Another day, another spontaneous stop! We were driving towards Brest and had just decided against it and head south to Nantes when my husband spotted something in the distance. What was it? Well, from a distance it looked like a pile of poo! Not literally but in terms of shape which my husband found highly amusing; he didn’t agree with me. We found out from google maps that it was in fact Mont St Michel, a place I didn’t know until now that my husband had read about and wanted to see but didn’t really know where it was- so again we took another detour to go and have a look, and why not, we were near it after all.
The car park was huge and the one for motorhomes was near to capacity- obviously a popular tourist destination! We walked along and found that you could get a free shuttle bus so that it was we did as we weren’t sure how far away it was and we didn’t want our daughter getting tired before she had even begun- she’s a brilliant walker and has a lot of stamina but still she’s only little and has to take twice as many steps as us. Every body was snapping pics the closer and closer we got towards the magnificent Abbey and magnificent it was indeed- it looked like a fairytale castle! And it was absolutely huge!
Well, we were in awe as we stepped off the bus and stared up at it and took some pictures of our own. The bus had travelled along a long bridge which connected the island to the mainland and was only built in 2014 replacing a 135 year old causeway . Years ago pilgrims drowned trying to get to the now 1,300 year old fortress from the tide that swept in and so work began to rectify this. Our own replica can be visited in Cornwall! It was dry at the moment and mostly surrounded by land of clay which people were walking around in bare foot in order to walk around its perimeter- a very messy job indeed by the looks of their feet plastered in the stuff and caked up their shins. We decided against it and instead entered the building which was just surreal! It was like stepping into Diagon Alley with narrow streets packed with people and cute shops on all sides tucked away within the walls. Our son had a brilliant view up in his carrier!
Our first stop was to get ice cream of course which was a mix of vanilla and strawberry and tasted absolutely delicious. We were looking around trying to take it all in whilst we had stopped and tried to decide which way to go as it was like a labyrinth with steps cut into the walls and little passage ways here and there. After we had finished our ice creams we decided to go up and work our way down and it was hard going as there are a lot of steps but there were many interesting routes to take on the way so we were constantly exploring ‘secret gardens’ and the like. We came to a stop not far up as there were a load of steps going up into the Abbey itself which you can pay to have a look around in in order go further up or you can just explore the sections below (from the ramparts and below apart from the many museums which you also had to pay for). The entrance fee was cheap though considering how much it allowed you to see so we thought it silly not to- once our daughter had finished her ice cream of course which felt like an absolute age!
We bought our tickets and went in. I was amazed- it was like walking through the set of Game of thrones and I could just imagine Cersei Lannister doing her walk of shame as I stood there staring up at the stepped passageways. It is such a beautiful work of architecture and I implore everyone to go and visit!
We stopped for a toilet break- which were smelly as most public toilets are but these were repulsive to say the least. Anyway, once out we ascended to the top walls where you could take in the breathtaking view and see the many alleys that twisted below. From certain view points (the outside too) it reminded me very much of Minas Tirith from The Lord of the Rings! We entered the courtyard at the top which was huge and stepped into the entrance of the Abbey’s interior. It was massive and our son loved it and made himself heard when we entered the last room- much to the annoyance of everybody else as they kept shushing him because you’re supposed to be quiet- well, try telling that to a 1 year old in a room that echoed! We quickly left as we felt eyes burning into us and thought it best to try and make our way around as fast as we could so we could get back outside again where he could shout all he wanted and for us not to have to worry too much about the people trying to listen to their tour guides. It was truly amazing and we were both so impressed not only with the structure itself but also our little lady who was doing absolutely fantastic and didn’t moan one single bit because she herself was loving it but my god, what good going for a 4 year old!
There was so much to explore and we weren’t sure what parts we had done or how to even get to some parts you could see below you as there were never any direct routes as they all twisted and turned with steps up and down so we did what we could before making our way back towards the entrance as by this point our little trooper had started to flag. We had had such a good day and decided that we would return one day and stay in its hotel- imagine staying within its walls and exploring when it was closed and all the tourists gone apart from the ones sleeping over. How amazing would that be! One day we told ourselves….maybe for an anniversary.
We decided to walk back as it wasn’t actually that far away- our little girl however wanted to get the bus back and wasn’t happy when we didn’t because she also didn’t get her way on the way there as she wanted to take the horse and carriage but it was so expensive! Instead we tried to make the walk fun and play games along the way so it would distract her from her tiredness and it worked until she had a melt down in the middle of the bridge because I couldn’t keep up with her energy and needed to recover from all the running I had done chasing her and being chased in return. Some onlookers found it amusing but I found it embarrassing as she lay there starfish shaped on the ground! She soon snapped out of it as I left her there which in fact made her come running and screaming towards me where she was then told off about her behaviour. I felt bad as she was clearly tired and had been such a good girl all day and did say she wanted to get the bus in the the first place. A lesson to be learnt it seems but it was pretty cool to get to walk across the bridge safely! After all we may only get to do it once.
We noticed that there was a campsite on the other side on the bridge and decided to go and enquire about staying but it was fully booked much to our annoyance as there were many free spaces to be seen and it was getting pretty late but hey ho!
Our little girl was happy again as she ran from cow to cow statue which were scattered amongst the greenery in different colours and patterns some of which were themed much to our daughters delight as she ran and demanded her picture taken in front of the ones she liked best; the rainbow, Spider-Man and The Hulk.
Once we were back to the car park my husband noticed that our ticket was valid for 24hours and allowed over night stays so we decided to stay and sleep there for the night as it was very late and our little ones were very tired, as were we, and we didn’t fancy driving to find another campsite with two screaming kids in the back, which they were likely to do if forced back into their seats at this time. It made sense and this way we could take the time to cook before going to sleep but first we had to move the motorhome as we were parked right next to the waste water service and we didn’t want to be in the way of others as well as getting away from the smell!
Well that was it- we had had a truly magnificent spontaneous stop again and now we were exhausted. Tomorrow brings a new day and a new adventure.
K.E.E.N Explorers 