O.K., on to Mont St Michel and St Malo... Bob and I have never signed up for an overnight bus tour, but when the Meetup.com group offered one at a budget price, we jumped on it. Besides, we had met some really nice people on Meetup walks, etc. so why not? According to our Meetup website, there were only 17 other folks going, so we were sure to make some friends and have a great time.
Because our destination was a 4 hour bus ride away and we were visiting two very historic places, we had to meet the bus sharply at 6:30 a.m. in front of the Opera Garnier! We arrived there about 15 minutes early and were surprised to see a large group of mostly young, 20 something women and just a few young men. We were to be the "grand parents" of the group! The other thing we noticed was that there were way more than 17 people! Turns out, it was a conglomerate tour with 55 people. No problem! We stowed our luggage and hopped on the bus.
Our tour guides were French, but Sylvie, the leader, gave excellent translations into English after each announcement in very easy for me to understand French. This was a real bonus, since I don't really get to hear much French spoken right to me, except at the bakery and in stores or cafes.
Here are our able guides:
Mont St Michel is an Abby on a small island on the Normandy coast. About 25 monks live in the Abby, but it receives about 3 million visitors a year! As we walked onto the island from the bus and made our way up the Main Street at the base of the Abby, it felt like all 3 million were there that day! Since Gallo Roman times it has been a strategically important site and very secure because the the 46 foot tides that rush in each day cutting it off from the mainland. As the tide comes in, it not only pours over the sand, it also rushes under the surface creating a quicksand that can trap those unlucky enough to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. We were warned to not even think about going onto the tidal flat because of the danger. (More on that later). We thoroughly enjoyed the audio tour as we wandered through this amazing structure that also served as a prison at times in its history. We were there on a beautiful day with blue skies and beautiful long vistas across the tidal area. Our only regret was that we were not staying the night on the island to see the tide rush in and enjoy the city without all those pesky tourists.
Mont St Michel:
We enjoyed our sack lunches after the bus dropped us off at the foot of the town, and while eating lunch our new friend Barbara and I struck up a conversation with a Pilgrim named Ben. Yes, St Michel has long been a pilgrimage destination. Ben definitely looked the part, and regaled us with a list of other pilgrimages he has done, including two or three times walking the Camino de Santiago!
A Pilgrim named Ben, and some new friends we made on the trip:
After a few hours wandering through this fortified city/Abby, we walked across the bridge to board the bus. I was enjoying a conversation with one of the guides and lost track of Bob. Next thing I know he comes up behind us, covered in mud from his hands to his toes! The wind caught his new hat and blew it onto the mudflat... Having just bought it to replace the one he lost in the London airport the previous weekend, he took a few steps out on the sand and started to sink! He managed to extricate himself without damaging his camera, but he was a mess! Using wet wipes and napkins we managed to tidy him enough to board the bus. Fortunately, when the wet sand dried it was pretty easy to brush off, which was good since he didn't have extra jeans for the rest of the trip! I managed to get a photo of his shoes the next day, but the rest is up to your imagination.
Bob before his mishap, looking like the confident photograher/ his shoes after:
We went on from there to the enchanting seaside, walled city of St Malo. Being a budget trip, we stayed at an Ibis hotel. Each room had a double bed with a bunk bed above. (Think Motel 6 only cleaner). Being the only married couple on the tour we had a room to ourselves. However, our new friends Barbara and Sophie (we all had just met on the bus) were not keen on sleeping in the same bed together in their room with another stranger. So, Bob and I invited Sophie to sleep in the bunk above our bed!
We were on our own for dinner so Barbara, Sophie, Bob and I took a cab into the old town. We wandered around for some time trying to find a likely dinner spot. Then, when we were becoming a bit frustrated, Sophie who is French Canadian, asked a nice looking couple on the street for a restaurant recommendation. The man lit up and in rapid fire French told of a restaurant nearby. All I understood were the enthusiastic "Très, très bons" (very, very goods) he peppered the description with. They walked us a couple of blocks to the place and spoke to the owner who obviously knew and liked them. There wasn't a table available for another hour, so we managed to find a cute little cider bar not far away (this after being sent out of another bar because all we wanted was to have a few drinks!). It pays to wander and look! The "cidre" and the man who ran the bar were wonderful! The restaurant was just what we hoped and the food there was amazing. I just love the "happy little accidents" that are such an important part of travel.
Our delicious meals in St. Malo: Dinner,cidre, & the famous Breton Crepes for Lunch
The next day we spent the first part of the day with a guided tour of St Malo. For us English speakers our guide, Coco, was an English woman who had lived in St Malo for years. She made the city and its history come alive. I could have spent the rest of the day with her hearing about this fascinating city. Here are some highlights: The people of St Malo are called Maloins, and they consider themselves neither French or of Brittany. Their economy boomed in the early days because of Privateers, who would attack enemy warships of king during wars and profit from the bounty they got. St Malo is a walled city which for a thousand years had a curfew at 10 p.m. when the gates were locked. Anyone unlucky enough to be late returning, would be eaten by attack dogs released to guard the city. Thisended after the son of the mayor was late, and killed by the dogs. All young men were taught to sail starting at the age of 10. They were famous worldwide for their sailing ability. It was a wonderful tour and i can highly recommend a visit to both St Malo and Mont St Michel to anyone traveling in France.
Sailing classes, an old fort in the bay, and a tribute to a famous Privateer
Some candid shots of our guide, Coco and St. Malo
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