Ski camp in journal excerpts.
Saturday:
Morning
Going to the ski camp today. Hope it goes well - helps my French - have a good time. Mimi asked me what all I know about the week. Realized that I don't know very much.
1. It's a 5 day camp but I'll be getting there Saturday the 22nd and leaving Saturday the 1st. (Assuming that I'm getting there early to help set up? Perhaps the kids come Sunday and leaving Friday? - Guess I'll see).
2. There will be 16 campers. Don't know how many adults.
3. The age range is from 7 to 14 years old.
4. We will ski 2 days, dog sled 1 day and snow shoe 1 day.
5. Leaving from Gare de Lyon at 1:15 (have to meet there at 12:15) for the Savoie region.
Evening
So, all the kids came today as well. There were 5 adults on the train with 8 kids and the rest arrived at the camp earlier by car - so it's actually a 7 day camp with 16 kids and 7 adults. That works. I'm not sure how long the train ride was, but I'm sure glad that I ate lunch before leaving or I would have been very, very hungry. The train ride (my first in France) was pretty uneventful. Mimi and I had to call Laurent to ask were to meet at the train station - apparently there are two sides and they are pretty far away from each other. I also realized that I had forgotten my sunglasses, so was pretty stressed about that and hoping that I might be able to buy a pair or something somewhere. That was looking pretty unlikely, but I said something to Marie (the director) and she had an extra pair that she will let me use for the week. That's a blessing. And her sunglasses will probably work better than mine would because they sit closer to the face and are sturdier - mine are aviators so they might not have blocked out the sun reflecting off the snow so well and would probably break easier.
Once we got to the train station we had to wait for two taxi vans to transport us to the chalet where supper was all ready to serve. I met the other leaders and children and began to wonder what I had gotten into. I could tell it was going to be a long, tiring week just from the French if not from anything else. Plus, I like children but have never considered them my forte and there were lots of children who I didn't know and couldn't communicate with well. After dinner, the kids went to bed and I moved my stuff to the third floor to stay with the girls. Cloé, Ruth and I were in a back room together and the girls were in a larger room. Just one bathroom with one sink, shower, and toilet for 10 people. That'll be interesting. All the adults gathered in the 'office' (a room with all the supplies that the children aren't allowed in without supervision) for a meeting (sounds like this will happen every night) to go over details and plans for the week and the next day. Saw a general schedule and there are actually 3 days of skiing.
I'm glad that I brought a towel (and that Mimi gave me a quick drying towel too) because I definitely need it. And a sleeping bag and sheets would have been useful. I thought I might have to bundle up and sleep in my coat at one point, but Ruth (another leader) showed me where there were some extra blankets (mostly because everyone else brought their own things - they had been informed to do so) and I ended up with 3 thick knitted blankets. There is a pillow but I don't have a pillow case so I'll just wrap a shawl around it.
Sunday:
I didn't sleep well last night. The pillow is really uncomfortable and gave me a kink in my neck - I think I'll sleep without it from now on. Looks like they keep the kids busy. A lot happened today and I always felt behind. The leaders gathered at 8 in the morning for devotions and prep for the day, then we got breakfast on the table and the kids came down at 8:30. After doing the dishes (I think I'll be doing my fair share of dishes this week) the kids had a morning worship time. Side note - this is how everyday went in the evenings, so I shan't bore you with repeating it for each day.
As we prepared and ate lunch I began getting a bit anxious about skiing. I've never skied before and I've never been any good at skateboarding or snowboarding (not that I've tried either in over 10 years and the snowboarding was just a small kid's board in a backyard), nor am I very graceful in anything not streamlined to my feet. For example, you are much likelier to see me trip in sneakers than 5 inch heels...
Anywho, we had to go to a ski rental place to try on ski boots and then we went to the ski place. The ski boots hold your feet and legs in a very specific position and I could feel my calves cramping a bit - probably not the best start... There were many campers who had never skied before or had only skied a few times, but there were a few who were advanced. We all started on the bunny slope (for the advanced skiers, just to warm up) and they explained how to slow down by spreading your heels apart - but not cross the front of your skis. They also explained that to turn left you have to put your weight to the right and vice versa. Standing at the top of the bunny hill, I was not so sure that I wanted to go down. I watched the experienced kids follow Cloé down and they stayed right behind her, went slowly, and I thought okay, I can do this. Ha. Haha. Hahahahaha. I could not have been more wrong. I sucked. I more than sucked. I couldn't slow down for the life of me. I spread my heels and spread my heels and nothing happened, except that I crossed my skis and usually fell. Turning was more difficult than I thought it would be too. I would watch others and could see the form, but just could seem to feel it correctly. I didn't fall every descent, but close to it. I only needed help to get up twice though :) I lost both of my skis once (they just pop off the boots when you fall at a certain angle - which is good because it keeps you from twisting/spraining/breaking something as easily). Another time I lost just one, but it continued on down the hill without me. Thankfully a kind woman stopped and held if for me till I could get down to her. I lost he other ski my last time down. This time it was at the bottom and I was trying to stop, and crossed my skis. I was too fatigued to go down again, so I just watched for the last half-hour or so. Needless to say it was a humbling experience - but I was able to honestly laugh at myself. Not the "I'm laughing so you don't see how embarrassed/discouraged/near to tears I am" kind of laughter, but the "I'm just going to do my best and if I fall, I'm sure it looked funny" kind of laugh. That's pretty big for me because I'm usually cripplingly self-conscious.
