January 2008
Every day has been different. Sun, snow, rain, off-piste, on-piste, and onpiste offpiste. Philippe provides us with everything!
Jim, Emma, Issie, Polly, Joshua and Rosie enlivened our first few days dramatically. We loved it, they loved it. We breakfasted, lunched and dined together. Joshua made an excellent wine waiter, but surprise, surprise, Jim never organised a race. I think that Rosie would have beaten her grandmother. We had the luxury of guides for them, Flo the first day, and six month pregnant Stephanie the second. I admired Stephanie’s coat so much that Philippe offered to get me one in Albertville. It is excellent. Long, totally waterproof and smart. It is great to wear out in the pouring English rain . Now they are gone and we start at ten and are home by four, except when I carelessly left my bag in the restaurant 2 lifts away in Val Thorens. It was a cold day and Mike and I waited like the two old birds we are at the top of the three carriage Funitel Bouquetin in the lee of the operators cabin and fortunately in the sun.
We are getting masses of off-piste ski-ing, Mike is finding it easier, and I am benefitting from learning how to side slip properly. But goodness me, I come back in the evening totally worn out!
A new restaurant has opened in St Martin, not only does it serve very good food, but the owners have built it over their farm, so that you look down from the dining-room on to the cows, sheep and goats in their winter quarters. There are up-to-date milking machines and a dairy where cheese is made. The farmer was very friendly but I couldn’t understand all that he said.
One Sunday we had to wait for the lifts to open before we could ski down to St.Martin for Mass. But what a treat awaited us! New snow, freshly groomed pistes, and the mountain to ourselves. We were down in ten minutes and in heaps of time having been worried as we waited that we might be late.
One evening I tricked Mike into going down the top of the Mauduit without me ; it was as I expected, Philippe said they were faster without me.
Once while ski-ing off-piste Philippe did a somersault over a rock, and on another occasion he was demonstrating a turn to Mike who then performed the turn immaculately, and was below Philippe who then proceeded to demonstrate again for my benefit. He caught his ski on a stone and fell on top of Mike! For me it was the biggest laugh ever. It was all over so quickly there was no time to worry about injuries.
The weather was all over the place, and once we had a complete day of rest with wind and snow outdoors and warmth and bed indoors. Very welcome.
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