Penguin Pears

Roger and Jools who run Chalet Renard over in Les Coches produced these cute 'Penguin Pears' for desert when one of our guests, Peter ( featured in 'Finlays Drinks Evening' back along ) , went over to visit them. Not entirely sure if it's intentional they look like penguins (can pears be moulded like bonsai trees???), but thats what they look like! Sure they tasted yummy too.

The weather of late in Val d'Isere hasn't been too inspiring, lots of low clouds, the odd rain drop in resort, that's good news though as it means snow higher up!!

We are forecast snow for this weekend so lets hope it dumps down!!

Despite the lack of snow, the pistes are still in brilliant condition, despite the flogging they would have been getting the last few weeks with all the extra people what with it being half term and all!

Snow dances will be done, snow will fall (hopefully!!).

Last nights 'Drinks Evening' !!!

Last nights drinks evening was a roaring success, even with the abscence of Richard Finlay who's back in London for a few days with Deborah.
A good turnout was had and a joyous time was had by all.
Pictured left and below are guests from Chalet Branges and Persval. The band was a big hit and this linked human chain ran to a lot more people than pictured here.
Not only was there swaying going on, singing was done too by the crowd, some report it was great, others ghastly, I guess it all depends on how much 'Kir' had been consumed!! Regardless, encores were called for, more singing and swaying done, and amazingly everyone was back in their chalets in time for dinner!
No doubt Richard was missed by all, he'll be there again next week though!!

Market Evening and Airboarding

As everyone is well aware by now, Monday in Val d'Isere is Market Day, it really does get very busy. The stalls are now at their maximum number and a few new jewellery and nic-nac stalls have opened up. Lots of interest tonight was being shown on the sock and hat stalls, obviously it's a lot chillier up the top of the mountain than people initially thought, that or they just like hats and their socks are smelly!!

For the kids who aren't interested in looking around market stalls, they can go and entertain themselves by flinging themselves down the mountain on an 'airboard', a mini inflatable mattress. They launch themselves head first and from what I saw, the padded barriers at the end of the track came in very handy!! Anyone can partake, it's not just for kids.

It takes place on the snow front from 6pm onwards and the area is illuminated by floodlights with music pumping away. Ski boots and board boots are banned, but helmets are provided.
Great fun for all!!!

Pedestrian Evening

Thursday evenings are 'Pedestrian Evening' in Val d'Isere. The high street gets closed off between the two main roundabouts and various activities take place.

There is always an ice carver who wows the crowd with his ability to make beautiful sculptures out of a chunk of ice, a chainsaw and a blowtorch. I couldnt quite figure out what he was making this week, it kind of looked like 'James Brown', I could very well be mistaken though.

The sculptures always get put on display around the main square in Val so I'll have to go and have a closer look tomorrow to see if I am then any the wiser (that is if no-one has knocked his head off by then!)

If you're inspired by the ice carver, then further down the high street there are numerous blocks of snow where the public can have a go at sculpting. Chainsaws are not provided, but the 'artists' there tonight seemed to be doing pretty well with the tools they were supplied with.

In the square in front of the tourist office, 'Vin Chaud' is provided, free of charge. More often than not, there's a mini stage set up too with a small band performing.


A procession goes on through the high street stopping en-route in various spots. Different performances take place each week, this week we had a band, other weeks have seen men on stilts, scary jumbo fantasy critters and so on. The band tonight were most jovial and had the spectators dancing and bopping around.

The high street remains closed between 6pm and 7pm, be warned if you're attempting to drive anywhere between those times as you'll be diverted along the back streets.

The evening usually concludes with an impressive fireworks display, however, if there has been one earlier in the week, like there was this week with the torchlit descent on tuesday, then it sometimes just ends!! Still worth going on down to have a look at whats going on, if you're not impressed you can always jump in a pub or shop!


If you want to know in advance what the theme of the evening will be and if the fireworks will take place (weather permitting), then all the information required can be found in the 'Val Scope', a free weekly publication informing of all local events, very handy! These are provided for your convenience in all of our chalets, (for our guests that is!! If you're not staying with us, you can pick one up in the Tourist Office!!!).

New arrivals !!!

