A view of things to come

We are happily back in Villers-la-Faye, and had a wonderful time in Les Alpes. I will post a proper update and photos tomorrow, but here is a sneak, um, peak of our quick trip to the mountains. Note the parachuting/hang-gliding dude just above the top of the peaks on the right side of this first picture -- this was taken from our hotel room balcony, where we all had a good time this morning watching people nearly land in our living room. (Photos courtesy Alex P., because I was too lazy to download my own pictures, but he thoughtfully shared all of his with me already).

I also realized sometime this morning that Chamonix and the Alps have felt the least foreign of all places I have seen so far in France (I say this despite the fact that this revelation came to me when returning with my two baguettes from the boulangerie... something that has never once occurred in the delicious bakery-deprived southern Alberta). 

I think part of the reason is simply that it is a newer town than most we have seen in France, "discovered" in the late 1700s and developed in the late 1800s. So the buildings and town layout and lack of Roman ruins, moats, castle walls and convents had a familiar feel from the beginning -- at least more familiar than most places we've been here. But I also realized that it just had that great mountain town feel -- natural beauty and blue skies and smiling people -- something I am happily quite familiar with, having grown up in a town with an altitude of 8,500 feet (2,590 meters) above sea level, nestled at the base of Pike's Peak.

And as always -- however good the trip was -- I was also so glad to be home this evening. Next step: trying to help Kathy and Alex get to the airport in the midst of ongoing periodic rail strikes tomorrow. I want to just shrug my shoulders (one very French response), but instead I am stuck at the sigh (another French response). On verra.