Mont Saint Michel

     After ordering dryers for the sisters and removing the one that didn't work properly into our van also,  we were faced with a choice.  We could go directly to Alencon to check out the repair work done there and stay the night partway home, or we could backtrack up to Mont Saint Michel, then head to Paris the next day, checking on the apartment on the way.  Hmmmm.  I vote for door number 2!  

We got back to a nearby city close to 5 p.m. and found lodging, and since the sun was still high in the sky, we drove over to the monument without waiting any longer.  The government is 'fixing' things there to be able to handle the crowds of tourists that come to visit .  We parked in a brand new lot, bought a bus ticket for $8.50, then had to walk a half a mile to catch the bus.  It drove us for about 1 minute, then let us off to walk the rest of the way to the abbey walls.  But that was OK, because it was a wonderful sight to behold.  Jack remembers having been there once with his parents.  There are stairs galore cut into the rock, and you wind up and down and around where there are now restaurants and shops instead of homes (even some hotel-type rooms too, I think).  The abbey at the very top is touted to be spectacular inside, but was closed that night, so we missed that, but by going slow and easy we saw a lot of wonderful, ancient buildings, and I loved every minute of our 2 hours there.

According to legend, the archangel Michael appeared in the dreams of the Bishop of Avranches (a nearby city) in 708 AD, and the monastery was built in his name over several hundred years, from the 10th to the 15th centuries.  We were sad to have missed seeing the monastery and its superb craftsmanship.  Jack was brave to tackle all those staircases (he walks down them backwards because his knees don't work too well anymore).  People along the way applauded him, and shouted, "Bon courage!"  I'm so glad we got to see Mont Saint Michel this time, it was so worth the effort.