On Sunday morning I said good-bye to Geneva and we left for Chamonix,
a French town the foot of the Alps and Mt. Blanc. When we got there we were
unable to reach the people we were renting our apartment from (France sleeps on
Sundays…and most days for that matter) so ended up spending the first 2 hours
wandering the small city and driving around in search for our apartment.
When we made it inside our apartment at last, we realized it was clear and sunny outside—the perfect day to visit Mt. Blanc. Mt Blanc is the highest peak in the Alps, measuring at 4,810 m, and is extremely icy and dangerous. AS a result, there are no cable cars or lifts up the mountain; the only way to get up Mt. Blanc is to hike/climb, which takes most people at least a day and is extremely treacherous. However, there is a lift that goes to the top of one of the other tall peaks adjacent to Mt. Blanc: Aguille du Midi standing at 3842 m. We took two cable cars and an elevator to get the peak. The summer temperature immediately dropped to below freezing. When we reached the top all of the sudden we were engulfed by clouds. It was terrible; we had come all the way up and could see nothing. But, within seconds, the sun was shining again, leaving behind a beautiful view. It was absolutely stunning: not only could you see the entire town below, but you could also see the entire mountain range from above and we were right next to the glacier that lines the Alps and Mt Blanc.
When we made it inside our apartment at last, we realized it was clear and sunny outside—the perfect day to visit Mt. Blanc. Mt Blanc is the highest peak in the Alps, measuring at 4,810 m, and is extremely icy and dangerous. AS a result, there are no cable cars or lifts up the mountain; the only way to get up Mt. Blanc is to hike/climb, which takes most people at least a day and is extremely treacherous. However, there is a lift that goes to the top of one of the other tall peaks adjacent to Mt. Blanc: Aguille du Midi standing at 3842 m. We took two cable cars and an elevator to get the peak. The summer temperature immediately dropped to below freezing. When we reached the top all of the sudden we were engulfed by clouds. It was terrible; we had come all the way up and could see nothing. But, within seconds, the sun was shining again, leaving behind a beautiful view. It was absolutely stunning: not only could you see the entire town below, but you could also see the entire mountain range from above and we were right next to the glacier that lines the Alps and Mt Blanc.
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| Aguille du Midi |
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| view from atop Aguille du Midi |
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| Atop Aguille du Midi |
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| hikers on Aguille du Midi |
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| Mom and I in front of the cable car we rode up |
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Dinner in Chamonix
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On Monday we continued our trek through the Alps and took a
train up Montenver, another mountain in the chain, to visit the famous ice
caves. When we got to the top we took a gondola down towards the caves, then
had a 430 step climb to reach the entrance. I was super excited to climb the
steps, but my parents were a bit hesitant. They both made it through the
intense climb! I’m so proud of them!! And it was so worth the train ride,
gondola, and climb. The caves were carved out on the side of the mountain and
are part of the glacier ‘Mer de glace,’ which translates to sea of glass due to
the wave-like appearance the sheets of glass give. The caves are set up with fluorescent
lights that light up the ice cave in beautiful neon colors. There was even a
block of ice carved into a polar bear in the middle of the cave!
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| Mer de Glace |
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| Mom and Dad atop Montenver |
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| The ice caves |
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| Dad inside the ice caves |
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| ice cave art--in this case, ice chairs |
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| polar bear sculpted out of the glacier |
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| mom and dad in the gondola |
After the ice caves we took a short trip and drove to Annecy
for a few hours. Funny story: while we were driving we hit a 2 euro toll. We were all out of coins though so my dad put in a 50 euro bill and proceeded to get 48 euros in change back. I have never seen so many coins come out of a toll machine at once.. it was like it never ended!
It was really nice since I had been there only 2 weeks ago so was able to show my parents around a bit and tell them where I had gone when I visited. For dinner we went to a restaurant on the river that was absolutely fantastic. My mom and I got this meal where that consisted of thinly sliced cuts of filet, beef, chicken, and bacon that we cooked ourselves on a hot stone at the table. It was so much fun! We then headed back to Chamonix to finish off our Alpine trip.
It was really nice since I had been there only 2 weeks ago so was able to show my parents around a bit and tell them where I had gone when I visited. For dinner we went to a restaurant on the river that was absolutely fantastic. My mom and I got this meal where that consisted of thinly sliced cuts of filet, beef, chicken, and bacon that we cooked ourselves on a hot stone at the table. It was so much fun! We then headed back to Chamonix to finish off our Alpine trip.
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| mom and dad in Annecy |
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| Mom and I cooking our meat on the stone! |
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