were issued a life belt that we wore around the waist under our combat pack. It was poorly designed, some men in the water were unable to stand upright because the belt was too low on the body and all the weight he carried was above the belt.
I was issued sea sick tablets and instructed to take one on boarding the LCT and another 4 hours later. I was so frightened that I took the first tablet and forgot to take any more, but I did not get sea sick.
The pills were in a aluminum packet coated black in a small brown paper box of six pills. I kept the 5 that remained until I donated them to the Battallie De Normandie Museum in Bayeux . The pills are on display in a case but no credit is given all donors by the museum.

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