Mont St-Michel

My photo of Mont St-Michel

The shadow

(John) Not being much of a pilgrim, I wasn’t expecting to have an uplifting experience visiting the abbey at Mont St Michel.  I did expect to be awed by the sheer scope of the achievement and the beauty of the location.  Indeed, it was quite incredible.  We got up early (7.30 am) to get there before 9.00 am so as to beat the hoards.  We were among the first people to enter the abbey that day at 9:30 but the English tour did not start until 11.00 am.  The guide Sam, Mhari and I had was amazed by the Abbey, which was cool, because given the ease with which she reeled off the facts and stories, she must have given the tour a thousand times.  Lesley took a French tour, given by a Spanish Catholic who clearly was much of a pilgrim and was not just amazed but also enamoured.  Her tour took almost 2 hours; ours was over in less than one. 

We were there on a cold morning (relatively, it was 9 degrees C) in the off-season and arrived early.  But we had plenty of company from all over the world.  I tried to take pictures at moments when the crowds had dispersed momentarily.  We learned that the earliest parts of the Abbey were Romanesque but as it grew or was renovated when bits fell off or burned down it took on a Gothic style.  There are huge crypts underneath which serve to support the main church as well as inter dead monks.  It is the location that is most breathtaking, the view over the bay goes on forever and the light at that time of the morning made it extra special.  It was a memorable experience that was well worth getting up early for.