Mont St. Michel Normandy, France ©ChristopherMcEniry2011
This place experiences some of the highest tides in the world and is truly the national symbol of France. When the tide goes out, it goes out for 9 miles and drops 50 ft., leaving nothing but very small creeks, sand, and quicksand. This geological anomaly made it an impenetrable fortress until WWII when modern Nazi weapons threatened to blow it up. It survived the English for the entire duration of the 100 Years War and every other invader in it’s history, as any invading army would be drowned when the tide came back in. Legend has it they would let the horses run free from the Mont St. Michel and then follow their hoofprints because the horses instinctually navigated away from the quicksand. Still a Catholic abbey to this day, my wife and I attended Sun. Mass there and had communion, the monks chant and sing the entire service in French and Latin inside the epic Gothic Cathedral. Amazing. There are several very cute small hotels and restaurants inside the small city you must walk through on your way to the top, and the shops are all pretty cool even if a bit touristy. Get there early to get a decent shot of it as the cars begin to line the entire causeway by the end of the day.
