My sister, Saskia, and her husband Nick had booked to go to Chamonix for a long weekend, so we decided to grate-crash their party and join in the fun.
Pete was working on Friday, but I had finished early so I could spend the day showing my sister and Nick the delights of Chamonix. The views, the shops, the cakes, the restaurants, the shops, the bars, the views, the pain au raisin, the ice cream, did I mention the views…? In the first few hours of Friday morning we had managed to sample quite a few!
In the afternoon they took the ride up to the Aiguille du Midi while I relaxed on the balcony and read my book.
To celebrate their first day’s adventure we decided to drop into Cha Cha Cha just on the edge of town. This is a wine-bar that always seemed a bit scary, like you should know you’re wine from your plonk before you enter, but as Nick is a bit of a wine buff we decided it would be a bit of a laugh to try out some of their selection. We started with 3 white’s with varying prices,then moved on to 3 reds. In summary, most of us liked the middle expense white the best and the most expensive red the best. We went back on Saturday evening and sampled some more white’s, a red and a rosé.
On Saturday we went our separate ways. Me and Pete tackled the Voie des Dalles while Saskia and Nick enjoyed the walk and views from Plan Praz to Flégère. That night, after our re-visit to Cha Cha Cha, we decided to reopen the debate between the American and the Double Orient… I think the American still won!
On Sunday we decided that Saskia and Nick needed a bigger adventure. The forecast was for scorchio!, so a trip on the Mer de Glace was what was required. Our only concern was, would Saskia be able to cope with the ladders…?
For those that might not already know…, there a few ways to get down to the Mer de Glace from Montenvers. The bubble lift, the path, or the alpinist route – the ladders! The ladders are getting longer and longer as the glacier recedes, but it is by the far the quickest and most fun route.
Nick found it all very easy, and Saskia managed really well. She was really quick – much quicker than some of the walkers we saw that looked well seasoned. She was nervous, but she gritted her teeth, held on tight and just got on with it.
Once at the bottom, we took them a little way up the Mer de Glace staying well clear of any dangerous ground, but giving them the opportunity to peer over some of the smaller crevasses and see the excellent views up and down the valley.
Of course, all that adventuring can only mean one thing….
We had a FANTASTIC time!!!!!
What a weekend! :star:
And the cakes! :yum: :yum: :yum:
I want to go back to France now!!!
Terry, are these the ladders John Sumner refers to in his “Talefre” article ❓
Yes, these are the ladders he refers to in the second part of his article. The first ladders he refers to are those on the Leschaux glacier. Impressive, aren’t they – and scary 😐 I descended them one time years ago, in the dark, and somebody had greased one section with butter 🙁
Just why would someone do sg like that 🙄
There are several possible answers:-
a) He/she was like Michel Pelletier in your Chinaman’s Peak story who had to eat every two hours, so when time came he/she just had his/her sandwich and dropped a piece of butter on the ladders
b)He/she was carrying a pound of butter in his/her sack but it was so hot that it melted and dripped all over the place.
c)Thought that the ladders were dangerously rusty so some greasing would help.
d) Wanted to do away with you! 😈
So how did you survive?
None of the above, I think it was just somebody playing a daft trick 👿
What a superb cake blog :love: :love:
Oh and the rest of it was pretty good too 😛