A place of silence and prayer

We had been a little uncertain about our hotel arrangements in Neuchatel. Evie had reserved two nights at the "L’Abbaye de Fontaine-Andre" online through a booking agent. Since they don't take credit cards (only cash) we had made no deposit, and we had never received anything directly from the "Abby".  All we had as evidence of our reservation was a reply email from the online agency. Since their web page was in French and German (no English) it was never real clear to us what we were to getting into, but it seemed interesting and there weren't a lot of other alternatives.

We arrived by train in Neuchatel around noon after a 35 minute train ride from Bern. Neuchatel is very much in French speaking Switzerland and feels like an entirely different country from German speaking Switzerland which is just over some hills. After a fair amount of confusion and then finally deciding to ask for directions, we managed to get us and all our bags on the local bus with a stop near "Chemin de l'Abbaye", or the road the Abby is on.  After we got off the bus and had wandered around awhile we finally stumbled onto the "Chemin de l'Abbaye" and then just needed to find number 51 on that road. Below is a picture of the entrance to the road leading up to the Abby.

We thought the Abby would be just around the bend. It was not. We dragged our bags about a mile or so up a steep road zig zaging up a mountain and away from everything else. Weary and having some doubts if we were in the right place, we came upon this old house (but it turned out not to be the Abby, but one of the oldest homes in Neuchatel and part of the larger Abby grounds).

and then trudging on a ways further up the road the Abby finally came into view. (Note the tower on the left. That will turn out to be part of our room).

 

And this is where things started to get a little weird. Check- in time was not until 3pm, and we had arrived at around 2pm. The place was eerily silent and there appeared to be absolutely no one else around. The "secretariat" (office) inside was locked, with a sign saying it opened at 15:00 (3:00). While walking up the road only one car had passed and the driver had just given us a stare and went on without any acknowledgment of our presence (and we would have been a remarkable sight dragging these bags up that road). So we just hung around the front door trying to decide what to do.

Then a lady, coming from somewhere outside the Abby, came up and walked right by us and through the door and disappeared into the Abby without a saying a word (which is very unusual since everyone here always says at least a "bon jour" to anyone they pass). This was beginning to seem odd.

Evie sat down on a bench to wait and I started looking around. I went around to the back and suddenly a man came out of the back door, dressed entirely in black. I went up to him and announced a bright, cheery "hello." He gave me a stare, then a frown and then walked right past me without saying a word (this was moving from only seeming a little odd, to very creepy).

 

Eventually at 3pm a very nice German-speaking man (who also spoke English) arrived, brought us into the office, checked us in and then showed us around the place. And as you'll see in these posts, it's a great place.

The Abby was originally built by some monks in the 12th Century. However they were "dispossessed" of the place in the course of the Protestant Reformation and their chapel destroyed. Eventually the property ended up in the ownership of a wealthy aristocratic family, who owned it for over 150 years. In the 1950's the family needed money and sold it to the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, known as the Christan Brothers  (in the US they are known as the De La Salle Christian Brothers -- hence, De La Salle University). This is a Catholic order dating from 1680 in France and consists of "lay" men (not "Priests"). It is largely dedicated to schools and religious instruction. That order operates a school in Neuchatel (for German speaking children from Bern to learn French). The Christian Brothers at one time used the Abby to house students, who attended the Christian Brothers' school down in Neuchatel. They no longer use it for students, although two "brothers" still live and work around the Abby. The order still operates the school. The Abby is now used primarily for religious retreats and instructions and as a guest house (for people like us).  

The sign below, which is on the outside wall near the front door, describes the Abby as a "place of silence and prayer". In line with that general theme, the hours of 1pm to 3pm and from 10pm until 5am are intended for prayer and mediation and for "silence." This doesn't mean merely turning down the volume on the TV and stereo, but being silent, as in not talking (including to strange, lost Americans wandering around with big bags).