Surprised, from his vantage point, the marveled at the rise of the tide. Absorbed, we see how in a few minutes the sea enters the land, flooding, and water slides covering a “beach” muddy and how every inch the powerful force of the sea comes up to the very foot of the hill on which Abbey stands majestic San Miguel. Our gaze is lost in that sea Atlantic, in a few minutes has become a vast plain of brown, deep blue and deep, and so our mind remembers that moment when we set foot for the first time in Normandy.

MontSaintMichel

Normandy … his name evokes many memories and colors on one side, blue sea and on the other hand, forests and green, but also medieval cities, and of course, that day of sad remembrance that we present in our minds for so many films that spoke on the landing during World War II on the beaches of Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword. And after traveling in our retinas, its coasts, or by Honfleur Caen, remember that magical moment our car turned onto the Gran Via, the only road connecting the Mont Saint Michel to the mainland.

Here at the wheel of the car, we see, as if it were a mirage in the mist the ghostly silhouette of the great rock, crowned by the Benedictine Abbey of San Miguel. And gradually, almost ghostly image that is being outlined to delight us with its beauty and its stunning elegance. Surrounded by streams of pilgrims who come to the monastery, we finally reached the gates of the citadel. And then, the first fascination turns into admiration.

Its History and Legend:

… And from that viewpoint, we travel in time, those centuries when there was only one large mass of rock that stood between the limits of Normandy and Brittany. El Monte Tumba, as it was called back in the fourth century, when the Scissy forest occupied the area. That site was already by that time a place of pilgrimage and hermits. Legend has it that St. Aubert, who was bishop of Avranches, a town close to Mont Saint Michel, was a night visit of the Archangel Michael, who touched on the forehead, he introduced the idea of building an abbey on the hill , dedicated to his name. The year was 708.

Stone by stone, this vast sanctuary stood on the rock, and soon around the pilgrims were established, forming the present citadel that surrounds it. But barely a year later, in 709, a great cataclysm that the sea was moving into land and flooded the entire area, leaving isolated the Mont Saint Michel. Since then the mountain has become a veritable fortress, as the phenomenon of the tides is repeated twice daily, leaving the citadel and its Abbey linked to the mainland only by road. They say that such is the speed at which the tides rise, the water easily ensnare a galloping horse … so, with every rise of the sea, the bells on the Mount, to give proper notice, it has become almost a tradition or a tourist curiosity, observing that rise in sea level with shore.

Many legends have run since its construction in 708, from that day on the sea allegedly caught in his flight to a pregnant woman, and it reappeared on the bank and walk with your child in her arms, when the sea turned to depart; even those who think they have visions of mythological confrontations on the mountain itself between the forces of evil and the Archangel Michael.

The Citadel

On an island 900 meters in circumference and 80 high, first with what we find is with the small town surrounding the abbey. There is nothing nicer than stroll by the wall, and not just for admiring the view that since she has, but also enjoy the many souvenir shops in town. And this little town that lives; of tourism for pilgrims. There are several steep streets that climb towards the monastery, and all we can buy the usual souvenirs, and especially the classic figure of St. Michael. Moreover, there is little to see in town, except perhaps the Church of St. Pierre, a small building of the XV-XVI centuries.

The Abbey

The monastic complex includes the abbey church (which in any photo you can see at the top of Mount), the Roman abbey, west, and north Mervell, where the famous cloister, built by Benedictine monks in the thirteenth century. She can be reached from several paths, each as full of people who upload either admire or to pray within its walls, winding, steep trails that go up the stairs to access them, we will open the way to his ship style Romanesque …

… And after falling back to the very feet of the mountain, where the tide floods the land, we turn to lend a new look, and burn our retinas its magical image …

“Pilgrim, sow your sleep
my foot in my bank
where the sea becomes owner
where my moon is shining … “