MONT-SAINT-MICHEL

Remember in "The Wizard of Oz" when Dorothy and her friends are in the field and see Oz in the distance?????  I had a similar feeling this week when David and I took a few days and went to Mont-Saint-Michel, a hilltop abbey just off the Normandy and Brittany coasts in northwest France.

Mont-Saint-Michel

The town of Mont-Saint-Michel is a nice one of mostly hotels and restaurants to accommodate some of  the nearly 2.5 million annual visitors to the abbey.  Our hotel was nice and clean and had a restaurant which we enjoyed several times, not to mention our choice for breakfast.  There are also hotels on the island for visitors but many of the visitors are just here for the day and don't spend the night.

Hotel Le Relais du Roy

This is the bar but the dining room looks the same

Not far from our hotel was a relatively new dam with a wood-plank bridge and seating where you could look out and see the abbey in the distance.  Our first night there, after dinner, we sat on the bridge in awe of this majestic edifice in the distance.  The moon was shining and the atmosphere was quiet and you see this "castle" rising in the sky...like reaching to God.  Sitting there I was overwhelmed by it...perhaps like Dorothy when she first viewed Oz!!  David is a little more "spiritual" in this case than me...he thought about all the pilgrims who had laboriously walked long distances to worship at the abbey.  Ok, that too!!!!

There is a causeway connecting our little town with the abbey that you can cross by foot, bicycle, horse-drawn carriage or bus.  The next morning we opted to take the carriage.

I do love a carriage ride!!!

Arriving on the island, you are met by beach on most sides where people (and especially those with children it seemed) enjoyed the space and openness.

Beach surrounding the island

From there, the only way is up!!  It seems there are two ways to the top---we took the narrow, cobblestone walk packed with tourists,  most of whom were looking for the best treasure in the myriad of gift shops along the way.  Thousands of people, seniors, young adults, singles, families and small children.  It was a madhouse, not the serene environment I'd envisioned.  What was I thinking??!!

Shoulder-to-shoulder all the way!

We climbed...and climbed...and climbed!!  I thought we would never reach the abbey.  Fortunately, I am finally able to do a walk like this so we were able to reach the abbey where benedictine monks once lived.

There were little "pockets" along the climb where you could stop and rest.  Luckily, I didn't need to do that!!!!

The views were beautiful,  and the abbey had many rooms that were reached by curving staircases, narrow passageways and dark cellars.  Actually, it was a little disappointing to me😞.  In all the churches we've gone into and even the abbey where we attended the spring retreat, I felt a reverence when entering the rooms.  Here, I was so busy watching where I was walking so I wouldn't fall or run into people that by the time I reached an open space, I felt no quiet...no peace.  Just relief I had arrived safely.

I wonder what everyone else was looking for in this place???

This beautiful, majestic, castle-like abbey from a distance became just another tourist trap up close.  It didn't feel holy or reverent.  It didn't make me thoughtful or pensive.  In fact, it made me a little anxious and claustrophobic in many areas.  Maybe Dorothy felt the same way when she got to Oz and the Wizard rejected them!!  Perhaps it's difficult to maintain a place to share without commercialism taking over to help provide the funds to pay for that maintenance.  I don't know.  But, like David, when I could find a bit of space where I could feel a little quiet, I did wonder about those wanderers who came here from a great distance for a solemn purpose.

A little peace where I could read a little history to feel, for a moment,  what happened here

So,  for me in 2018, I guess sometimes things are better from a distance...when I can reflect on "what was" rather than seeing "what is".

A SATURDAY AFTERNOON IN PARIS...

Marketing always happens on Saturday mornings.  Sometimes on Wednesdays if we have run out of something but always on Saturdays.  The street markets are on different days in different districts, and ours is on a Wednesday-Saturday schedule.  So, first the market then Franprix, our "grocery store".  Many times David goes to Franprix without me since he can move faster without me!!!

