How to leave a ski resort
So, you’ve been skiing for a week. You’ve had a great time with some fantastic snow conditions, and even the sun shone during the day while the snow fell at night. You’ve enjoyed the company of the lovely friends you …
So, you’ve been skiing for a week. You’ve had a great time with some fantastic snow conditions, and even the sun shone during the day while the snow fell at night. You’ve enjoyed the company of the lovely friends you …
Why is it that we lose our common sense when it comes to chairlift queues? A while ago, I was amazed at a single-file queue for a drag lift in La Clusaz and I got some interesting comments about queue …
I come from Australia. We don’t really do avalanches in Australian ski resorts. There was a landslide at Thredbo back in 1997 which killed seventeen people, but that was caused by a faulty water pipe rather than any natural catalyst. …
If you’ve ever tried to learn the French language, chances are you know that most words are pronounced differently to how they’re spelt; for starters, the last letter is normally left off. For instance, “un chocolat chaud” is actually pronounced, …
As I’ve described before, I’ll never be considered a local here in La Clusaz. In fact, it takes about three generations for someone to be gain that privilege. Because I’m not local, it’s always nice when familiar faces whose names …
One of the things I really love about living in France is the baked goods. Another is the jovial sense of humour with strangers. Mix the two and you’ve got the perfect situation for a practical joke. The Savoyards are …
French bakeries part 2: customers and le croix de Savoie Read more »
The year of 2009 has so far been good, if not a little odd. For example, I saw this car wedged in some trees after it skidded off the road between La Clusaz and Saint Jean de Sixt, backwards. This …
This morning, I entered a La Clusaz bakery, where the nice French lady always smiles at me. This morning, however, things had changed. Instead of smiling, she was scowling at the woman in front of me, while the woman threw …
Okay, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but Copain des Alpes is my new favourite book. Although it’s a children’s book, it’s great for adults learning French. I discovered this one at a French friend’s place the other day, …
Let’s start with the dumb. This letter from EDF arrived in a letterbox in Annecy last week. You can see from the date circled at the top (click on the letter for a larger image) that the letter was printed …