"Harold accompanies William and the Norman soldiers as they set off to fight Duke Conan of Brittany. They pass Mont St. Michel, which is on the border between Normandy and Brittany. To get into Brittany they have to cross the river. They hold their shields above their heads to keep them out of the water. Some soldiers sink into quicksand and Harold rescues them - two at a time!"
Photo credit.
from what I remember (a very long time ago), they were tiny, twisting medieval roads. Hard for an invading army, easy to defend. They were steep and cobblestoned and murder of knees and ankles.
ReplyDeleteThere weren't any cars, etc on them and I have no recollection if there were signs posted about when/where deliveries could be made. I would assume they've worked out a better way than donkeys and hand carts.
According to http://www.mont-saint-michel.world-guides.com/mont_saint_michel_travel.html,
ReplyDelete[...]the only way to travel onto Mont Saint Michel is by foot. There is no transport of any description allowed on Mont Saint Michel, and so you will need to walk everywhere.
I have never been there, but from what Wikipedia says about the island, there are only 31 inhabitants, plus 5 monks and 7 nuns. But there are also 3 millions visitors a year for 300 businesses (shops, restaurants, hotels...).
ReplyDeleteI therefore suppose the tiny steep roads are used at night and early morning to supply for the tourists as it is done in many places where cars are not allowed during day time.
You can see the roads on google maps.
ReplyDeleteNo real roads for vehicles. You park on the causeway or just before the causeway and walk. It is possible that very small vehicles like golf carts might fit on some of the roads, but otherwise no.
ReplyDeleteAs I recall from my visit, there's one main cobblestone road that spirals up from the causeway to the monastery at the top, with little stepped alleyways and paths at some points inbetween.
ReplyDeleteI've always wanted to go there, but figured I'd get stuck in quicksand. And parking is a pain, too.
ReplyDeleteThere are roads within the walls of the city. Actually, more like one single road, getting narrower and narrower towards the top... Anyhow, cars do go there; I remember seing delivery vans/car (small ones of course) while being there. Mont St Michel is full of restaurants and souvenir shops, so they need to be supplied on a regular basis. I would probably find a picture if I had my old photo albums with me...
ReplyDeleteWhen I went, I heard some stories about the quicksand. It's not all quicksand at low tide, there's paths that the locals are aware of. When the German occupied it, there are stories about them using French guides on patrols, and every once in a while the guides would "accidentally" direct the Germans into the quicksand and then boot it back on the paths.
ReplyDeleteI remeber reading about Mont St. Michel in French when I was in college. Thanks for sharing, it brought back memories of reading the Mont St. Michel article in French.
ReplyDeleteThe one street is Grande rue E.
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