Un Séjour aux Alpes

A visit to the French alps with your best friend... not the worst way to spend a weekend in November! After utilizing the ever-amazing train system of France.. and having a happy movie worthy slow motion hug filled reunion on the platform in Lyon, Kel and I arrived in Chamonix a town that is famous for the 1st winter olympics, skiing, fondue, and of course, it's neighboring alpine peak Mont Blanc, the highest in the alps at 4,810 meters. Chamonix is found in the south-east of France right on the border of Italy. Mont Blanc rests right on the border, so although there is a "partie française" and a "partie italienne" the French say it is french, and the Italians say it is italian. Either way, the town of Chamonix is beautiful! You can see the mountains in the background of this great picture of Kelly and I!

Kelly and I stayed in a hostel that was owned by two British girls just on the outskirts of the town. The hostel was great, and included a really fun pub that had "happy time" everyday from 4:30-6:30 with some of the best deals on drinks we've seen thus far in France! Since we decided the theme of the weekend was beer, snow, relaxation and eating this turned out to be extremely advantageous. We had our own room with bunk-beds a small sink, and a balcony! This is our view waking up on Saturday morning... not too shabby.

Every Saturday there is a market (like in all French towns... and in big French cites such as Lyon, there is a market every day of the week in at least one part of the city). The best part about the market was that it had literally EVERYTHING! Amazing smelling soaps like the ones above at the honey stands, wine stands, cheese stands, meet stands (like huge halfs of pigs sitting out!), bread bakers, produce, cheese, nuts, spices, woolen hats scarves and gloves, ski coats, boots, pottery, and even christmas ornaments. At the market Kelly and I had our first goût (taste) of Vin Chaud. It means literally hot wine but should translate to "soooo much better than apple cider." It basically tastes like a warm sangria with fall/winter spices mixed in. (Yes family, you can get excited about tasting this when you come)

The second best part about the market was the amazing Italian owned stand we bought a pic-nic at. This adorable italian couple were dancing around singing "maaamaamiiaaaa" and saying "buonjourno" and speaking the most heavily accented French. It was fantastic. We bought an enormous hunk of the most delicious and savory parmiggiano they offered as well as about 20 slices of italian salami. (thought of you the entire time Sarah... you have really got that accent DEAD on). It was sooo delicious.

After the market, we headed over to take a train through the mountains to see the "Mer de Glace" the largest glacier in France. This is me and kel outside of our little 2 car bright red train!

When we got to the top it immediately started snowing!! Here is a pretty great shot of what the view at the top looked like. You can see near the bottom of the mountain to the left some bluish ice that was pretty amazing looking in person. We had our picnic up on the mountain and washed down our cheese bread and pears with "Mont Blanc" beer, brewed exclusively at the summit of Mont Blanc. We also met some really nice people from Texas and told them all about how their daughters should attend SLU ...We are so dedicated to our work! In the summer time, there is a small cable car that goes from the top of this view into a ice cave that is sculpted out of the glacier anew each year.

On Sunday morning we woke up and took the only other cable lift that was open (most things were closed since November is really the off season and everything is being prepared for ski season) This cable lift took us to a summit near "Le Brévent" the second highest mountain in that particular area of the alps. When we bought our tickets the lady at the counter told us that there would be no visibilities at the top but we decided to take our chances. Three minutes into the ride, this was our view.....

On Saturday night, the first big snow of the season fell in Chamonix! How beautiful is this town!? It was a great weekend, and I was so happy to spend it with Kelly!