Normandy, Brittany & the Best of the North_ With Paris (Fodor's) - Fodor's [32]
All year long, the hour-long guided tour in English (two a day and night in high season) and French (up to two an hour) takes you through the impressive Romanesque and Gothic abbey and the spectacular Église Abbatiale, the abbey church, which crowns the rock, as well as the Merveille, a 13th-century, three-story collection of rooms and passageways. La Merveille was built by King Philippe Auguste around and on top of the monastery; on its second floor is the Mont’s grandest chamber, the Salle des Chevaliers. Another tour, which also includes the celebrated Escalier de Dentelle (Lace Staircase), and the pre-Roman and exquisitely evocative Notre-Dame-sous-Terre is longer, has a higher ticket price, and is only given in French. Invest in at least one tour while you are here—some of them get you on top of or into things you can’t see alone. If you do go it alone, stop halfway up Grande-Rue at the medieval parish church of St-Pierre to admire the richly carved side chapel with its dramatic statue of St. Michael slaying the dragon. The Grand Degré, a steep, narrow staircase, leads to the abbey entrance, from which a wider flight of stone steps climbs to the Saut Gautier Terrace (named after a prisoner who jumped to his death from it) outside the sober, dignified church. After visiting the arcaded cloisters alongside, which offer vertiginous views of the bay, you can wander at leisure, and probably get lost, among the maze of rooms, staircases, and vaulted halls. Scattered throughout the mount are four mini-museums (closed January), which cost €8 individually or €16 together. The Logis Tiphaine (02–33–60–23–34) was the home that Bertrand Duguesclin, a general fierce in his allegiance to the cause of French independence, built for his wife Tiphaine in 1365. The Musée Historique (Chemin de la Ronde | 50170 | 02–33–60–07–01) traces the 1,000-year history of the Mont in one of its former prisons. The Musée Maritime (Grande Rue | 02–33–60–14–09) explores the science of the Mont’s tidal bay and has a vast collection of model ships. The Archéoscope (Chemin de la Ronde | 02–33–89–01–85) explores the myths and legends of the Mont through a sound and light show. Some exhibits use wax figures fitted out in the most glamorous threads and costumes of the 15th century. If you have time for just one museum, this one makes the best introduction to the area. The island village, with its steep, narrow streets, is best visited out of season, from September to June. In summer the hordes of tourists and souvenir sellers can be stifling. Give yourself at least half a day here, and follow your nose. The mount is full of nooks, crannies, little gardens, and echoing views from the ramparts. The Mont is spectacularly illuminated every night from dusk to midnight. | 02–33–89–80–00 | mont-saint-michel.monuments-nationaux.fr | €8.50, €12.50 with audio guide | May–Aug., daily 9–7; Sept.–Apr., daily 9:30–5.
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Eating and Drinking Well in Normandy | Normandy on Canvas
EATING AND DRINKING WELL IN NORMANDY
It’s the felicitous combination of the dairy farm, the apple orchard, and the sea that inspire Normandy’s crème de la crème cuisine, featuring voluptuous cream sauces, tender cheeses, lavish seafood platters, and head-spinning Calvados brandy.
Normandy’s verdant landscape—a patchwork of pastures and apple orchards bordered by the sea—heralds a region of culinary delights. The apples are rendered into tarts, cakes, sauces, and cidre bouché, a sparkling cider sold in cork-top bottles. Brown and white cows grazing beneath the