The clouds finally rolled in this afternoon and a lazy day was had in general.

We ventured off to the 'Moris Pub', one of Val d'Iseres oldest establishments, for a late lunch/early dinner from their extensive burger menu. Servings were huge and the fact it was happy hour (4pm-6pm), made the outing seem like quite the bargain.

Just as all the skiers started to troop in for the essential 'Apres ski', we departed for another trip to the farm!!! The 'Brown' family who stayed with us last week in Chalet Ruby went to the farm for dinner on Wednesday and came back claiming half the cows were about to give birth so we just had to see if any had!

The farm was heaving, I've never seen so many people there before, or animals. A pony crept out of the hay barrels, 3 cats were tormenting a calf and a family of pigs were being most vocal, the residential loopy dog was causing chaos too demanding lots of attention with a mangled chewy stick, pleasant.

Regardless, we got there at milking time, 6pm, quite the spectacle. From what I could gather, the lovely bovines produce 18 litres of milk a day. We bought a litre of fresh milk, straight from a cow and still warm, Louis Pasteur would be turning in his grave if he only knew!

We located one new born calf, only hours old and still covered in funky stuff. He /she/ it, was most keen on finger sucking, think I dazed the poor blighter though by taking this picture. It was very cute though. Its neighbour was an older calf, they were the only two we could find, although we did find the maternity ward, those Mamas are huge!!! One looked like a calf was going to pop out any second, I'll have to return tomorrow to see if the offspring has arrived.

Anyone can go along to see the cows, milking times are probably the most popular times, well, the evening session is, not sure many people would go for the 6am milking session, feel free to do so though!!

Flying on a lawnmower with wings!!

The Sun is out (again), the sky is cloudless and a brilliant blue (again), a perfect day really to cash in the Microlite flight I won a few weeks ago via Radio Val d'Isere, 96.1 fm.

We sent Richard up a few years ago for his birthday, then Craig went up last year and they both came back in one piece so I decided to take my chances, even though the boys sat in the office this morning coming out with all kinds of encouraging snippets of information, ie, 'No engine is guaranteed not to fail', and,'If the engine does fail, you'll glide a bit before crashing', Thanks guys!! Lucky for me the engine didn't fail and a great flight was had.

The Microlite lives up on the Bellevarde mountain and is easily spotted with it's big yellow wings. It's owned by a jovial French guy, Philippe.

After plonking a helmet on my head and strapping me to a chair and indicating foot rests ( which my legs were too short to reach), I was given my safety briefing, 'Ok, anything loose which you drop will go in the propellor and it will stop'. Riiiighhhhttt. Que to hold on to the camera extra tight.

I'd dragged Craig up with me to act as photographer and moral support, not much chance was given though to back out of this little adventure, no sooner had I been seated then we were off!

Not even near the scary experience I was anticipating, fortunate for me, there wasnt a wisp of wind and it was a most smooth flight, not even the
odd jerk to set the old heart a fluttering. We flew off out towards Tignes and the dam, then back around and over the top of Val ( I saw my house, couldn't spot our fleet of Finlays vehicles though!). It all really was very stunning. Unluckily, I'd taken Richards camera up with me ( better to risk dropping someone elses camera than your own!!), and lo and behold, midway through merrily snapping away, the camera announced the memory card was full, Bah!!!! Shall have to go up again for another flight and more snapshots!

It really is an activity that anyone can do and it is quite reasonably priced, 80 euros for a flight over Val d'Isere and 120 euros for a flight which takes you out over Tignes too. A fantastic opportunity for any non-skiers who still want to see the grandeur of the mountains, or for anyone who has had the misfortune of doing themselves an upper body injury but doesnt want to just sit around in a chalet all day!!

Philippe flys most days, weather permitting. If he's not out buzzing in the skies above, you'll find him in a deckchair next to his flying machine just itching to take you on up!

Another picture perfect day!!

Sun, sun and more sun has been the story of this week, conditions really have been fab. The area of high pressure which has been around will be around for another week by the looks of things, this could always change though!

It's a busy time of season out on the slopes with the French and UK school holidays, there tends to be a lot of small people zipping around the pistes so be careful out there!