As I watch other skiers and think about my form, I think part of my problem is how I hold myself - how I balance my weight. I balance on the balls of my feet - not my heels - but for skiing I need my weight shifted back. I'm also bad at spreading my heels because it is the exact opposite of ballet. I'm so used to having my toes pointed out that to have my feet parallel already feels like my heels are turned out. Who'd a thunk that dance would hurt my ability to ski...
We had a snack (hot chocolate and cookies) at the slopes, then headed back to the chalet. The campers had free time/shower time and I helped prep dinner. We ate at about 7:30 and the kids had an activity afterwards and then went to bed and the adults had their meetings, I took my shower, and went to bed. Side note - this is how everyday went in the evenings, so I shan't bore you with repeating it for each day.
Monday:
Every so often, our guide would stop and point out animal tracks and talk about which animals they could be from and how he could tell. He showed us the flammability of the bark of this one tree - it continues to burn even in direct contact with the snow. Once we reached an area flat enough, he instructed us on how to build igloos. The campers decided to do boys vs. girls, so we didn't get to finish either of them (too big and not enough time) but he had us doing it the correct way. We packed the snow down...
He cut out bricks...
We set them in place and packed loose snow in between them.
We had a party for dinner this evening - raclette de montagne. The kids were not allowed in the eating area as we were decorating it, prepping the entrée and getting the raclette set up.
So, the way this raclette apparatus works is the bar across the top heats and melts the cut edge of the cheese...
Then you pull the cheese forward and tilt it to scrape the melted cheese onto a plate...
And put it on your food (meat, potatoes, pickles, etc. My family even puts it on sliced apples)...
This is how much cheese was left at the end of the evening (granted, we are 23 in total).
Saturday:
Today was an early morning. We had a lot to do and very little time to do it in. We had to be out of the chalet by 10 and we were going skiing since we couldn't go yesterday. Even with all the hustle and bustle, I was able to snap a couple of shots of the scenery our last morning.
Saturday:
Morning
Going to the ski camp today. Hope it goes well - helps my French - have a good time. Mimi asked me what all I know about the week. Realized that I don't know very much.
1. It's a 5 day camp but I'll be getting there Saturday the 22nd and leaving Saturday the 1st. (Assuming that I'm getting there early to help set up? Perhaps the kids come Sunday and leaving Friday? - Guess I'll see).
2. There will be 16 campers. Don't know how many adults.
3. The age range is from 7 to 14 years old.
4. We will ski 2 days, dog sled 1 day and snow shoe 1 day.
5. Leaving from Gare de Lyon at 1:15 (have to meet there at 12:15) for the Savoie region.
Evening
So, all the kids came today as well. There were 5 adults on the train with 8 kids and the rest arrived at the camp earlier by car - so it's actually a 7 day camp with 16 kids and 7 adults. That works. I'm not sure how long the train ride was, but I'm sure glad that I ate lunch before leaving or I would have been very, very hungry. The train ride (my first in France) was pretty uneventful. Mimi and I had to call Laurent to ask were to meet at the train station - apparently there are two sides and they are pretty far away from each other. I also realized that I had forgotten my sunglasses, so was pretty stressed about that and hoping that I might be able to buy a pair or something somewhere. That was looking pretty unlikely, but I said something to Marie (the director) and she had an extra pair that she will let me use for the week. That's a blessing. And her sunglasses will probably work better than mine would because they sit closer to the face and are sturdier - mine are aviators so they might not have blocked out the sun reflecting off the snow so well and would probably break easier.
