Chamonix - Slow and Often

Max Blinkhorn from Scotland

Travel notes for Chamonix, in the French Alps.

I first landed in Chamonix in 1999; skiing was my route in. No I don't mean I ski'd there! I went for the skiing. I was far from the first, too. Chamonix has had a British presence for over 100 years. A procession of literary stars visited the Valley in 19th Century and the "Lake Poets" wrote about the valley after they tired of Windermere and Coniston. The town accepted these visitors and in doing so, set the precedent for the current invasion of British people taking up residence there. The town also has a large contingent of Scandinavians, Italians and lately Russians. Cosmopolitan, it is!

It's a great town to visit almost year round - November is not ideal but the mountains don't close and there's always a few bars and restaurants that keep running out of some sort of commercial culinary bravado. December to April, winter sports dominate. It's not mamby pamby stuff though - it's tough and challenging terrain. Beginners are catered for and I personally think it's the best place to learn to ski in the world but it's not for poseurs more interested in gear than skiing quality. I must say at this point, that I did see a pair of Chanel skis on the Grand Montets this year but Meribel it ain't! In Summer, the crowds throng the valley and temperatures often reach 30 degrees Centigrade.

A peek underneath the veneer of souvenir shops and clothing stores reveals Chamonix's depth and history. The Musee Alpin is an exposition of the early days of Alpinism. Gourmet food shops stock fabulous regional foods (shop around though). The market stocks the usual oddly branded gear and local produce (especially cheeses). The offices of the Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix is wonderful and spells out the raison d'etre of the modern town. The cablecar up to the Aiguille du Midi is stupefyingly extreme and many of the hotels are in the classic style and log fires are "de rigeur".

Chamonix is setting its face towards the challenges of the 21st Century. Despite a strong local ecological movement, the very savvy local authority is building a new underground car park and waste disposal site. Everything you need is available in the town - a magnificent sports centre with a superb indoor ice rink - in French a "patinoire" and a gorgeous pool. It even has it's own hospital should you have the misfortune to need one. The town's infrastructure is very powerful with good road and rail services although the railway is narrow gauge and getting here from Geneva Airport, the nearest entry point takes a good three hours and up to two changes of train. Contrast that with the road journey which takes under 75 minutes. But if you like trains, that three hours might be part of your holiday?

A visit to other Alpine towns will show you how much they rely on tourism - they die outside the twin summer and winter high seasons. Not so Chamonix. And that was what attracted us to the place. The astounding scale of the Mont Blanc massif always leaves me open mouthed whenever I return there. Imagine the Grand Canyon inverted but higher and that's the massif. Twenty five miles long, permanently snow-capped, continuously climbed on by brave people, seventy or more of whom die on the mountain every year, it is the ultimate extreme playground.

Hooked as we were, we purchased a modest chalet-apartment in 2000 and sealed our own fate. Chamonix is the centre of our universe in many respects even though we live and work over a thousand miles from it. In the four years since, we have spent a total of around five months there and have developed a sensitivity for the place that whistle-stopping travelers never reach. Despite 10 per cent of the population being British, it's still totally French (or should that be Alpine? I suspect so - living with the mountains presents the same challenges to the French as it does the Italians, Swiss and Austrians).

The townspeople dislike the incomers - at least those "arrivistes" who defiantly remain true to their origins. I've found that a simple attempt to speak French brings compliments, smiles and a lightening of the atmosphere wherever you are. Being able to make yourself understood, on occasion, brings applause! The French can be cussed over many things but they aren't the caricatures that people love to sneer at. Come one now, let he who has not sinned cast the first stone!

People who intend to stay are treated well and by a section of the natives, with fascination. A friend who has lived in Chamonix for over three years is now very well plugged in. She has taken the trouble to "join" and sees "La Difference" between Gallic and Anglo-Saxon peoples clearly. "The more I know of the French, the more I realize how different they are to us". They drive madly" she says, " too close, too fast and they take risks". She goes on to explain that the government's 'Roule Coule' campaign has exhorted drivers to drive more politely. Ironically, they cite the British as an ideal driving style model (loud guffaws from British readers here!). The fact is that the French have a twice the number of road deaths as the British who's roads are crowded and fast. Recently, there has been talk of removing the wonderful rows of trees alongside French roads. Drivers have been crashing into them. It doesn't take much thought to realize that the problem is the fact the vehicle leaves the road rather than the stationary tree, which was just stood there, minding it's own business when some fool... you get my drift?

Sending their children to School on a Saturday morning seems eminently sensible too - get them out of the way so we can get on with important things like shopping. But as happens all over France, people go out "en famille" and nothing is off limits.

I could go on ... But I won't. Take it from me, Chamonix is well worth a long, slow stop off. The opportunity for physical output balances the danger of gastronomic input so you needn't worry about your waistline. And the options for walking and traveling further a field are huge. Give it a go some time - you'll like it.

Max Blinkhorn runs a website with vacation rentals in Chamonix and the French Alps. www.gochamonix.com

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