A day trip to Mont-Saint-Michel

The coastline of Normandy, a magical place

When I first realised that I had the option of going to study in the region of Normandy, I got excited beyond words, as I was aware of the wondrous nature of the northern landscape that came along with it! You see, the North is full of beautiful, hidden villages, landmarks, cities and well, a variety of breathtaking sceneries that are definitely worth exploring, so my first thoughts were that I would be able to experience it all myself! That being said, just after a few weeks in Rouen, an opportunity to visit perhaps one of the most important (in my opinion) destinations in France appeared before me; a day trip to Mont-Saint-Michel! Even though it was still cold and the weather was not exactly ideal for such an excursion, I knew that there was no way I would miss it, and so I applied for the trip along with my friends.

Mont-Saint-Michel: a few things that you should know before visiting

Some of you might wonder, what is actually, Mont-Saint-Michel? Well, what we are talking about here is really...an island. However, it should not be interpreted as a usual one, as it is more likely to fall under the category of a "giant rock", so not really corresponding to the magnitude of an actual island. Mont-Saint-Michel is located at the northwest part of France's coastline, and is pretty much on the verge of the continent, surrounded by the Atlantic ocean. The setting is rather peculiar, as the landscape around the Mount shifts with the tides, so at times the island seems to be entoured by vast, muddy areas of land, while others it looks like it is floating on the water's surface, its reflection giving off a feeling of serenity and peace.

The first photo of the day, taken from afar

What is really particular about this place, is how it is connected to the mainland, via a thin stripe of land, which now functions as a base for a very long bridge. There are numerous buses that are going back and forth the islet, carrying hundreds and hundreds of tourists to the destination, every single day. Of course among these visitors, there was also us, an international, adventurous bunch comprised of individuals from every corner of the world, but this is exactly the kind of people this place attracts, as its beauty and extraordinary identity is known across the land. You see, this is not a typical landmark, but an architectural treasure of France and, well, the world.

On the top of the islet, the visitors can clearly see the Abbey from which it got its name, reigning over the vast wilderness of the Atlantic.  Following the strict hierarchy of its time, the lower levels of the Mont are comprised of shops and houses, while far down used to live fishermen and the like, so we can clearly see a relation between authority and disposition, a typical phenomenon of its era. However, rather than seeing it from afar, the distinction becomes more noticeable when one walks through the ascending alleys and narrow staircases connecting the various points of interest of the islet, via pathways that take the visitors through  a perplexing and adventure-like promenade. These were all things I was aware of before my arrival there, but the actual experience is much more engaging, as I realised later.

Setting off for an adventure

It was an exceptionally cold morning and I had to take an early bus, so that I would make it to the campus of Mont-Saint-Aignan, where our excursion would begin. I remember distinctly dressing up like an onion, to protect myself from the chill and the humidity. There was thick fog spreading through the streets of Rouen, not a soul to be seen walking around. Of course, my thoughts revolved around the fact that this was a bad start for the day, and that we probably wouldn't be able to properly enjoy our trip, but I was restless and excited to go nonetheless. A late-runner as always, I arrived just on time to get in the bus, though there were still more people coming. Greeting my friends and taking my seat, I suddenly felt really lucky to be there with everyone, and having made sure I would visit the Mont, so I patiently waited for our departure.

On our way to the island, the bus was filled with conversations in various languages, people were laughing and joking around with each other! That was... until most of us started falling asleep, one by one, it being too early. I let myself lean on the bus window, using my giant scarf as a pillow, However, after a while I felt my cheek freeze and opened my eyes to see...snow! It was falling everywhere, covering the road, the trees, restricting our view of the landscape! We all started taking guesses on how a white Mont-Saint-Michel would look like, if we actually managed to get there with all that cold.Truth be told, I was thrilled at the idea of a landscape like that! Soon, however, our trip leaders reassured us that everything would be just fine, and that snow wouldn't be a problem.

After a few hours (I honestly do not remember how long it was), we spotted the faded by the fog, outline of the islet. It was eeriely popping out of the flat, baren skyline, far off in the distance. Even though it was an unclear image, it seemed hauntingly beautiful, and inviting us all to explore its nooks and crannies, so we were very excited to slowly get closer. After what seemed like an eternity, we arrived at a parking lot and hopped on the bus that would take us to our destination.

Setting foot on the landmark

The bus left us a few minutes away (on foot), from the impressive islet, still on the long bridge. We quickly went to the sides and started taking photos of the scenery, which seemed both exceptionaly dreadful and...well, in terms of architecture I could say, bewitching. The foggy setting made its appearance even more impactful, and we were all hooked! Due to the humidity caused by the Atlantic, the snow had not set at the area, but the cold was still evident. 