Once we got to the train station we had to wait for two taxi vans to transport us to the chalet where supper was all ready to serve. I met the other leaders and children and began to wonder what I had gotten into. I could tell it was going to be a long, tiring week just from the French if not from anything else. Plus, I like children but have never considered them my forte and there were lots of children who I didn't know and couldn't communicate with well. After dinner, the kids went to bed and I moved my stuff to the third floor to stay with the girls. Cloé, Ruth and I were in a back room together and the girls were in a larger room. Just one bathroom with one sink, shower, and toilet for 10 people. That'll be interesting. All the adults gathered in the 'office' (a room with all the supplies that the children aren't allowed in without supervision) for a meeting (sounds like this will happen every night) to go over details and plans for the week and the next day. Saw a general schedule and there are actually 3 days of skiing.
I'm glad that I brought a towel (and that Mimi gave me a quick drying towel too) because I definitely need it. And a sleeping bag and sheets would have been useful. I thought I might have to bundle up and sleep in my coat at one point, but Ruth (another leader) showed me where there were some extra blankets (mostly because everyone else brought their own things - they had been informed to do so) and I ended up with 3 thick knitted blankets. There is a pillow but I don't have a pillow case so I'll just wrap a shawl around it.
Sunday:
I didn't sleep well last night. The pillow is really uncomfortable and gave me a kink in my neck - I think I'll sleep without it from now on. Looks like they keep the kids busy. A lot happened today and I always felt behind. The leaders gathered at 8 in the morning for devotions and prep for the day, then we got breakfast on the table and the kids came down at 8:30. After doing the dishes (I think I'll be doing my fair share of dishes this week) the kids had a morning worship time. Side note - this is how everyday went in the evenings, so I shan't bore you with repeating it for each day.
As we prepared and ate lunch I began getting a bit anxious about skiing. I've never skied before and I've never been any good at skateboarding or snowboarding (not that I've tried either in over 10 years and the snowboarding was just a small kid's board in a backyard), nor am I very graceful in anything not streamlined to my feet. For example, you are much likelier to see me trip in sneakers than 5 inch heels...
Anywho, we had to go to a ski rental place to try on ski boots and then we went to the ski place. The ski boots hold your feet and legs in a very specific position and I could feel my calves cramping a bit - probably not the best start... There were many campers who had never skied before or had only skied a few times, but there were a few who were advanced. We all started on the bunny slope (for the advanced skiers, just to warm up) and they explained how to slow down by spreading your heels apart - but not cross the front of your skis. They also explained that to turn left you have to put your weight to the right and vice versa. Standing at the top of the bunny hill, I was not so sure that I wanted to go down. I watched the experienced kids follow Cloé down and they stayed right behind her, went slowly, and I thought okay, I can do this. Ha. Haha. Hahahahaha. I could not have been more wrong. I sucked. I more than sucked. I couldn't slow down for the life of me. I spread my heels and spread my heels and nothing happened, except that I crossed my skis and usually fell. Turning was more difficult than I thought it would be too. I would watch others and could see the form, but just could seem to feel it correctly. I didn't fall every descent, but close to it. I only needed help to get up twice though :) I lost both of my skis once (they just pop off the boots when you fall at a certain angle - which is good because it keeps you from twisting/spraining/breaking something as easily). Another time I lost just one, but it continued on down the hill without me. Thankfully a kind woman stopped and held if for me till I could get down to her. I lost he other ski my last time down. This time it was at the bottom and I was trying to stop, and crossed my skis. I was too fatigued to go down again, so I just watched for the last half-hour or so. Needless to say it was a humbling experience - but I was able to honestly laugh at myself. Not the "I'm laughing so you don't see how embarrassed/discouraged/near to tears I am" kind of laughter, but the "I'm just going to do my best and if I fall, I'm sure it looked funny" kind of laugh. That's pretty big for me because I'm usually cripplingly self-conscious.
As I watch other skiers and think about my form, I think part of my problem is how I hold myself - how I balance my weight. I balance on the balls of my feet - not my heels - but for skiing I need my weight shifted back. I'm also bad at spreading my heels because it is the exact opposite of ballet. I'm so used to having my toes pointed out that to have my feet parallel already feels like my heels are turned out. Who'd a thunk that dance would hurt my ability to ski...
We had a snack (hot chocolate and cookies) at the slopes, then headed back to the chalet. The campers had free time/shower time and I helped prep dinner. We ate at about 7:30 and the kids had an activity afterwards and then went to bed and the adults had their meetings, I took my shower, and went to bed. Side note - this is how everyday went in the evenings, so I shan't bore you with repeating it for each day.
 |
| Out my bedroom window |
 |
| The most advanced slope |
 |
| The bunny slope in the foreground and the intermediate slope in the background |
Monday:
I woke up a bit sore, but less so than I would have expected. I'm glad for that but tomorrow will be the real test - always feel it two days after, not the next day. Hopefully doing physical activity today will help with that, though. Today we did the dog sledding. Admittedly, I was not super excited beforehand. I had the feeling that I would be doing it solo and I wasn't sure that I wanted to have to steer. I didn't want to back out because I knew I would regret it, but I was feeling a bit stressed. I went well, though. The kids were partnered off but the adults each had our own sled. Thankfully we didn't have to steer - we just followed the guides in single file. Because there were so many of us we had to split into two groups and I was in the second group, so we played in the snow and waited the half-hour or so for the first group to return.