Today,  after the marketing,  we took the bus over to the 6th Arr. to find a new bookstore,  The Red Wheelbarrow, the bookshop that is going to work with us this year at the Bloom Where You Are Planted event David and I are directing at church.  It's been a real challenge finding a bookstore to work with as many are no longer doing outside events so we've been searching for weeks.  Because we have four author-speakers,  we wanted a bookstore to sell the books of these authors.  Through a round-about way, we were given the contact information for Penelope Fletcher, owner of the newly-opening Red Wheelbarrow.  We contacted her and were so excited when she was thrilled to join us.  Her shop is darling (it's not stocked yet as she doesn't open till mid September) and kind of reminded me of Shop Around the Corner from "You've Got Mail".  The street is tree-lined and across from the Luxembourg Gardens.  It's a beautiful spot!  We had a nice visit with Penelope and are excited to visit her shop once she's opened.

The Red Wheelbarrow

The day was beautiful, blue skies and sunshine, nice with a little breeze so we decided to walk to a little place,  Odette's,  for a treat before lunch.  On the way, as in often the case, we passed a church, Saint Severin.  Though we've decided at this point one church is much like another, we still enjoy walking in and absorbing the quiet, calm ageless beauty the sanctuary provides.

 

Saint Severin

Then it was on to Odette's.  We followed Google maps to find it and had a nice stroll in this really great neighborhood.  There were lots of little cafes full of people, narrow cobblestone streets and little shops and boutiques.  As we walked and talked about the Red Wheelbarrow, all of a sudden...Odette's!!

Odette's-cute with the best cream puffs!!

As you can see, it's just a little patisserie on the corner with some seating.  Because it's so small, Odette's focuses on choux a la creme (cream puffs) in a variety of flavors.  We bought a box of six of assorted flavors and, of course, one for each of us to eat walking back to the bus.  Oh my gosh!!!  The best little cream puff and, though small, the size was perfect.

 

We'll try not to eat these at one time!!  Aren't they pretty??

This is the Paris I love!  More than the Champs-Elysees, more than the Arc de Triomphe, more than all the museums (okay, maybe not more the Eiffel Tower!!!!), I love these small neighborhoods of winding, cobblestone streets with cute little shops, cafes, patisseries and parks.  This is Paris to me!

THE WHEELS ON THE BUS......

I've mentioned previously that, though we take the Metro on occasion, I prefer the bus.  Don't get me wrong, you who have traveled the Metro on many occasions, the Metro is probably the faster of the two modes of transportation since it's not dealing with the traffic.  However, when I'm on the bus I can see the city we're driving through, the people walking by on their way to work or play, and the sites of parks, monuments and beautiful architecture.  Such a day occurred earlier this week.  We'd decided to visit yet another museum!!!!  Here's a little of our bus journey to The Gustave Moreau Museum-Home in the 9th district.

I never tire of the architecture

A park along the Champs-Elysees we passed

The Champs-Elyses with the Arc de Triomphe

Unlike some of his peers, Moreau's home has survived as it was when he died in l898, the only home turned into a museum during the lifetime of its occupier and at his initiative.  The home was originally purchased for Moreau and his parents who lived on the first floor, Moreau's studio was on the floor above and they leased out the ground floor.  Eventually a studio/gallery was added above the lower studio with a steep spiral staircase leading to it (I didn't go up there!!).

The French flag marks the entrance to the Gustave Moreau Museum-Home

Moreau's bedroom-I love the table with  chess!

The winding staircase to Moreau's upper studio

As you can see from these photos, there are paintings hung everywhere.  They were often drawn from Biblical or mythological stories.  I saw lots of Eve and Moses from the Old Testament of the Bible.  While his home was very interesting to visit, I wasn't as fond of his style of art as I am others we have seen.  But it was a nice little morning outing for only 6Euros.

We walked around a little.  We even walked by an apartment we had considered leasing before we found our current apartment.  Over and over David and I have voiced how perfect our little apartment is for us.  We had our "list" of "needs" and "wants" and, seriously, I think the only area not met was, of course, budget!!!!  We did go over budget a tiny bit!

We hopped on another bus and knew we were close to home when we saw this:

When we see her, we know we're close to home!!!

