Oct 19, 2004Jason and I were up early, but we stayed in bed and pretended to sleep until 8am. I was feeling a bit of gut rot from the food, so we had a late start to see Mont Saint Michel Abbey. It was a long drive there and a long drive back, but it was totally worth it!
Le Mont-St-Michel was used in the 6th and 7th centuries as an Armorican stronghold of Romano-British culture and power, until it was sacked by the Franks, thus ending the trans-channel culture that had stood since the departure of the Romans in 459 AD.
Before the construction of the first monastic establishment in the 8th century, the island was called Mont Tombe. According to legend, the archangel Michael appeared to St. Aubert, bishop of Avranches, in 708 and instructed him to build a church on the rocky islet. Aubert repeatedly ignored the angel's instruction, until Michael burned a hole in the bishop's skull with his finger! The dedication to St. Michael occurred on October 16, 708.
On the way back to the chateau we stopped at the train station to check on tickets to London, then at a supermarket for dinner. That night we were all up late talking and tossing around itinerary ideas.
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