That's what I told Lisa after I checked into the Formula 1 Hotel in Avranches just about 15 minutes north of Mont Saint Michel in Normandy. I had one goal in mind for an abode that evening: something close to Mont Saint Michel that is clean and safe. We needed nothing else.
Formula 1 is a low-budget chain in France that makes EasyHotel look like the Ritz Carlton. Ok, so I'm exaggerating. Both are on the low end of economy, but with EasyHotel, you at least get a bathroom in your room (albeit the size of airplane lavatory). With Formula 1 you have to go down the hall to shower or use the bathroom. You do have your own private shower as you can lock the door behind you. The bathrooms and showers are clustered together in the same hall, and each is clean (although we didn't actually use the shower).
Your room is dorm style with two single beds on opposite walls, a TV, and a sink. To get into the room, you enter a code on the keypad next to the door. You can get that code by checking in with the reception (limited hours) or by registering for the hotel at a kind of ATM machine on the hotel's exterior wall. As an automation and systems guy, I actually love the efficiency of that.
Our rooms (we had to rent four of them, as the only available rooms were the dorm-style, two-single bed version) were clean, and our linens were crisp. For 38 euros a room, it met our needs perfectly: safe, clean, and cheap. And surprisingly, it came with free refi. That actually begs the question: why is it that the more expensive the hotel, the odds of paying for WIFI increase? Shouldn't you pay for WIFI at cheap places, and get it free at the Ritz Carlton? Oddly, that I usually not the case. But I digress.
So, the reason for our the cheap stay: our day was devoted to visting Mont Saint Michel. This fascinating island about a kilometer off the cost of Normandy (with a population of 44) has as its pinnacle a majestic monastery that was built in phases, starting in the 800's. For centuries it had been one of the top four christian pilgrimage sites in the world; although, with three million visitors a year, the site receives far more pilgrims that tourists currently.
One of the things that make the site sort of mystical is the way in which the tides surrounding the island vary dramatically. For example, consider the two photos below that I ripped off from google images:
At high tide, the island is surrounded by water.
At low tide--just hours later--the island is surrounded by sandy mudflats.
Apparently, the island, which only has one street, can be an absolute tourist nightmare during the day. We took Rick Steve's advice (sorry to keep bringing Rick up but he's rarely wrong), and arrived about 6:30 p.m. just in time to buy the "night pass" to the monastery. The place relatively deserted in the evening, and the monastery strategically places various musicians in different rooms, who play live music (we as a harpist, a cellist, and a flutist) as small crowds stroll through the various chambers of the monastery. The best part of the monastery is its gothic-style church on its highest floor along with the accompanying terrace that gives you superb views of miles of Norman landscape.
After we toured the monastery, we ate dinner, then took a stroll (at dark) on the mud flats surrounding the island. That's a an experience no pilgrim should miss when visiting Mont Saint Michel, particularly at night when you can run your toes through fine, damp sand and look back at the Monastery aglow.
By the time we were done with Mont Stain Michel, it was midnight. We spent about 60 minutes playing on the sand, all the while staring back at the floodlit island looming above us. We were happy to find a place on the island to wash our sandy/muddy feat off. Thankfully, the last bus that takes its crowds from the massive parking lot a few miles inland to the island and back, runs until 1:00 a.m.
This was why we chose Formula 1. It was just before 1:00 a.m when we pulled up to the hotel. Eight hours later, we'd be on our way back to Paris form a fabulous (second) trip to Normandy (details on that tomorrow), and all we needed was safe, clean, cheap place (with free WIFI). Pictures from the day are below:
On the causeway that leads to the island.
Sam and Jeffrey in front of the giant wheel that was used to hoist "stuff" to and from the monastery, which towers above the village below.
Jeffrey on the Terrace at the top of the monastery.
A view of sam on the Terrace
Kids with the monastery in the background.
Abby and Daphne playing on the mudflats.
The girls inside the monastery. Yes, that is a light from heaven above :).
This cellist was one of several musicians playing in the monastery during the "night show."
View of Mont Saint Michel at night.
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