On this adventure, we will be exploring Europe for two and a half weeks with our friends the deBlois! They have five kids, one of whom I am dating (Jacob). The other four kids range from the ages of 17 down to 9. Bardez and Sam are best friends, and so are our parents! Really, we’re all just one big happy family.
The first stop on our Europe escapade was Chamonix, France. Just an hour-ish out of Geneva, Switzerland, this place looks like something out of a postcard! I’m literally not joking, the lush green hills surrounded by snow-topped peaks, green grass hills dotted with village-style houses from the 18th century and dandelions make you never want to leave. Not to mention all the delicious French cuisine! La Boulangerie is the place to go for a fresh French baguette or a chocolate croissant. Fun fact: the Chamonix Valley has actually been inhabited in since the 11th century, but it first became a tourist hotspot in 1741 but two English men who couldn’t get enough of the scenery. Quick word spread, bringing in many adventurers and scientists. Not to mention, Chamonix is known for its easy access to the tallest mountain in the Alps: Mount Blanc! (Of which we did visit, for more info, you can check out my video on Youtube corresponding with this post!) Here are 8 highlights I enjoyed while in Chamonix, France!
1) Eat Fresh Baguette!
Every person in France, dietary restrictions or not, HAS to try a French Baguette. There are many ways to eat a baguette: one is to simply rip off the top and eat the bread. The next way is to cut it diagonally, turning the slices into perfect charcuterie accouterments to go with cheese or salami. All French delicacies. On almost any corner you can find a Boulangerie (which means bakery in French), so why not stop in and get a fresh loaf of bread? I’m not joking that I have seen native Frenchies walking around in the street with a baguette under their arm just – eating it! It’s awesome. Quote of the trip: “It was awesome, because every time I looked back, Mr. Whitmore had bread in his hands saying ‘bread snacks anyone?'” – Zeke deBlois.
2) Watch The Sound of Music.
Musicals anyone? Please say yes. I have expressed in past posts my love for music, especially musicals. One particular musical holds a special place in my heart, The Sound of Music. If you haven’t watched it already, I highly recommend it. Not only was it set in Europe, it felt like I was living in the movie when I looked around at the scenery around us! The movie is about a woman who gets “kicked” out of her convent to be a governess for an old, widowed, sea captain, a father of 7 children. Theres lots of singing and crying and laughing and all good things. My family is often nicknamed “The Von Trapp” family because all of us sing so much and we explore so much. It’s quite humorous.
3) La Luge (ing)!
One of the best activities that I loved while we were in Chamonix was actually not in Chamonix, but in the neighboring town of Mégeve. There, we went and did the luge. Or La Luge 4s if you want the proper name in French. A luge is kinda like a rollercoaster, but it’s all downhill with curves and turns pulled forward by only gravity. It’s incredibly fun and exhilarating. We took the deBlois kids with us: Sam(14), Rachel(9), Jacob(15), Zeke(17), and Myriam(11). We are all super good friends and we had a blast skiing and doing activities with them!
4) Skiing in the Chamonix Valley.
Out of the six days we were in Chamonix, we unfortunately only skied for four of those six days. We did explore many places throughout the mountains though! Including the town and the top of Mount Blanc! But as far as skiing goes, we went to two mountains. No. 1 was Flegere. A good-sized mountain with an adorable town at the base! We skied here for 3 of the 4 days with the deBlois for one day. No. 2 was Megève. A good sized mountain of which I spent a morning skiing with my sister on! The snow was a good kind of “slush” at the start, but at the morning increased, the snow got harder to ski in so we stopped around noon. Over all… I think it was super fun to ski in the Alps, but it wasn’t great skiing. I’m so happy and grateful I’ve gotten to do this awesome thing though! It’s so cool!!
5) Shopping!
Ahhh… Okay, ladies, take note of this part: the European women know how to dress. I mean, that was pretty well known in general, but I never really took it to heart till I actually saw it with my own eyes. Here’s what I noticed: Plane color for top and bottom clothes with either a trench coat or a fun sweater. Then, heals of some kind, or cool shoes. Last but not least – the accessories. Now these are what I shop for. I saw almost every woman or girl in Europe with some awesome looking purse, or earrings, or neckless… it was awesome. Really I think it accomplishes their goal of raising their social status. To me, the way I look makes a big difference on how I’m feeling, and when I feel confident in my cloths, I get stuff done. Now on the topic of shopping – I collect three different kinds of things around the world. 1) Key chains: only usually one to two per country. 2) Earrings: I have… well I have a lot of earrings that I’ve collected. Some gifted, some I’ve gotten with my own money, but I love showing off the cool places I’ve been with a little pop of faction! I’m always on the look out for post cards to send to friends, or little gifts for friends back home! While in Chamonix, we walked around the town a bit and all the shops are so cute! It looks like something out of a movie, not gonna lie. I love European towns!
6) Scenic Drives.
I think I’ve gotten to the point where it might be a little excessive to say “I just love Europe so much!!!” again… but you know what? I’m gonna go for it. I just love Europe so much!!! There are so many amazing qualities and people and… yes, scenery! Europe is such a beautiful continent, it makes my heart so happy. With the two hours at minimum we spent each day driving into the mountains, I got lots of time to reflect on God’s amazing creation. Every time I looked up at the snow peaked mountains, or the lush green hills dotted with perfect houses and flowers, it really made me super grateful for what our world has. It may be easy to just see all the hardship in life, but its good to remember, there is also beauty in all the tiny perfect little things.
7) A Spot of Tea, Anyone?
After the skiing day that me and Kb did at Megeve, my mom picked us up and asked us if we would like to go out to lunch! little did we know that it would take 40 minutes to find – not only a place that had parking – but also a place that was open. here’s a little fun fact about France: the love naps. they love to take the afternoon off from work for a few hours to chill. And of course those hours are the ones where all the tourists are looking for lunch! Perfect timing guys… anyways, we searched for 40 minutes and finally found a place that served off hour french fries and a cheese board. So we had that! Then my mom found this tea shop that also happened to be labeled gluten free! Now I know that usually its the English who are super into tea, but you know what? Whatever, because we wen’t to this tea shop and got “a spot of tea” *said in a very British accent* at A l’heure du thé. And guys… I’m now in love with a good Chai Tea!! It’s so good!! My mom got a “Chócolat chaud”, which is french for hot chocolate; and Kb got a Robos tea. We all shared a gluten free brownie! It was all a win win situation, that’s what I say!
8) Church in French.
As you might know, my family is Christian, so when we travel we get to visit God’s community from all around the world! It’s so special to go to a church service in another language. Even though I can’t understand almost any words, I get the message that we all believe in one amazing creator!! Thankfully, Mrs. & Mr. deBlois, and Zeke all speak fluent French, so they gave us the general gist of what went down! The funny part about that Sunday was that because there were 13 of us, we doubled the size of the congregation. There we’re maybe 10 other people at the small rental room for the church, but it was just good to be with people. Gloire à Dieu! (Glory to God)
Ahh… as much as I love France, I can’t wait for our next adventure!! In conclusion, I will very much miss France, but I’m excited to see where Italy takes me! I hope you have enjoyed this post, and maybe learned from it too! See you in the next post!