Mont Saint Michel and Place Stanislas

When it comes to Mont Saint Michel, it is definitely one of the most famous tourist attractions in France. One of the extraordinary things about this place is that it is a tidal island, which becomes a small island when the tide is high, and is connected to the land when the tide is low, reminiscent of Moses' separation of the Red Sea in the Bible; the second is the combination of architecture and natural environment, monasteries, The city wall and the mountain are integrated into one, making people unforgettable. It's a pity that such a beautiful scenery has brought me an extremely bad travel experience.

This is a lonely scenic spot, and it must be made a special trip to come here, which is not very convenient for ordinary tourists. Although it is not to say that it is a journey of mountains and rivers, it means that it must be taken up for a day in the travel plan, which invisibly increases the cost of visiting, and the measurement standard in the heart also rises.

I went in late July, just in time for the tourist season. The common problem of popular attractions is that there are too many tourists. When they first arrived at the parking lot, they already saw a huge crowd. Mont Saint Michel does not allow tourists to enter by car, and there are free buses and horse-drawn carriages for transportation. I queued for a long time before I got on the carriage, and if I wanted to take the bus, I had to wait even longer. There are hotels and restaurants on both sides of the first half of the road, and only the second half of the road can be seen. Looking at Mont Saint Michel from afar, it is indeed unique, and the inner expectations have risen to a higher level.

The carriage took half an hour to finally reach the foot of the mountain. After getting off the bus, it was inevitable to take a photo. The scenery of Mont Saint Michel is better from a distance. You can see the complete structure and the sea and sky. It would be even better if it could be seen from the air, and some of the most beautiful pictures of Mont Saint-Michel on the Internet are from aerial photography. Too close and you can't see anything.

When I walked into Mont Saint Michel, I was immediately shocked by the number of tourists. I saw a lot of tourists before, but they were still scattered on the road. At this time, when they converged in one place, the scene was even more crowded than the Spring Festival train. Especially the road leading to the top of the mountain is very narrow, and it is almost impossible to walk, and it can only be moved little by little. To make matters worse, it's a total tourist trap camp, full of slaughtered restaurants, sleazy souvenir shops, and a fake "museum". The monastery on the top of the mountain is also unremarkable, unless it is a pilgrim pilgrimage. Coupled with the scorching summer heat, this trip was like a torture.

Later, I talked about this with a French friend, and someone told me that I must stay in a local hotel to watch the sunrise, watch the night scene, and walk through the bay with the guide. Maybe he's right, but I'm really not interested in trying again.

In the summer of the same year I passed through Nancy and stayed for one night. There are too many famous tourist attractions in France, in contrast, Nancy has no sense of existence. In fact, the locals were out on vacation, and the city seemed pretty empty. Such an inconspicuous city is the biggest surprise on this trip.

After a full dinner of local Lorraine-style delicacies, I went for a walk in the city center, with no plans in my mind, where I went. On the way, I saw the Nancy Cathedral first, and then walked two streets north to Stanislas Square.

Stanislas Square was built in the 18th century by King Stanislaw I of Poland, Duke of Lorraine, and is one of the most beautiful squares I have ever seen. The square is not too big, more than 100 meters square. The buildings surrounding the square were originally a palace, but are now used as a city hall, a museum, etc. The buildings are symmetrical on all four sides, fully reflecting the beauty of classicism and harmony. There are gilded gates in the four corners of the square, and gorgeous fountains with Greek gods in the northwest and northeast corners. In the center of the north side is a beautiful arch, through which is the Plaza Carrière.

Carrière Square is long and narrow, with a boulevard in the middle and a royal palace at the end. That night, the boulevard was empty and quiet. If you can come here to read on an autumn afternoon, it must be very comfortable and relaxing.

Go west out of Place Carrière, where there is the Basilica of Saint-Evre. I have seen too many religious buildings in Europe, and to be honest, I have turned a blind eye to them. But under the contrast of golden lights, this temple is really beautiful. I ordered a beer to quench my thirst at the tavern across from the temple and took a leisurely look at the reliefs on the front of the temple.

At this point, I already felt that the visit was worth the money, and I didn't expect that there would be surprises later. On the way back, I passed Stanislas Square again, and suddenly found that there was a light show that night. This light show lasted for nearly half an hour. Not only did this year's rookies, but also the essence of the past years, was an uncompromising audio-visual feast.

In hindsight, is Stanislas really more beautiful than Mont Saint Michel? I'm afraid you haven't seen it? If I just happened to pass by Mont Saint Michel, and the local area is not overly commercialized, I will be amazed by the beauty; if I travel a thousand miles to visit Place Stanislas, and the square is crowded with tourists, I may shout. fooled. Humans are perceptual and subjective animals. Whether a trip is pleasant or not depends not only on the quality of the destination, but also on the mentality of the tourists themselves, traveling companions around them, traffic and weather, etc.

Traveling around as an adult, I became less and less superstitious about places of interest. The world is so big and the beauty is everywhere, why bother to squeeze your head with thousands of tourists? And those things that are too famous have been seen countless times in the photos, and they have long lost their freshness. For example, the Eiffel Tower and the Mona Lisa are just the same. I've always been disgusted by those "must go in my life" lists. For such a personal thing as travel, it's better to do whatever you want. In the future travel, I hope that there will be less people who come here in admiration and disappointment, and more beautiful things that come across unexpectedly.

Mont Saint Michel and Place Stanislas