Le Mont-St-Michel

The visit to le Mont-Saint-Michel was one of our most anticipated days on our trip and like Saint-Malo, it did not disappoint. Similarly, I wish that we had an entire day for this spectacular place, as we would have done things a bit differently. Le Mont-Saint-Michel is a tidal island and mainland commune which boasts the strongest tides all of Europe. Historically, the commune's position made it accessible at low tide to pilgrims and defensible as the incoming tide stranded, drove off or drowned threats on foot. According to historians (and legend), le Mont-Saint-Michel was founded by Bishop Aubert. In the 7th century, the Archangel Michael appeared to Aubert in a series of dreams, commanding him to build a sanctuary on the island, then known as Mont-Tombe. Aubert ignored the first two dreams; during the third dream, Michael burned a hole in Aubert's skull with his finger to convince him and construction began. In 966, the Benedictine monks arrived and shortly thereafter, the abbey became a place of pilgrimage for Christians, who arrived to ask Saint Michael for protection and salvation. At the same time, the abbey began to produce, preserve and study manuscripts. After the French Revolution, the abbey was used as a prison, housing 14,000 prisoners over a period of 70 years. Today, the Mont receives 3 million visitors each year, only half of whom go to the top of abbey. 

During medieval times, pilgrims walked from Italy, Germany and England, as well as other parts of France. Today, pilgrims can follow some of the same routes. Ten hiking trails have been created to enable pilgrims from various countries to retrace the path their ancestors may have taken. 

Mont-Saint-Michel sheep are a famous flock that graze in the tidal salt marshes surrounding the abbey. Their unique diet produces a highly prized, naturally tender and subtly seasoned lam that is a celebrated delicacy in Normandy.

One of the many things I wish that we could have done differently was walk from the parking area to the island, which takes about 30 minutes and would have allowed us to take in this view for much longer.

The Grand Rue winds upward in a steep, continuous incline and the official staircase to the abbey starts at the top of the village. There are about 100 steps on the outside stairs; you then buy your abbey ticket and continue up the remaining 90 steps. Our guide stopped frequently as the ascent was quite steep.

Barely visible is a gold statue of Archangel Michel, which weighs about 1,200 pounds.

You can see the the tidal flats. I was surprised to learn that there is quicksand, which is something I really haven't heard about since I was a kid. Pilgrims today hire guides to ensure that they do not get stuck in the quick sands, especially in the rising tides.

Wooden statue of Michael from the 14th century.

There are 137 columns around the garden, all but ten of which have been restored. The garden was a symbol of heaven. 

The dining room has 50 windows.

A fresco depicts the mythical moment when the Archangel Michael burned a finger into the skull of Bishop Aubert, commanding him to construct le Mont-Saint-Michel.

This wheel was used when the abbey was a prison. Prisoners would walk inside the wheel like hamsters, which allowed the ropes to bring up supplies.

Original piece of fresco from the 13th century.