Category Archives: Lourdes France

The path to the Lourdes sanctuary is an amusing display of honky tonk religious shops lining Boulevard de la Grotte where you must pass in order to get to the sanctuary. The shops are quite tacky and display Virgin Mary night light statuettes, a bijouterie of rosaries in wood, plastic and porcelain, Lourdes water bottles in every shape possible: cross shaped, May shaped, round, square, octagonal, plastic, glass, vinyl.
But suddenly you are the end of the boulevard, at St. Michael’s Gate. The gate is topped by three archangels and you get the feeling you are now free of the tourist trap Continue reading →