We had stopped at a little corner patisserie and picked up lunch.  Once home we had our lunch and talked about living in another era and now living in Paris where even riding the bus is almost entertainment because the sites are so unique and breathtaking.

I'm getting addicted to these sandwiches!!!

And we're getting to live here.....



Oh, just a note.  As of a week or ten days ago, we have two baby birds in our geranium!!! Mama Bird is taking good care of them....I don't know how long they'll be there before they "join the rest of the birds"!!!  I hope our poor flower can be resuscitated from the birth!!!!!

AFTERNOON PLEASURES!!

After those hot days I wrote about, it cooled off for a few days, and it was wonderful!  With our large "portes fenetres" (door windows) we could open up most of our rooms and take in the cool breeze.   But, alas, the hot days are back.  Next week it's supposed to get to 98!!!!  EEEEKKKKK!!!!!

Earlier this week we decided to visit another church that's a little outside the city.  The Basilique de Saint Denis.  It's located in the village of Saint Denis , and we took a 40-minute metro ride to get there.    A friend of ours, hearing we were going there, said it's fine during the day but not so safe at night.  Good to know!

The metro station where we arrived was very nice but when we emerged from it we knew "we weren't in Kansas any more Toto"!!!!  There was a HUGE market going on just steps from the station, and it's very obvious you've entered into an immigrant community.  It was warm,  and I really had no interest in browsing the market so we went directly to the basilique.

The Basilique de Saint Denis

It's really not unlike many of the other churches we've visited during our time here.  The biggest difference is it stands on the site of a cemetery with the tomb of Saint Denis, thought to have been the first Bishop of Paris martyred around 250AD.  It became one of the most powerful Benedictine abbeys in the Middle Ages,  and most of the kings and queens of France were buried here from the 6th century onwards.  

You can walk around the church at no cost, but if you want to tour the tombs and crypts there is a fee and an audio to aid in your visit.  It really was amazing!  The tombs are topped with a statue of the deceased, though the statues don't necessarily resemble the deceased.  In other areas there were just statues marking a king's reign.

Tombs like this were everywhere!

There is a beautiful statue in the St. Louis Chapel of King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette praying that I loved.  It was commissioned by Louis XVIII when the ashes of the king and queen were returned from the Madeleine Cemetery in Paris in 1824 and was completed in 1830.  The graves holding their remains is found in the crypt.

King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette

The tombs of Louis XII and Anne de Bretagne are represented dead, naked and flayed inside the Carrara marble tomb and alive and praying on the upper part.  The tomb is surrounded by the twelve apostles.  David and I walked around the tomb multiple times to see if we could distinquish which disciple was which.  But we really couldn't.  Perhaps a theologian would see something present in each man representing his identity.

Louis XII and Anne de Bretagne

In the lowest level where the crypt is there is an archaeological crypt that shows the remains of earlier structures.  I know this picture isn't very clear, but it made me think of Indiana Jones or National Treasure!!!!!  That all of these structures have been preserved all these years is mind boggling to me. 

I can imagine the excitement when this was unearthed!!

In this basilique 42 kings, 32 queens, 63 princes and princesses and 10 great men of the realm were buried including Napoleon I.  In addition to that, the first official histories of France were written by the monks of Saint Denis.  It's really a beautiful memorial.  And all from a little village church outside the city of Paris.......

The next day after all that history and death (!!!), we went with friends to see "Mamma Mia Here We Go Again".  I'd seen some interviews, read some reviews so knew a little about what to expect.  As before when we went to this theater, there were just a handful of us there...like a private showing. But it was air-conditioned, there was popcorn and the seats were comfy so it was a great way to spend the late afternoon.  I loved the movie even though there is some sadness.  There is also great music, love, and laughter and......I love me some Cher!!!!!  

After the movie, which is in a really nice area that's pretty and very quiet, the four of us found a cute little cafe and had a light dinner outside.  The sun had set a little and there was a breeze and it was delightful.  I think the movie was at 4:00 and we were getting on the bus headed home about 9:15, I think (give or take!!).  It was a fun evening!