Please remember that there are 'Rules of the Mountains', these should be followed at all times and especially during half term weeks as it is so much busier. I think one of the most important rules is 'Check behind you before setting off '. It's amazing how many people cruise on off without a care in the world without seeing who's coming down the slopes behind them, a seconds glance behind could prevent a nasty collision!

'Rules of the Mountains' are posted in a lot of the buses and on the piste maps.

Happy and safe skiing!!

Birthday Celebrations!!!

Happy 60th Birthday Pat Woo!!!

Sunday evening saw Pats Birthday celebrations commence with a meal at the 'Grand Ourse' restaurant. She was joined by her close friends and family and the party numbered 24 in total. With such a large group, they were placed upstairs in the mezzanine level which accommodated them all perfectly.

The Grand Ourse was built in 1937 and has prime location on the snowfront, nestled nicely between the Solaise and Bellevarde mountains, it's a sun trap when the sun shines, and also avoids the wind on those blustery days, perfect for all conditions really! It's a listed building due to frescos in the dining room by the French painter 'Fautrier'.

The meal was fantastic, as is always the case at the Grand Ourse and a jolly time was had by all.
Pat is pictured to the right in the picture, Deborah is central and to the right we have Olivia. Olivias other half, Peter, was posted a few weeks ago having attended our 'Finlays Drinks Evening'. Peter and Olivia met during a Finlays holiday a number of years ago whilst staying in Chalet Echo, not a totally unsimilar situation to Richard and Deborahs meeting and romance, but that's a story for Richard to post!!

Farewell Gemma, Welcome Claire!!!

The week has just flown by here in Val, talking to guests departing this morning though, they reckon they had the most perfect week with their mix of fresh snow and bright sunny days!! It was all really pretty spiffing!!
Today saw the Finlays team saying farewell to Gemma (pictured left), one half of the dynamic Chalet Bivouac duo, the other half being Aly, (pictured right!). Due to a skiing injury to her knee, Gemma unfortunately had to return to the UK to receive further consultations, we're hoping she won't have be operated on and wish her a speedy recovery!
With the departure of Gemma, we welcome Claire who will step in to her place to work alongside Aly, I'm sure they'lll be a great team and continue the fantastic job of running 'Biv'.

Day tripping to Les Coches

A murky day in Val d'Isere, snow was abundant and the skies a gloomy shade of grey, lucky for us, we'd arranged a lunch date in Les Coches with Richards neice, Catherine.
The hours drive over to Les Coches made no difference to the weather conditions, we arrived there to discover rain!
However, it wasnt raining in the restaurant, even though it had been recommended to us as it's supposedly a great place to sit on the terrace in the sun! Hmmmm.
It was very nice inside though, the food was the standard alpine fare, pizza, pasta, salads etc etc, servings were generous and the price seemed a bargain compared to what we're used to in Val. Thanks to Andrew who smuggled away the bill before we could assess the damage and hunt through our wallets for euros.
After several hours of munching and drinking, the clouds had parted to reveal patches of blue sky and a hint of sunshine, we bid goodbye to our dining companions and off they went skiing back over to La Plagne and we set off for home.
Views are always great from Les Coches, it looked spiffing driving down the hairpins today with all the low cloud in the valley, photo worthy indeed.
A very fine day out!!

Where has the sun gone?

This is the rather gloomy view from our office window this morning. It's chilly too and the odd snowflake is just starting to fall now.

Winds are quite blustery and will be all day.

It's market day in Val today so if anyone's forgotton anything or has decided more thermals are needed, then it is the ideal place to pick up things at a semi-reasonable price. It's around the streets of Val from 8.30am till 8pm.

Tonight is also the 'Finlays Drinks Evening' at the Pacific Pub from 6pm, all our guests are welcome, as are friends, family, previous guests etc etc etc!!!

This week Val d'Isere is hosting a conference for over 300 Doctors from the UK, several of whom are staying in our Chalets. This conference is based in the Congress Centre here in Val, we wish them all a great week of both work and play!!!

Congratulations Bode Miller!!!!

