But no, it happened, and I am going to brag away. We are completely badass.
We went with some friends, Fay and Shane, who were kind enough to drive. We stayed at the Anova Hotel & Spa in Montgenevre, France, which is juuuust over the border from Italy. Less than a mile, I'm pretty sure. We stopped on the way for a very classy parking lot picnic, wherein we ate a lot of fruit and cheese and crackers, and I particularly enjoyed looking at all the vineyards and castles we passed, and traveling through some Alpine tunnels. The drive wasn't bad, though it was about 4-5 hours and cost 40 Euro in tolls. Anyway, Anova was a very nice hotel, especially for the price we paid. However, we are quickly learning that hotels here tag on all sorts of extra fees for things that would normally be included in the cost of a hotel stay in the States. So, sadly, we did not take advantage of the Spa, but I'm not too broken up about that. Each room had a deck balcony with a fantastic view, and we spent a lot of time hanging out with Fay and Shane on their deck. Tony smoked his first pipe, and I got to lean back and just enjoy the view. OF THE MOUNTAINS, YOU DIRTY-MINDED PEOPLE. We left our home around 10:30 in the morning, so arrived in the afternoon. Once we got settled in the hotel, we walked around Montgenevre, which is quite a small town. It reminded me a lot of Vail, Colorado, mostly because it is a very distinctly ski town. I bet that place is booming in the winter! I read somewhere that it has 100km of ski trails, and through the lift network you can access even more trails than that in other nearby towns. We ate dinner outdoors in the little square after listening to a jazz group play live music.
Tony noticed a tiny picture on the back of one of the hotel pamphlets included in our welcome packet, and we started asking around. It turns out you can take a gondola ride up the mountain and ride a luge back down. I don't know much about winter sports or terminology, but this was not what I think of when I think of a luge. Anyway, we talked about it as a group and agreed that if it was 25 Euro or less, we would do it. Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel and checked out, and Tony hit up the Tourist Information Center to find out about this mysterious luge. Turns out it was only 8.30 Euro! So we parked the car and walked to the ticket office. We stood in line behind two families buying their tickets and it took FOREVER. (Say that in your head like they say it in The Sandlot.) I don't know why it was so complicated for them, because it took us less than a minute for the entire transaction. Maybe because they had to measure their children, I don't know. Kids 1.2 meters and taller could ride alone, and kids smaller than that had to ride in a kid safety seat in their parent's lap. I figured if babies could do it, I could do it. With my purse. HA! I put my purse between my legs and wrapped the handles around one of my arms, and I am very glad I did, otherwise it would have gone flying down the mountain on a steep turn. The luge was about 1400 meters long and supposedly descended over 300m vertically, and you could control your speed somewhat with a lever in front of you. I only slowed down once, I am pleased to say. :) Anyway, it was a lot of fun, and a nice little discovery! Here's Tony after flying through the last tunnel toward the finish line:
And here is photographic evidence that I, too, took the Monty Express:
After that, we hopped in the car and Shane drove us the 2km down the road to the Tibetan bridges. They had their dog with them, a sweet Poodle-Maltese mix named Lolly, and there was some debate about what to do with her while we completed the experience. In the end, the bridge folks agreed that she could go if she stayed in Fay's backpack, and Fay was a trooper! Lolly is now the first dog to traverse those bridges, which happen to be the longest Tibetan suspension bridges in the world!
We got all togged out in our gear, which was basically a harness with two carabiners, and got a quick 5-minute lesson on how to use the carabiners and move them along the cables properly. After that, we set off on a short hike, about ten minutes, to the start. We got an amazing overview of some of the bridges, passed by a little chapel, and descended basically a mountain goat trail. Very scenic, and Lolly completed that portion of the hike all by herself before going into the backpack. Turns out you can also hike UNDER the bridges, along a stream, which we noticed when we saw a lady down there taking pictures...of her idiot husband and children, who started at the end and went backwards along the route with inadequate safety gear, and then lied to the guide about "not seeing signs" when they started. All to avoid the entry fee. I say again, IDIOTS. So we had to wait forever for those ding dongs to cross to our end before starting, which was annoying but actually turned out to be a blessing as we had huge stretches of bridge all to ourselves. (We later found out one of the guides at the starting location escorted the family to the entry and made them pay. Good!) I went first, and after the first step or two, I felt very confident. Tony started next, and the bridge got a little more wobbly once we were both on it, but it wasn't too bad. The rungs were like ladder rungs, so plenty sufficient for a foot to stand on it. We crossed the stream and then made a 90-degree turn onto more bridges which paralleled it to a waterfall. I lost track of how many bridges there were, but I did take time to stop and enjoy the view and take pictures. I'll admit, the first time I took both hands off the railing was a bit nerve-wracking, but I survived. I tried not to do that too often ("one hand for myself, one for the ship" played in my head over and over, along with "maintain three points of contact." Thanks, USCGC EAGLE!) but I was able to get some really fun photos along the way. I was able to handle most of the transitions with ease, but the transition from the first bridge to the second was a little odd. We had to climb via ferrata spikes and cross a short 15-foot bridge, which somehow tripped my brain a little bit. After that though, I was golden.
I hung out at the waterfall and waited for the rest of the group to catch up. At that point, I gave Tony my camera and went back out halfway across one of the bridges so he could get a few pictures of me as well. We completed the last section, which included a hike and the tallest bridge, as a group. This time I brought up the rear, and was able to get my favorite foot picture ever! I always think of my Connecticut sponsor family when I take foot pictures to prove that I was in a certain place. (Hi, Herods!) The entry fee to the bridges is 10 Euro, and it's 5 Euro extra to rent the gear. I thought they could EASILY charge three times that and people would still have a fantastic experience worth that price, and I would happily go back if any future visitors are interested in going. Unfortunately, because of the weather (you know, it's in the ALPS and all) the bridges are only open from May to September, so we hit it up at the perfect time of year. It was an adventure well worth the trek.
I don't know why this loaded 90 degrees off. And I can't figure out how to fix it. So, feel free to use your imagination!
I so have to do this!
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