Once we started, my dogs (I had three small dogs) must have been tired - and I must weigh more than they are used to, because I had to push/run the entire way up. When my foot would hit packed snow it wasn't so bad, but that was few and far between. Usually my foot was sinking up to mid-calf and then I'd push off of, well, loose snow. That takes a lot out of you, physically. I was told it was a 30 minute round trip, and the ascent took longer than the descent, so I assume that it was 20 minutes up and 10 minutes down... Thankfully we had to stop to wait for others to catch up a few times, so I could catch my breath (otherwise, I think I might have puked or passed out from overheating). The ride down was great! I got to ride the entire way for that and only had to worry about braking.
Tuesday:
All morning I've been tense - not wanting to go skiing again, but knowing that if I didn't try again I would regret it. And I did so much better! My first time down wasn't so hot, but after that I improved exponentially. Probably because I began to feel the weight distribution more naturally. I began putting my weight in my heels and once I did that I could slow down, turn and even stop on the slope. I'm not spectacular by any means. My control is still lacking and I don't think I'm ready for real skiing as of yet, but I'm so glad that I decided to try again. One thing is for sure - I'm tired. But not as tired as the first day (or as sweaty) probably because I didn't have to get up from falling so much (only fell 3 times!!!). The sun was also behind clouds, so it stayed a bit cooler, but that was nice. The first day I was so hot and sweaty it was ridiculous. Also, it's my third day of intense physical activity, so my body is getting more used to it (I hope). If I did stuff like this every day, I'd be in great shape.
Wednesday:
 |
| First group getting ready |
 |
| First group on their way! |
Tuesday:
All morning I've been tense - not wanting to go skiing again, but knowing that if I didn't try again I would regret it. And I did so much better! My first time down wasn't so hot, but after that I improved exponentially. Probably because I began to feel the weight distribution more naturally. I began putting my weight in my heels and once I did that I could slow down, turn and even stop on the slope. I'm not spectacular by any means. My control is still lacking and I don't think I'm ready for real skiing as of yet, but I'm so glad that I decided to try again. One thing is for sure - I'm tired. But not as tired as the first day (or as sweaty) probably because I didn't have to get up from falling so much (only fell 3 times!!!). The sun was also behind clouds, so it stayed a bit cooler, but that was nice. The first day I was so hot and sweaty it was ridiculous. Also, it's my third day of intense physical activity, so my body is getting more used to it (I hope). If I did stuff like this every day, I'd be in great shape.
 |
| Just to the right of the slopes |
 |
| Walking back to the chalet (in the background) from the taxi |
Wednesday:
Today was a house day, which worked out well because it snowed pretty much all day. The kids played games and after the snack at 5 we went to a woodcarvers shop where they give demonstrations and sell their products.
There were so many exquisite carvings and blown glass and we were allowed to take pictures, so I went a little camera crazy...
And then some scenery from our walk back to the chalet.
After we returned it was rush, rush, rush for preparing dinner. We had hamburgers and fry's and the kids watched a movie. Everything was served rather late, but it worked out okay.
Thursday:
I woke up a bit late this morning. I thought we were to meet at 8:30 instead of 8 but I misunderstood. Oh well, I still got down by 8:15 and they didn't seem too worried about it. Today we went snow shoeing after a picnic lunch just outside our chalet. The snow shoeing was also pretty intense, physically, but it was really enjoyable. We had to cross a stream at the beginning of the walk (the water wasn't deep enough to get to our boots) ...
 |
| Just strapped on the snow shoes!! |
... and then the real walk began.
Every so often, our guide would stop and point out animal tracks and talk about which animals they could be from and how he could tell. He showed us the flammability of the bark of this one tree - it continues to burn even in direct contact with the snow. Once we reached an area flat enough, he instructed us on how to build igloos. The campers decided to do boys vs. girls, so we didn't get to finish either of them (too big and not enough time) but he had us doing it the correct way. We packed the snow down...
He cut out bricks...
