Ain’t No Mountain High Enough

Bonjour!

As previously mentioned, Saturday saw Jessie, Pia, Lauren, Ben, Anya, Jordan, Patrick and I have an early start SO to catch our bus which would take us to the base of the Mountain we were going to climb. There were due to be more of us but some just found the wake-up call too painful. It was freezing outside and quite cloudy and as coach climbed higher and higher, the little sun there was disappeared and I could barely see through the window as there was thick fog all around. Everybody was napping while I wasn’t too happy as I wanted to be able to take some photos of the views! Luckily we climbed higher still and soon clouds and mist were below us.



MISTY

As the bus dropped us off, we looked up and saw the challenge that lay before us. We were all exhausted and I wasn’t looking forward to it - the first 20 minutes were awful as the paths got narrower and the climb became steeper. Slowly but surely, we all seemed to get into it and although it was tough going (the hills were VERY steep, and I’m used to walking up and down the hills of Swansea) we chatted, took photos and even sang cheese 90s pop songs to keep up morale (which I compared to the War...). There we were quite literally pulling ourselves up cliff faces and navigating our way along tiny paths when someone shouted out ‘look!’ We all looked ahead and could see Mont Blanc, the highest mountain of both the Alps and Europe, covered in glistening white snow and shining high above all of the other mountains. The view was SO beautiful; I carefully took my camera from my bag to ensure I got a photo! We climbed higher and higher and three and a half hours later, we had FINALLY reached the top of Mont Granier. Surrounded by mountains, we took photos and ate our lunch though being 1933m above sea level in mid October we were fairly cold and so huddled in a group. The leader of the hike offered us some kind of Savoyard cake which seemed more like soggy bread and I didn’t like it very much but we were all so glad to eat after an exhausting climb.

Mont Blanc!

 

 

Pia Chilling At The Top Of The Mountain

The way back down was different to the way up but trying to maintain control of our feet on such a steep incline was difficult and there were a few moments where I did question where I’d ever make it back alive but as I’m writing this, I clearly did!

A Picture From Google To Demonstrate How Steep The Walk Down Was!

 

 

On the way back down we saw some jaw dropping cliff faces and views and of course, we took yet more photos. We also walked through a cave named, ‘Balme Collomb’ which cooled us as the sun was blazing by now.  After an eternity we all piled back into the bus to head back to civilisation. On the way back we stopped off at a vantage point to see what we had just climbed. It was an exhausting day and definitely a challenge but I am SO glad to have participated in the final randonnée of the year, to have seen some spectacular sights and to have done something a little more ‘cultured.’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday evening an Erasmus party had been organised at another accommodation, ‘Foyer des Alpes.’ There was a theme of ‘suits up’ and so the guys were in shirts while the girls wore dresses and everybody looked super smart. After lots of socialising at Foyer (there were perhaps 70+ people,) we made our way to o’Pogues for a few drinks before the night finished at ‘Opera.’ After a long day of walking, to say I was exhausted was a severe understatement and I don’t think I’d ever been so happy to sleep in my little French bed. I spent the majority of Sunday in my room, mainly in my bed watching programs on my laptop and just having a good rest. That evening, we had our second ‘Come Dine with Me’ evening.

 

 

 

 

 

 Charles informed us earlier in the day that the dress code was ‘Black Tie’ and so once again, everyone was dressed up to the nines. Hannah, Beth, Freddie & Sam decided to genderswap for the evening with the guys beautified with makeup while the girls wore dinner jackets and drew on moustaches which put smiles on every face J

 

Miss, Mr, Miss & Mr

Alice and Olga prepared a delicious Italian starter consisting of Pasta with cucumber, feta cheese and olives. This was followed by sausages and sweet potato mash accompanied by a red wine jus which Ben and Patrick worked on – amazing! Charles also made a typically French ‘Ratatouille’ consisting of a number of vegetables and a tasty sauce. I’d tried Ratatouille in the past but hadn’t liked it – his however was amazing and so I definitely need to ask for the recipe! For desert, Catrin had made Welshcakes and it was the first time she had ever made them. I LOVE Welshcakes and have made them countless times at home with a friend. They were SO good and it felt as if I’d just popped home for one, amazing!! There was also an Italian lemon cake on offer – it was good but I don’t think anything can ever top a Welshcake?!  A filling evening all around!

In the blink of an eye another weekend had come to an end so began the fifth week of University lectures. This week we have began to receive assessed pieces of work which means I’ll have something to occupy my time with although I am a little worried about how well I will actually do as there seems to be little guidance as to what exactly is required. I’ve taken some books from the library though, which is a good start, I just need to ensure I actually read and use them! The temperature this week has significantly dropped and we’ve heard that it’s already snowing in towns 30 minutes away – roll on the first snowfall! It seldom happens at home and so I think at this point it’s exciting but I don’t doubt that it’ll annoyingly interfere in our lives at some point this winter.

We have also been told that we need to sign up for our exams. If we don’t, we can’t sit them, it’s that’s simple. We need to ensure we have the correct module codes for each class but hopefully after so much organisation in recent weeks, this won’t be too much effort. It’s just a bit weird as we never have to do anything like this in Cardiff. There, we pick our modules and are automatically enrolled and receive our exam timetables to tell us when they are. Hopefully everything will work out well!

Today, the weekend begins again! At lunch we had a VERY brief Erasmus meeting (it literally lasted 2 minutes, if that,) where some information was shared with us. This was followed by an ‘apéritif dinatoire’ which is basically a buffet, French style! There were breads, cheeses, cured meats, olives and pastries – yum!! A number of us then went into town to do some shopping and we stopped at O’Cardinals for a coffee, sitting outside in the fresh autumn air in a courtyard upon which a Church imposed itself. The organ was being played inside and I felt very French!

A Savoyard Spread!

(and YES that is hollowed out bread, used as a basket for sandwiches - amazing!)

 

This weekend I would like to spend some time on the assignments I have been given and I also need to work on my French History research. This weekend, the 31^st annual BD (bandes dessinées – comic book) festival is taking place in Chambéry and is literally a 30 second walk from Arpej. There seems to be lots going on – comic fairs, talks, and film screenings – and so I would like to check that out! I’d also like to hire a bike and cycle around and see some areas we perhaps haven’t yet explored. This is of course all weather permitting but I think it’s best to do it before the snow starts to (hopefully) fall! We’ll also celebrating Pia’s 21^st birthday on Saturday and will all be wearing Toga’s, as the party theme – I just hope it isn’t as crazily cold as it has been the last few days, wearing little more than a white sheet! Either way, I am sure it’ll be lots of fun.

 

That’s all for now,
À Plus J