Val d'Isere Apres Ski Report: 10th January 2013
New Year, Same Commitment!
Now that over a week has passed since New Year’s, its time to accept certain things. No, we will not be nicer to the coworker who purposefully doesn’t do her job. No, we will not be going to the gym 5 times a week or eating only one croissant a day. And no, we will not stop going out, drink less, and behave more. Nope. In fact, we have continued to do the shopping cart dance followed by the lawnmower dance followed by the fishing reel dance as most of our friends have left the dancefloor out of shame of who their friends are. We have continued to drink Jagerbombs, much to our liver’s chagrin even though it was our top resolution for 2013. We can’t help it. This is Val d’Isère, after all!
This week, as many others in the past and many others in the future, was spent in some of our favorite Val d’Isère spots. As we had every intention of keeping our New Year’s resolutions, we began our apres-ski session at l’Ouillette over in Solaise. Not only is it an absolute prime place to work on your goggle tan, but with its outdoor barbeque, you will eat like a king. Nothing like a little beer and a hot chèvre and honey toast to carry you into the afternoon! This place also happens to be home to some of the most comfortable booths and seats should you need a nap before getting back on the pistes! After a relaxing 3 hour break from the pistes, we were on our way.
Our next stop took us to another world entirely: the sweet hysteria, also known as, La Folie Douce. As can be expected with the unbelievable sunny weather we’ve been having, Folie Douce was completely packed and raging hard. With Kelly White layering his energetic vocals on the DJ’s tracks in accompaniment to a violinist, saxophone player, and drummer, the party was on. Oh - and how can we forget about the insanity that is a fire-breathing human being? We were pretty satisfied with the afternoon especially when many partygoers decided that shirts were overrated and didn’t match their ski or snowboard boots. Shirtless table dancing? We’ll take it!
Up next was a must-do spot; we absolutely had to stop by the Grand Marnier and take another taste of their famous Grand Marnier hot chocolates. One or two, and you’re as happy as can be! And if you’re hungry don’t forget to try one of their delicious crepes. Seriously, one could argue that they’re some of the best in Val d’Isère! It is also here that you can really appreciate the life of our favorite French locals. With ski instructors, off-duty pisteurs, and high flyers in the mayor’s office, this is the most common watering hole for the best and frenchest of Val d’Isère.
With that craziness under our belts, we were ready to move on to something a little more mellow and headed to Le Saloon Bar. Here, we were sure to take advantage of their awesome two pints for 6 euro deal between 15:00 and 17:00. As a nice addition to the casual Saloon atmosphere, we had the pleasure of being serenaded by one of their skilled après-ski musicians rocking some of our favorite acoustic covers. The problem with Saloon, especially that late in the afternoon, is that Saloon is a fully fledged bar, meaning it closes at 02:00! The problem with Saloon is that, in addition to being a bar that serves alcohol beverages until 02:00, it is a place of madness that has its own set of rules. Drink with your right hand? Down your drink. Don’t tap out? Down your drink. Knock your drink over? Down your new drink… from your shoe. Sometimes, you have to learn the rules the hard way! Don’t say we didn’t explain it to you in advance!
Rules are rules and I think I'd rather follow these rules than any resolutions.....
Bon apres!
