And that is just what it did today and last weekend!
Boarding Day 1:
I made my first trip to the Alps with a group of students for a skiing & snowboarding excursion! I was with a group of seven as we caught a bus in town at 8 am and rode up to La Féclaz, a small resort in the mountains of Savoie. With my first steps into the snow, I was immediately in awe of the surrounding snow covered peaks. The sun was shining brilliantly above and its reflection on the snow made sunglasses a must. After renting equipment and getting our lift passes, it was up the chair lift with one of the most incredible views I have ever seen!
I spent a long day boarding with the other girls; however, the day didn't end before I had a chance to repeatedly fall off a type of lift that I had not previously encountered. It is called a "bouton" and evidently it is best
used with skis and not necessarily made for the uncoordinated such as myself. Nonetheless, it was a wonderful day!
Alpine World Ski Championships at Val d'Isere!:
The three hour train ride at 7 in the morning did nothing to dampen our excitement about watching the World Ski Championships at one of the largest ski resorts in the Alps. We were greeted in Bourg St. Maurice with freebies and were ushered to a line of buses prepared to take all of the anxious spectators on an hour and a half trip to the top of the mountain. With over 300 km (~185 miles) of
ski area, Val d'Isere has been the host of many winter sporting championships including the Winter Olympics and is home to some of the most famous slopes in the world- Bellevarde and Solaise. The resort area itself has over 60 restaurants, numerous stores and a ton of lodging which made the resort an entire village in itself. I was piled with horns and flags as I passed snow sculptures and sled dogs! We also found the purple cow mascots from a chocolate company amusing and I wondered what a French cow's "moo" would sound like.
The competitions for the day were the Female Super Combined Downhill and Slalom. At the spectator area, stages, vendors, bleachers and big screens were set up amid the cheering fans clad in their country's colors. International flags were waving as people chanted for their skiers or sang their national anthem. The atmosphere was so exciting and I was overwhelmed with pride to be cheering on the American competitors. The World Cup overall leader, Lindsey Vonn (USA), was outstandingly chosen as the favorite for the top spot in the day's trials. She lived up to her reputation by receiving the fastest time in Downhill, yet fell to second place in Slalom by just 0.12 seconds. Shortly after the announcement of the top three Slalom competitors, Lindsey was disqualified for missing a gate. While watching the from the stands, we shouted on the big screen (not quite as cool as the UT jumbotron), cringed at the crashes and showed our spirit as the skiers raced down a slope of over 2,200 meters in under 2.5 minutes. Back in Bourg St. Maurice, we had some time to explore before our train departed. The town was hosting a "taste of Savoie" with samples of Savoyen cheese, fruit and wine complete with an accordion player in a beret! It was the picture perfect image of a small 'ville française'.
Boarding Day 2:
After spending Saturday recuperating from the long day at the Ski Championships, our French student mentor took us to Allions-Margériaz, another ski resort about an hour from Chambéry. I woke up to a light snow outside and knew that the mountains would be freshly covered. However, if the conditions were perfect the previous weekend- this Sunday it was barely skiable. Visibility was limited to about a 10 foot radius with mounds of fresh powder making it difficult to distinguish between the slope and off-piste. While we couldn't see the surrounding mountains from the lift, it was incredible being surrounded by a pure whiteness with no distinction between the ground and snow laden air. We managed to make it down some runs and the soft snow was great when I would fall.
This weekend I leave for Paris and I am ecstatic about seeing all of the sights in the 'City of Lights' and visiting Heather, a friend from UT who is studying there! As always, I'll be sure to fill you in! Until then, au revoir!
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