Congratulations Bode Miller from America who won both of the races today, the best time being 2 minutes and 18.45 seconds. It was a stunning day for the events, although the light did give out a bit this afternoon making it a little harder for the racers, they didn't look to be having any problems to me though, they were all flying!

'Spot the skier' in the picture to the right. Not quite sure who the skier is, I think they all did really well though.

The picture below shows what a stunning day it was and where the race track was marked out, there is an extra bit aswell at the top which we can't actually see.

Don't think I'll ever be up for competing, (not that I would want to, it all seems a bit too fast and scary for me!), it always takes me at least 6 times longer to get down the 'Face', than these guys! Think I'll stay merrily plodding along at my own easy pace, no doubt there will be the odd hopeful out on the slopes tomorrow trying to beat Bodes time!!

Scotland 'v' France

A beautiful day here in Val d'Isere, Richard is getting set up for this afternoons Rugby, Scotland 'v' France!!!
After the races were cancelled here in resort yesterday due to the weather conditions, they are all set to take place today. They kick off at 10.30 am with the 'Super-Combined downhill' then at 2pm there is the Slalom.
It truly is a glorious day after the harshness of yesterdays conditions. The only element which could hinder our guests today is the wind, I can presently see snow being blown off the top of the mountain from the office window. It's blowing from the south at between 40 and 60 kph, hopefully this will die down later.
I'll be back tonight with news from the competition, Good Luck to everyone racing!!

Orders from above....

..... are saying 'Don't feed that miserable, pathetic dog!!' How could anyone refuse poor 'LadyBoy' though when she comes around so patiently (most the time) looking for leftovers and doing a good job of keeping our fridge nice and clean and meat-free! She plays the whole pathetic card so well too and if we don't immediately notice her sitting at the office door, she'll eventually let us know she's there by the odd gentle tap on the door with a paw or muffled semi-bark, if we continue to ignore or not notice her, then she'll start to get grumpy with us and turn to barking.
She's content with the scrappiest of scraps, then she'll scarper off, no doubt to the next mug who feels sorry for her and will give her more food! An hour later she'll be back at the office again and so it goes on, all season long!!! She's a little smelly, but all in all we think she's great.

The whole reason we have a 'Ladyboy' feature today is the 'Mens Downhill' got cancelled due to the weather conditions. We had around 20cm of fresh snow fall overnight and the pisteurs decided they couldn't take the snow machines to the piste as it could damage the course. Such a shame really as so many people were looking forward to it and also so much money has been spent on it. Rumours are that it could be held in Norway later in the season.
The 'Mens super-combined race' and the 'Super-combined slalom races are both still scheduled for tomorrow. The forecast is promising sun so lets hope it's correct so the races can go ahead.

Mens Alpine World Cup 2008

With the Mens World Cup competition starting tomorrow, tonight saw a presentation evening take place on the snow front. It was a lively event with gold medalists from the 1992 olympics (I think, it was mainly in French so I got a little confussed in places), up on stage giving talks, along with lots of other skiers from various countries.
Lots of plugging was done for the 2009 World Cup which will also be held here.
The new soup which has been made especially for the 2009 World
Cup was given it's debute and was classed as 'Excellent' by folk up on stage. All spectators were given samples, I brought mine back to the office for Richard to try, he claims it's 'Not bad', though he couldnt exactly specify what kind of soup it was or if it was vegetarian or not. The recipe is supposed to be posted on the internet but as of yet I have failed to locate it, I shall continue the search.
Aswell as the soup being unveiled, the new poster, again for the 2009 World Cup was shown for the 1st time. There was a big countdown (well, from 5 down), then voila, there it was amongst flashing lights and fireworks. No doubt it will now be posted everywhere, it's quite a colourful number, shall try and post a copy of it in the next day or two, unless of course you have super eyesight and can see the posters the two guys are holding up in the bottom picture! We all got given a copy of the poster along with our soup.
I was under the impression that the bibs were going to be given out to the competitors of this weekends races tonight, but unless I was looking in the wrong place, I unfortunately missed this bit.
After all the events and fireworks a 'Rolling Stones' tribute band played, by which time though my feet had frozen so I returned to the office where the odd warble reached us, by accounts from various guests though, they were very good!