After a bit of rambling about its excellence and taking an insane amount of photos, we reached the entrance of the Mount. It was so intriguing, seeing the little houses at the lower levels, the walls, fortifications  and pathways making their way up the rock, and then, on the very top, there it was, the huge Abbey of Saint-Michel, looking over the wilderness of Normandy...Truly mesmerised by the scale of this insane setting, I kept trying to contain my awe, and my curiosity about its structural and architectural elements of course. I guess this is a very personal trait, but similarly, everyone else was very impressed, to say the least.

The first group photo of the day

An island surrounded by quicksand

It was around that time that we were given the option of either going for a great walk around the Mount, stepping onto the mud and talking about the island's disposition and relation to the natural landscape or..taking a historical tour on the inside. I kind of regret choosing the second (because the group that did the walk got the tour as well, only later), but well, I passed on the first option. What we were soon after told by our guide though, was that the substance surrounding the island was not in fact mud but...quicksand. In case you don't know what that is, it is actually the kind of sand that you can sink in, and the more you move the deeper you sink.  Sounds adventurous though, even though a bit scary, so if this is the type of visitor you are, I recommend going for that walk!

Views of the " endlessness"

For our part, we saw our friends going really far away from the landmark, walking with funny shoes or plastic bags on their feet, along with a trained guide of course! It looked really fun, and at some point, we saw them jump on one particular spot which we later found out was a sensitive quicksand point. Apparently, it is safer to jump than walk or run, and of course to not panic! In case someone got stuck, the guide would pull them out, but the best way to escape quicksand is to try and slowly...float on it. That's of course, if you manage to stay calm and patient, slowly bringing your body to a horizontal position. Then you can slowly, try to push yourself towards steady ground.

In the case of this particular landscape, of course, this is almost impossible, as the quicksand spreads everywhere (except for the zone near the rock, which is usually quite shallow, depending on the tides). In fact, when the Abbey of Saint-Michel functionned as a prison, quicksand used to be one of the most common death penalties for the prisonners! They were lead far off the island and left there, while the tide rose, until the completely sank in and suffocated. I can't even begin to imagine how agonising that type of death must be, and those people were tortured up until their very last second. Quite the monstrosity, don't you agree? Well, it wouldn't be the first or the most exceptionally brutal element of the past France (or of any European country really). Hearing the story from our guide, I won't deny that I was horrified.

The Mount from within: ascending

My team, going for the safer option, went through the huge entrance of the Mount's surrounding, main fortification. We took the only path there was, slowly going up the islet. At the beginning, we were greeted by the sight of various, lively touristic shops and creperies, with beautiful souvenirs and hand-crafted signs that seemed to have escaped a fairytale. It was all so picturesque and homely, I actually thought I would like to revisit with my family. Of course, in the noisy bunch we formed, I actually got to meet people I didn't know, and the ambiance was warm and fuzzy.I still vividly remember us going up the first levels and finally reaching an awesome plateu where we could catch the view of the vast, endless landscape. That image is probably one of the things I cherish most, and it was really precious to share it with everyone else!

We kept going up and around, sometimes straying from the path and "discovering" small green areas where one could relax and the like. There were seagulls resting on the walls, coming really close to the tourists who tried to feed them. For such wild birds, those seemed to have completely adjusted to the situation and making the most out of it, which gave us a good smile. Our guide gave us a tour following the path of the walls of the perimetre, giving us a few historical facts about the Mont and how it came to be, its complicated fortifications which saved it from enemies at times (especially during the Hundred-year War when Jeanne d'arc acted),as well as its disposition across time.

Going around and getting stuck in narrow paths...

The Abbey: a truly spendid and complex structure

The legend has it that the archangel Michael appeared in the dreams of the original founder, the bishop of Avranches, telling him to build an Abbey on the rock. Our guide informed us that the bishop originally ignored the archangel's divine demand, and so he, furious, appeared once more, in a vision where he pierced the bishop's head. The next morning, the man awoke with a shallow hole on his scalp and thus, he realised it was his duty and fate to turn the archangel's words into a reality. The glorious Abbey was finally built, and hundreds of years later (if I understood correctly) a statue of the archangel was placed on its very top, along with the gothic spire we see today, looking over the island.

The Abbey itself is incredible from within, and truly complicated in terms of architecture, so I will try to make things simple. If i remember correctly, after obtaining our tickets to enter the Abbey, we went through the Guard room, ascended some stairs and found ourselves on a huge terrace, which gave us a complete view of the majestic setting around the Mount!

