Monday June 11, 2007

On Friday, we had classes as usual. Saturday, the chairlift on Mt Sambuy was scheduled to run for the first and only time between winter ski season and July 1. So we drove up to Mt Sambuy, (the tall mountain in the photo at left) and sent ten of the students up the chairlift; it was to shut down at noon, so that anyone going up with our group would have to come down on foot.

The chairlift operators, unimpressed by the footwear of several of our group, refused to let them go on the chairlift, as they deemed high heels and flipflops inappropriate for a hike down a long mountain slope. The others rode the lift into the clouds, where they picnicked before starting on the way down.

Those of us who stayed at the bottom nonetheless had a nice view as clouds billowed in the damp summer air. Those who had been refused admittance to the chairlift went on an hour-long hike up the mountain before coming down for lunch.

We lunched as the others came down the mountain, and finally drove home by early afternoon for the numerous activities that the students had planned for themselves.

Ramona returned home to the "Nid de Marceau" before going to a soccer match. Matthew chose to do some reading. The photo at left shows Ramona and Matthew flanking their French parents, Catherine and Roger Duret.

On Sunday morning, we met at the Place du Marché for the annual AFA trip. Many of the French host families had got up early to vote in the legislative elections before coming to the rendezvous point where a large and comfortable bus was waiting.

Since the AFA was sponsoring the trip, we let Yvette Millot count heads and run the show. She had 57 heads to count, and I'm glad to report that no one was left behind at any point.

We drove north for an hour to Thonon and then to the Château de Ripaille, which is a XVth C. structure. Originally built to house seven widowed aristocrats-turned-monks (including the Earl of Savoy), it consisted of seven square buildings connected in a line, and marked by seven staircase towers. Only three and a half buildings remain, along with four towers.

The guide explained the intricate history of the castle and of its inhabitants. The Earl of Savoy, renowned for his wisdom, was ultimately elected Pope, a post which he resigned after ten years, after which he was made Cardinal, thus becoming the only man to have been Pope before being a Cardinal. At the time of the French Revolution, the property was seized by the state and used for silkworm farming, a fact attested by the numerous mulberry trees that still grow there. In the photo at left, we see Theresa, a medieval specialist, quite happy at finding herself in her element.

The tour ended with a visit to the now-empty casks that used to store the local Ripaille wine made from the Chasselas vines grown all around the castle. We tasted the local production and agreed that what we'd tasted a few days before at the Grisard Brothers' winery was infinitely better than the relatively tasteless and bland Ripaille wine which resembles the Swiss Fendant made on the opposite shore of the lake.

We then drove to a beautiful lakeside park, where we had our picnic. Yvette as usual had prepared a large feast, and we all served ourselves on a tablecloth spread on the lawn, in the shade of large trees. The weather was beautiful despite the threat of thunderstorms forecast by the weather service.

Lake Geneva sparkled in the sunshine, and we could easily see the Swiss city of Lausanne on the opposite shore. Tempted by the crystal-clear water, many of the students waded around, although some of the younger French "siblings" ended up throwing each other in the still chilly water, to the ill-disguised delight of all those watching.

We picked up all the trash and remaining foods and returned to the bus for our third and final stop on the trip, to the nearby medieval walled town of Yvoire. The bus parked just outside the town, and we walked in through one of the old city gates that dates back to the XIVth C.

Students made a beeline for the nearest ice cream vendor, of which there turns out to be quite a large number in this very quaint and touristy little town. It is home to a famed garden, "Le Jardin des Cinq Sens" (the garden of the five senses), but the high cost of admission dissuaded us from going in to smell those particular roses. There were plenty of other flowers all over the place for us to enjoy.

After a couple of hours in Yvoire, we gathered by the city gate to count heads and return to the bus. By this time, the weather was starting to change, and we soon realized that we had dodged bad weather all day as the heavens opened up on the drive back to Annecy and Faverges.

The shot at right shows one of the beautiful thunderheads burgeoning in the late afternoon. There were impressive downpours and thunder and lightning in the night. By Monday morning, the weather was calmer, and we met for classes as usual.

This week, we'll be heading to Geneva on Tuesday, Chamonix and the high Alps on Wednesday: the weather service is announcing good weather on Tuesday and bright sunshine on Wednesday. Hopefully we will take advantage of the good weather in the best way possible ! Thursday and Friday, classes as usual, and possibly a drive into the mountains one afternoon. We're trying to set up a visit into Italy next Saturday...more about this later. Next Sunday will be a day off, as it is Father's Day in France. Next report, probably Thursday.