A long day trip to MONT SAINT MICHEL













 It took me 10-hr bus-train-metro ride to visit the tidal island Mont Saint-Michel, located in Normandy in the Northwest of France, since 708 as  a site of religious pilgrimage, and Now, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You bet that I am dead tried after such a long day. It cost me €58 to DIY, while a commercial tour charge 140-180€.  It was pretty easy to get the combination tickets from the train station, but hard to get up 6 am and return 11 pm. 


Once a humble little monastery, the island and its fortifications have effectively grown up.  During the French Revolution, the abbey was used as a prison, and was restored via an extensive restoration. Michel was the leader of the heavenly body of angels, and he fought against the demon in the form of a dragon, which he tossed into the abyss. He also weighs the souls at the Last Judgment and takes them to Paradise.  


I made three new friends on the way who are studying in Paris as exchange students. One of them wore boots to walk around the island in tidal mud.  We witnessed almost 2-hr long episode of a Spanish family try to persuade the ticket-checking officer that they bought return tickets electronically and finally paid for the tickets. We were surprised to find online that the fine was 15€ per ticket (if over 150 km), while metro fine was higher as 50€ per instance.

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