On the top terrace ^^

Luckily, the sun had started to shine, and the sight of the scenery had grown even greater, plus our mood was of course better! Looking out in the distance, we noticed there were some other, smaller islets around, and I believe our guide told us they were the main places from where granite was mined so as to build the structure itself! Quite logical, if ones consider how "in the middle of nowhere" this place actually is! What is more, we could see the village spreading and covering the islet, the trees full with leaves, adding to the beautiful image we had encountered. Looking up, the statue of Saint-Michel, resting on the top of the Abbey, was right in our field of view, looking pristine and refined.

Soon after, we decided to get into the great Abbey, where we witnessed the light go in via its huge windows on the sides. As a lot of elements of the first romanesque era were destroyed, we could observe various things being reconstructed in gothic style, which is quite interesting in terms of restoration. Unfortunately, I lost all the photos I took from the interior of the Abbey...After spending some time there, we entered a type of interior garden, surrounded by two lines of carved columns, which formed arcs at the top, connecting continuously with each other and forming a type of structure, but the sculptural elements were really popping out, making the whole composition look amazing, especially with how the garden was in the middle.  

We then continued downards, where we crossed various rooms such as the Great Hall, the chapel of Saint Etienne and Saint Martin's crypt, descending to the middle level via small doors and clausterphobic staircases. At some point, we reached the Knight's Hall, where the monks used to study. From what I was able to gather, the levels that were mainly comprised from the crypts and the corridors were designed to take on the weight of the Abbey, a rather ingenious idea for that time. 

Finally, we exited the complex route and found ourselves in a beautiful green area where we sat to rest up and regroup. From up there, we could once more look down, and watch people wandering and exploring the small alleys, the Mount being full of life even though it was getting late. Of course, there are hotels in this site, so people actually spend a night or two there, which I find fascinating. If one has a means of transport, they could explore all of the Normand coastline around, so it should be a great experience!

As we now had some free time in our hands, we decided to take photos and get something to eat, so we all headed back to the first restaurants and shops we encountered as soon as we started ascending. We all sat down in one place and had some crepes, discussing what we saw and rambling about how this and that reminded us of home, so we lost track of time. It was a nice ambiance, but soon after we had to leave and catch the bus to return...I was starting to feel a bit sad that I had to leave, as I really loved wandering around the Mount. What is more, that destination was on my bucket list, so going there was inexplicably cool to me, I was not expecting to be able to do this in my life! My advice is that if you have a chance to visit, do not miss it, it is an absolutely breathtaking landscape you will not get to witness everyday!

Putting on our coats and scarves, we went out to the, once more, chilly evening. Everyone started heading for the bridge, and after we had gained some distance from the landmark, we realised that it lit up while the darkness fell. The Abbey was mesmerising, seemingly coming from another world. The little houses lit up as well, completing the beautiful picture. I do not think I can ever forget that view, and I wish everyone could be able to see it! A truly splendid place, enriched all of us students with not only an entertaining visit, but with visuals beyond words! Now, seeing it glimmering like an amber in the middle of the dark, cold and unforgiving Atlantic, made me feel almost nostalgic for some reason. But I guess this is a feeling you will have to experience for yourself...

Mont-Saint -Michel just before nightfall

Going back

We got on the bus, with our souvenirs and memories in our bags and minds respectively. As if it was pure luck, rain started to fall harshly the moment we got off the bridge, thankfully not messing with our visit that had just ended a good while ago. We ran to our main bus and got on our seats, exhausted from walking and exploring almost all day. On our way back, we were so tired and excited at the same time, that all one could hear was sloppy conversations about the place... and maybe some snorring. Hours later, we reached Rouen and it was snowing, the snowflakes slowly covering everything, and falling on my nose. On my way home, I kept reminscing the Mount, still unable to believe I was there. The next day, I caught a cold...worth it!

All in all, I can never repeat enough how much of a groundbreaking excursion that was for me. It might be because I am an architecture student that I see it that way, but in general, I believe anyone would be amazed by such a landscape, regardless of wether they would be able to understand it from an architectural scope. It is just so..serene and inviting and so very unique! Seriously, this could have functionned as a scenographic basis for any type of fantastic or epic story! 

If you find yourself around Normandy or Brettagne (the neighbouring region), just take your time to go see this landmark with your own eyes. After all, it is the memories of the places we visit that stay with us, so invest everything you can in making such experiences possible, as they help people "grow" and become a better version of themselves, which is what we all live and strive for. 

Well, that's all for now, see you in the next entry ^^

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