12 – Move on

Down the road

Passing through the King’s Gate or Porte du Roi and continuing along the main street I could not help being attracted by the various houses I was walking past. Now home to the many shops, boutiques and restaurants each designed to lure the visiting wallets to the Mont I looked forwards to my return here after the abbey visit and to exploring these in more detail. You will note the extensive use of the ubiquitous granite blocks, which have been applied widely in building the Mont - but also to be found  are some fine preserved examples of half-timbered and shingle clad houses, such as those seen here. Known as the Artichoke House the building bridging the street is memorable. It is so named after the floret like edgings of the window casements and lower floor support.

These two latter forms of construction would have been typical of the earlier houses of the town, but being mostly in a sad state of disrepair and some destroyed by fire they were replaced by the buildings seen today, sympathetically constructed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Inn of the Unicorn (now a postcard and souvenir shop) seen on the right side of the picture is a typical example of half-timbered construction.

I mentioned yesterday that the original La Mère Poulard premises now house the modern day Post Office - this is the building below the flower filled garden boxes to the left of the scene.

My pace now quickened – for the group I was with had moved on from view. Could they not see what I was seeing? I guess, we had after all come to see an abbey. There would be time for taking pretty pictures later.

I hoped.