Mont St Michel
An Earthly Image of Paradise
Against the darkness Mont St Michel rose from the sea, unchanged from medieval times when the island became a mystical emblem of the heavenly Jerusalem, an earthly image of paradise.
Like many a pilgrim before me, I crossed the causeway and entered through the Porte de l’Avancée, passing under the King’s Gate before wending my way along the Grande Rue. The only way around Mont St Michel is by foot. Along with Rome and Santiago de Compostela, Mont St Michel became one of the most important places along the pilgrim route. Countless men, women and children have trod these Paths to Paradise, praying for the Archangel Michel to grant them the assurance of Eternity.
With over three million visitors a year to the island, by day the Grande Rue can prove both crowded and noisy. In bygone times it stank. Now the aromas are more delicious, carrying the flavours of the sea or of the agneau de pré-salé (salt-meadow lamb) for which this part of Normandy is famous. Yet as darkness falls, the streets…
