La Vieille Auberge et la Mère Poulard

I think the first time I ever went to see the Mont-Saint-Michel was in 1972. I was living and working in Normandy (Rouen) that year. Three or four of us, all teaching assistants in French lycées (high schools), rented a car (I think) and drove over there. That was many decades before I started taking a lot of photographs. I was 23 years old and was spending my first year in France.

In June 2006, Walt and I went to the Mont with a friend from California and spent most of a day there. The streets and shops were so crowded that we told our friend we could deal with the mobs. She said she wanted to go souvenir shopping and also wanted to take some photos. We told her we just wanted to go have lunch. We told her we would go to the Vieille Auberge (the Old Inn), which you see in these pictures. The guy in the red shirt and vest was our waiter. I think we probably ate moules marinière (steamed mussels served with frites).

In March 2007, Walt and I back went to the Mont-Saint-Michel and spent the night of March 5th in a hotel room on the Mont — that was our birthday present to me. I don't remember where we ate dinner, but I remember the restaurant was good and not crowded. There were just enough other people having dinner there that it was lively and interesting. It was fun to walk around the Mont at nighttime. The next morning it was raining torrents and we got soaked running back to the car to drive home. Then I knew I really was in Normandy.

One place where we never ate lunch or dinner is the Mère Poulard's restaurant, which is one of the Mont's most famous attractions. It specializes in omelets. Maybe one day we'll go back there and try one.