We took the Paris Vision tour to Mont St. Michel---highly recommend it, with one exception. Lunch at %26#39;famous%26#39; Mere Poulard%26#39;s for their legendary omelet was included. If your tour has the lunch there as an option, decline. The omelet was awful--nothing like any of the other omelets we had in Paris. It was a frothy uncooked mass of egg and water, followed by cafeteria quality baked chicken and apple tart.
But, DO make an effort to see Mont St Michel. Truly awe-inspiring.
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Good advice. It%26#39;s a %26quot;show%26quot; for tourists to watch the omelettes being prepared, but nothing more than that.
One other piece of advice for visitors to Mont St. Michel: if you get the chance to stay overnite at one of the small hotels there, do so. It allows you the chance to see parts of the site after all the massive bus tours have left, after dark. I%26#39;ll never forget going into the St. Michael%26#39;s chapel at nite, and hearing Gregorian chant being played on the sound system, lit mostly by candles. Sent chills up and down my spine. And walking up the deserted street previously jammed with tourists was a treat.
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Ive got even better advice - miss Mont St Michel completely........ :)
a %26lt;b%26gt;recording%26lt;/b%26gt; of gregorian chant? I know it%26#39;s a fake church, but with fake monks as well!!
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While I agree that the Mt. has become quite the tourist trap, I also agree that if you are there first thing in the morning it is a really wonderful experience. And the Mt. does have a rich history that predates all the tourism hoopla.
Dining on the Mt. is not great, but you don%26#39;t have to go far into the neighboring towns to get wonderful food.
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Mere Poulard is arguably the world%26#39;s greatest restaurant tourist trap. It%26#39;s fun to walk past and peek inside, but eat elsewhere.
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Looks like WizardofAus got out of the wrong side of the bed.
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WizardofAus suggested:
%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;Ive got even better advice - miss Mont St Michel completely........ :)
a %26lt;b%26gt;recording%26lt;/b%26gt; of gregorian chant? I know it%26#39;s a fake church, but with fake monks as well!!%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;
Alas, you are much too literal and practical, and your advice, if followed, would cheat a lot of people out of a great experience.
A church can be defined in many vast and varied ways, a church can be anywhere, and the source of spirituality within oneself can be enough to overcome the artificiality of, for instance, a recorded Gregorian chant in a %26quot;fake%26quot; church.
At minimum, Mont St. Michel is an inspiring piece of architecture, stunningly backdropped against the sea. Tourists should see it if for nothing more than that.
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janissimo
Goodness no.......... I%26#39;m in quite a mellow mood - usually I am a lot more scathing about Mont St Michel. I can%26#39;t work out why people travel there from Paris, when the real Disneyland is closer.
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LOL!
Don%26#39;t hold back, tell us how you really feel...
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Here%26#39;s some history:
The Abbey
The Abbey church was the first major construction at the site (starting in 1023), followed by a new monastery later that century. Despite its of the %26quot;beaten track%26quot; location and perilous setting, Mont-Saint-Michel became an important pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages. Throughout time, buildings were razed and new buildings substituted, although most of the buildings surrounding the abbey were constructed in the 14th century. In the 15th century, defensive walls were added to repel invaders from England.
During the Hundred Years War the Abbey was a fortress, but it returned to its monastic role in later years. During the French Revolution, Mont St. Michel served as a prison and suffered from neglect until a restoration was begun in the late 19th century.
The Abbey has numerous rooms scattered through three levels (the Abbey Church, The Promenior des Moines (cloister) and the Aquilon Crypt) and each offers interesting insights into the how the Abbey functioned. If you could see through the Abbey’s many walls, you would realize that it hugs the foundation rock and covers more and more of its base with buildings as it reaches towards the sky. The base rock occupies substantial portions of the low and intermediate level of the Abbey.
While the Abbey church and the statue of St. Michael the Archangel atop its spire, is the crowning glory of Mont-Saint-Michel, numerous chapels, the cloisters, the Aquilon Chamber and other rooms will equally attract your attention. The Abbey is large and although many areas are restricted, you will find that your tour can take several hours if you are interested in exploring the many nooks and crannies.
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Ouh la la Wizard, i would highly recommend Mont St MIchel too, as the previous poster said, there is a lot of history , dating back to the early christian times, on the Mont! The shops lining up the main streets can be a tourist trap, but the abbey itself is amazing, and filled with history.
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