Recap Day 5 - Bretagne and Normandy

Today we headed over breakfast at the same restaurant where we ate yesterday and enjoyed our breakfast of croissants, bread, fruit, ham and cheese.  After breakfast we crossed back over the river to board our bus to leave to Loire Valley and head up to the northern part of France.

Eating crepes

It took about 4 hours to reach the Mont St. Michel, which is on the border of Bretagne and Normandy.  This is an abbey that was built early in the 8th century when the archangel Michael appeared to Bishop Aubert and asked him to build a structure on the top of the rocky mount that juts out from the coast.  Over many centuries the abbey and monastery grew, adding fortifying walls, a chapel, a garden and even a village at the base.  Due to the incoming tides the island would be separated from the mainland at high tide.  There is now a small two-lane road that leaves the abbey accessible at all times, though they are in the process of tearing it down and visitors will have to be ferried in via special buses over a new bridge.

About half way up...

We started off at the base of imposing mountain and gave the kids free time to grab some lunch and shop on the way up to the base of the abbey.  The narrow cobblestone streets are filled with souvenir shops and restaurants and it's very picturesque.  While Mont St. Michel is famous for its seafood and lamb (the sheep graze on the salt-water soaked grass and have a particular taste), our kids all opted for crepes or croque monsieurs or pizza.

We met at the base of the abbey to begin the trek up about 18 gazillion steps to enter the abbey.  It's an amazing view from the top, with the beaches stretching toward Normandy and the tides swirling around the island.  We viewed the gardens and rooms of the old monastery (of course more stairs!) and then headed back down the pretty streets for yes, more shopping and more eating.

Then we got back on the bus to drive into Bretagne.  This region of France was a constant source of friction between France and England.  As a result, the "Bretons" have a fierce pride of their region and consider themselves neither French nor English.  It is a region known for it's apple cider and crepes, made from buckwheat typically and filled with ham, cheese and other savory things.

We stopped next at St. Malo, which has a very interesting history.  It was bombed heavily by the Allies in World World II to prepare for the Normandy landings and much of the city was destroyed.  It was later rebuilt in the historical style and now looks like the original city did.  The buildings here are made of granite as opposed to limestone and have dark black roofs.  The old city it walled and we headed up to the ramparts to walk around the old city.  St. Malo was also known as a pirate city as the King legalized pirating and encouraged pirates to loot the ships sailing through the channel.  The tides come in quickly here as well, and can crash over the walls at high tide.

The kids had more time to visit the cathedral where Jacques Cartier (who explored Québec) is buried and shop in the many stores of the old city.  The kids seemed to like the non-toursity shops and found bags, scarves, food (of course!) and lots of other gifts.

We met back at the gates of the walled city to walk together to tonight's dinner, which was at a creperie.  We enjoyed ham and cheese crepes served with salad and for dessert crepes filled with a rich dark chocolate sauce.  Then it was a quick walk through the windy town to the bus for a 10-minute ride to the hotel for tonight.


Tomorrow we will be off to the Normandy landing beaches!