Visit the Mont Sainte - Odile
The access to the monastery is through the only gateway above which is written : " Here, in the days of yore, Holy Prioress Odile was living and for ever she reigns over Alsace like a mother ".
You there find yourself in the big yard planted with lime-trees , some of them which are more than 200 years old . On the left of the yard is the reception . On your right is the church of the monastery which borders on the esplanade . The buttresses of the old 12th century church may still be seen . At the other end of the old lime-treed yard is the Pilgrim’s hall which remains open and the little door which leads to the cloister.
The church of the monastery rebuilt after the thirty-year war onto the buttresses of the old 12th century church , forms a very harmonious whole . Inside , it is divided into three naves by four Toscan columns . The stained glass windows show the life of Holy Mary . The six confessionnals are masterpieces of the 18th century sculpture. " The way of the cross " in marquetery is the remarkable work of Ch. Spindler ( 1934). The Perpetual Adoration is made here by people from all over Alsace .
On the left of the church , adjacent to the choir is the chapel of the cross which is a part of the monastery built in the 12th century ( you enter it through a door situated near the lateral left altar of the church or by crossing the cloister’s yard ). This chapel is adorned with beautiful frescos , which are copies from the Hortus Deliciarum showing Saint John the Baptist’s life. A little farther another fresco : Christ and his cross with two allegorical figures : Ecclesia and Synagogue .
You pass through a small old door and you enter " Sainte Odile’s chapel " where Odile’s tomb is to be found . The coffin which contains the bones dates back to the 18th century . The chapel walls are provided with paintings of the 17th century and wainscots of the 18th century about " Saint Odile’s " legend .
Trough the cloister ( one of the rare ones which is closed ) you arrive on the Terrace wherefrom a magnificient view on the plain of Alsace , Strasbourg and the Black Forest is displayed . On a clear day one can admire the rich panorama . A statue of Sainte Odile, blessing her native country overlooks the terrace. Two old chapels adorned with a quite new mosaic decoration are an attraction to visitors . The chapels of the tears was built on the place of the Middle-Ages cemetery . Some old graves cut in the rock still be seen. According to the legend , Sainte Odile would come to this chapel and pray for her dead father . You may still see the stone where Odile knelt down to pray . The mosaic represents the tomb as a passage to the light , the saints who welcome the dead and who lead him to the glory of God .Inside the chapel of the Angels (also called Aint Michael’s chapel ) , the mosaic represents angels protecting the gates of Heaven, angels announcing Christ’s birth and his return on Doomsday , and angels fighting against Satan .
To visit this chapel , try not to stay under the door or you might not see anything . Visitors enjoy walking round the rock on which the monastery is built or walking down to Sainte Odile’s spring .