We had a great time :)
Friday:
We were supposed to go skiing today but it was snowing too heavily so we stayed at the chalet. It actually made life quite a bit easier for the adults because we didn't have to rush around to prep things for the party that evening or for the meals the next day. The kids played outside and made snowmen while we made sandwiches for the train ride home.
So, the way this raclette apparatus works is the bar across the top heats and melts the cut edge of the cheese...
Then you pull the cheese forward and tilt it to scrape the melted cheese onto a plate...
And put it on your food (meat, potatoes, pickles, etc. My family even puts it on sliced apples)...
This is how much cheese was left at the end of the evening (granted, we are 23 in total).
We had baked bananas stuffed with chocolate for desert. Yum, yum :)
During the meal (it was a long, leisurely meal) we showed a slide show of pictures from the week and the children performed skits, songs, and recitations. While us adults cleaned up, Marie put some music on for the kids to dance to and it was such a joy to watch them amuse themselves. Soon, they went to bed and our work really started. We washed, put away, and packed everything we could before going to bed.
Saturday:
Today was an early morning. We had a lot to do and very little time to do it in. We had to be out of the chalet by 10 and we were going skiing since we couldn't go yesterday. Even with all the hustle and bustle, I was able to snap a couple of shots of the scenery our last morning.
After breakfast, we washed all the dishes and packed up all the luggage and then walked the kids down to the ski rental shop to pick up our ski boots before walking to the ski slopes. Once we got there we ate lunch and then skied for two hours. I finally left the bunny slope and tried out the first real slope. I did alright. I fell more again, but mostly when I was trying to stop at the bottom - I think partially because it was so slushy, but as others didn't seem to have the same problem, it might have just been me. I fell once riding up the slope too :( Since it's such a short section, the ski lift was just a thing you grabbed onto, put between your legs and pulled you up to the top. I'm not really sure what happened, but just before I reached the top, my left ski caught something on the edge and I landed on my hands and knees (the lift was now in front of me). Thankfully no one was behind me but lots of the kids from the camp were already at the top and saw me - oh well, another lesson in humility. I had lost a ski, but it stayed with me, so I pushed it the rest of the way up and then walked up with one ski and one boot. That was my last time down the slope - I was wiped and decided I should stop before I did myself harm.
Once our time was up, it was a mad dash to get the kids changed out of their ski gear, pack their snow pants, load the luggage in the taxis (we had stored the luggage at the ski slopes), and return the ski gear to the rental place. Once we go to the train we ate our snack and waited. We were not all on the same train. Most of the group was on the 6:30pm train (7 kids, 2 adults), but myself and three others (1 kid and 2 other adults) didn't leave till 8. All the other kids and adults left by car. Waiting til 8 would have been all well and dandy, but the train station closed at 6:30 instead of 10 because of a strike (French national sport, according to my French professor) so we would have had to stand outside, in the cold (it was pretty frigid yet) for an hour an a half. Thankfully, some friends of Marie's had spent the day with us and when they heard that the station was closed they stuck around and let us pile into their car with them to wait.
Once we got on the train, we all ate our sandwiches and promptly fell asleep. I woke up at 11 and decided to stay awake to make sure we didn't miss our stop and we arrived at the station at about midnight.
Afterwards
Slept in till 12:30 at Mimi's, ate brunch, relaxed, went to the McDaniel's for the night. I had to be back at Blanc Mesnil by 2 the following afternoon (Monday) so Paul could show me some things to do. I was under the impression that I would get to relax after he showed me what he wanted, but I ended up working from 4 till 7. I then had to go to the bank and get groceries. Thankfully, both were open. I wasn't too happy about this. I was tired, not expecting to work that late, and just done. I'm sure that if I had said something, I could have stopped earlier, but I got the distinct impression that he wanted everything done quickly, so I just kept at it. Tuesday I worked again, but thankfully I did get to sleep in a bit. Wednesday I went to the new office at Nogent and Thursday I worked at Blanc Mesnil. I was able to come to the McDaniel's Thursday afternoon and had all of Friday off (and will have Monday off too) so that evens it out a bit.
Last bit of news. I had my MRI today, but there was a little mishap with the first sequence of images (before I was injected) so I will have to go back again on Wednesday. Thankfully I don't have to pay again because it was the fault of the technician. Though it is a bit inconvenient, they were very apologetic and I think worked us in when we could come back, so no biggie (for me at least, for Mimi it's probably a bit more inconvenient). One good thing is mom will be here by then!!!! The radiologist did look at the second sequence of images and thinks that all the issues are just the result of an infection, not colesteatoma, but wants the images without injection for comparison before stating it as certainty.
Well, this took much longer than I anticipated, and as it's nearly 4 in the morning and this post is rather lengthy, I'm going to sign off for now.
