Hurray! Some sun at last!
Hurray! Some sun at last!
Day four of skiing took us through the Mont Blanc Tunnel and onto Courmayeur, on the Italian side of the border. The weather conditions were much better, and for most of the morning we had sunshine and temperatures just above freezing. We skied a few runs on the front of the mountain, then headed over to the back of the mountain to seek out some more interesting stuff.
Matthew in Courmayeur. With some big mountains in the background.
Aude in Courmayeur
A number of people had recommended that we try Courmayeur, and suggested that it was the best of the mountains in Chamonix. We came away feeling a little disappointed. The runs are much shorter than the other areas of Chamonix, and nearly the entire mountain is groomed pistes – which means that there isn’t much variety to the slopes. The lift system isn’t well thought out, so you always have to ski across to one set of lifts or another. Throw in the Italian ineptitude for queuing and you end up with a frustrating skiing experience.
Like Eve with her apple, Aude seduces Matthew onto the expert runs...
At some point in every man's life, there comes a time when he must venture off the bunny slopes...
The Italians also seem to grade on a curve. The red slopes on the Italian side were like the blue slopes on the French side, and even the black slopes weren’t overly-challenging. There were lots of slopes, I guess, but the lack of variety meant that after a day skiing Courmayeur, I was done.
Tucking into some good food in the Italian Alps
Tucking into some good food in the Italian Alps
One thing did live up to its promise, though: the food. The dining options on the Italian mountain were much better than on the French side. Aude had homemade polenta with mushrooms, I had a veal steak with ham and cheese, and we shared an incredible charcuterie.
If only we could match the Italian cooking with the French slopes, I’d be in heaven.
A well-deserved glass of vin chaud at the end of the day.
