Going Back (Wayyyy Back) in Time at the Abbaye du Mont Saint-Michel
- gaylemabery
- Sep 8, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 26, 2022
After our morning touring Chateau du Pont-Rilly, we headed off in our rental car for the two hour drive to Mont Saint-Michel. Scott is becoming an old pro at driving in France now! He got some good tips from our guide, Matt, who rode along with us all day yesterday. We are all relieved that he is doing all the driving!
As we drove along admiring the Normandy hedgerows, cattle and corn, we got our first glimpse of Mont Saint-Michel, shrouded in the fog that was rolling in from the coast. We were still miles away, but already we appreciated it’s immensity.
A little historic perspective…Mont Saint-Michel was dedicated on October 16, 709 AD, so we were about to step back in time over 1,300 years!
As you look at the picture, start at the top…the abbey is an essential part of the structural composition of the town the feudal society constructed. At the top is God, the abbey, and monastery; below this, the Great halls, then stores and housing, and at the bottom (outside the walls), fishermen's and farmers' housing.
The abbey has been protected as a French monument historique since 1862. Since 1979, the site as a whole – i.e., the Mont-Saint-Michel and its bay – has been a UNESCO world heritage site.
We started our own pilgrimage from Parking Lot P5 (15€ for the day). From there, it is about a 45-minute walk to Mont Saint-Michel. There are free shuttle busses, but none of us wanted to wait in that line. So off we went, allowing stops along the way for Dan to do his signature “golf-swing” stretching (no picture of that, unfortunately!).
Yes, it’s a long walk, but during the medieval period, pilgrims visiting the abbey walked from Italy, Germany, and England as well as other parts of France. Such devotees were known as Miquelots. Modern pilgrims can follow the same routes. Ten hiking trails have been created that enable pilgrims from various European countries to retrace the path their ancestors may have taken during a medieval pilgrimage. (Thanks Wikipedia!)
Once you’ve made the walk to the base of the island, it’s time to make the 350 stair climb up to the Abby (as long as you’ve already secured your 11€ entrance ticket, preferably on-line, in advance). It’s a hike, for sure, but there are resting places along the ramparts, and many breaks between stair climbs. Totally doable for the able-bodied (definitely not wheelchair accessible). For 3€, you can get an audio guide, which we all got and enjoyed as we toured the Abby.
I think Scott’s observation was the best: “It feels as though it was built to make you acknowledge your insignificance.” As though you enter and immediately feel you are surrounded by a higher power. (Scott is the only person in the photo below. Can you see him??)
The medieval art and artifacts were definitely in stark contrast to the Renaissance period we experienced in Paris and Versailles.
Le Christ descendent aux limbes
Bas-relief, 1547
As if to demonstrate that insignificant feeling, here’s Dan in one of the fireplaces!
Have you watched Game of Thrones?! We all agreed it could have been filmed here!
As the center of the Abbey, The Cloisters gives access to all the rooms of the abbey: the kitchen, the dormitory, the church, the library, the workshop, and the scriptorium.
There is no roof here, as the monks here were allowed, and even advised, to grow vegetables for their own consumption. This way they were also allowed to look up at God, and only at GOD. No real windows to look at the outside world, as there might be some temptations out there!!
See our Instagram Reel of Mont Saint-Michel by clicking the link here:
What an unforgettable day! It seems like each day of this trip gets better and better!
We drove to Saint-Lo for dinner and drinks, then back to the Chateau for our last night in the Castle and our last night in France!
Tickets: Purchase tickets online through the Abbey website. I'd recommend doing so a few days in advance (at least) as there are timed entry slots. We purchased the morning of, and the only time slots available were late afternoon.
Step Count: 15,723 steps, or 7.75 miles
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