For over a thousand years, the silhouette
of this island-abbey has sent pilgrim’s
weary spirits soaring. Today it does the same
for tourists. 
Mont St-Michel, which through the ages has been among the top pilgrimage sites
in all Christendom, floats like a mirage 
on the horizon.
The vast Bay of Mont St-Michel, which turns
into a mudflat at low tide, has long played
a key role here. Since the sixth century,
hermit monks have lived here 
in search of solitude.
The word “hermit” comes from an ancient
Greek word for “desert.” The closest thing
to a desert in this part of Europe was the sea. 
Imagine the “desert” this bay provided
as that first monk climbed that rock trying
to get closer to God.
The rock, capped by an abbey, was even more
isolated by its mythic tides.
Pilgrims crossed the mudflat quickly and carefully knowing that the sea swept in
“at the speed of a galloping horse.”
In the late 1800s, a road was built, connecting
the island to the mainland and letting pilgrims
come and go without hip boots.
The town of Mont St-Michel — with only 30
residents — entertains over 2 million visitors a year.
Its main street — lined with shops
and hotels leading up to the abbey —
is grotesquely commercial.
It’s some consolation to remember that, even back 
in the Middle Ages, this was a retail gauntlet, 
with stalls selling souvenir medallions, 
candles, and fast food…like omelets.
An island specialty is quick, tasty, and extremely
fluffy omelets. 
They were popular for eat-and-run pilgrims who needed to beat the tide
and they remain a hit with visitors today. 
Enjoy the show as cooks make sure the traditional beat goes on.
You can skirt those main street crowds and
enjoy Mont St-Michel’s fine 15th-century
fortifications by following the ramparts up
to the abbey. 
These walls were built to defend against a new weapon — the cannon. 
Rather than tall, they were low — to make a smaller target.
While the English took all the rest of Normandy,
they never conquered this well-fortified island.
Because of its stubborn defense against the
English through all those years, Mont St-Michel
became a symbol of French national identity.
As you climb the stairs to the abbey, imagine
the pilgrims and monks who for centuries 
have climbed these same stone steps.
Mont St-Michel has been a holy place since
the year 708, when, according to legend, the
Archangel Michael appeared to a local bishop
in a vision and convinced him to build here.
This was an immense building project evolving
over many centuries. 
It was a marvel — a medieval skyscraper, built upon a rock…crowned
by a gilded statue of Saint Michael.
The bay stretches from 
Normandy to Brittany. 
The river marks the historic border between 
the two lands.
Normandy and Brittany have long vied 
for Mont St-Michel. 
In fact, the river used to pass on the other side, making the abbey part of Brittany. 
Today Mont St-Michel is just barely — but thoroughly — part of Normandy.
The centerpiece of this extraordinary abbey
is its church. While it’s mostly 11th century
Romanesque (with round arches and small windows),
the apse behind the altar was built later.
Its Gothic pointed arches and bigger windows
fill the sanctuary with light.
Sitting atop all this heavy construction — like
a delicate flower — is the abbey’s cloister.
In this peaceful zone, which connected various
rooms, monks would grow vegetables and medicinal herbs.
They’d meditate and read the Bible. And, for thoughtful travelers today, this Abbey still inspires.
