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Edited by Linda Thalman
Travel & Leisure Articles
Merbibel France - March 2004
From Paris to the Ski Slopes of the 3 Valleys
By Linda ThalmanIn mid-March we had a week of the most extraordinary powder snow 'hors piste' skiing I've ever had in my life... and I've been on skies since I was 4 years old!
We warmed up on Saturday afternoon and Sunday in the densest fog I've seen in a long time.
You couldn't even see the tips of your skies while sitting on the chair lift, let along figure out where the runs were.
Should we ski left, right or center?
As only the French can do, we had to take a black piste (the most difficult) to get to a red piste (slightly less difficult) to find our way back to our studio in Méribel-Mottaret.
The green and blue runs were much further down and were we glad to get to them on our wobbling legs in the fog!
We signed up for ski lessons in Group 3 with the Ecole de Ski Méribel and on Monday the real fun began: skiing in powder!
Oh my gosh - am I going to ski down slopes so steep in deep powder snow? I did - in one piece - but with a few falls covered in snow from ski goggles to boots.
We've taken many a ski class in France, but our week in Méribel with Cédric Gorrand stands out as the best ski teacher we've ever had. And our ski class group of 10 people were just delightful.
Tuesday was more powder snow, perfecting our skills and then came Wednesday.
We had to climb, carrying our skies and poles (well, truthfully, Cédric carried my skies half the way), up, up, up and up - way off the beaten path.
And then down, down, down through mush, ice, powder, crusty snow, more powder and and few kilometers of nearly flat valley skiing in the most beautiful setting.
I wasn't sure I was going to make it after a fall that pulled a muscle, but thanks to Cédric's encouragement and patience, I did.
Restaurant: Bateau Ivre - Courchevel
By Linda Thalman
We'd planned to have lunch at the Bateau Ivre for about a year - and what a delight.
Our table looked out over the Alps in Courchevel on a splendidly sunny day.
Pierre started with sea urchins on a bed of sea salt and topped with a crème de coquillage, followed by tender lamb with an anchovy dip and a chocolate dessert with passion fruit.
I chose the Saint-Jacques with 5 salad greens for my main course and had a melt-in-your-mouth pear with honey and lemon sauce for dessert.
We shared a half bottle of white Condrieu 2002 La Loge - Jean Michel Gerin and a red Margaux 1996 from the Château Marquis de Mons. Heavenly.
The service was perfection as was the beautiful presentation and taste for each dish we had including the mise en bouche and the mousse d'epinard with a shrimp emulsion.
Lunch lasted from 13:30 to 16:30 and it was a most memorable way to remember our skiing holiday in the "3 Valleys" of Courchevel, Meribel and Val Thorens.
Bateau Ivre - Hôtel Pomme de Pin
Phone: +33 (0)4 79 00 11 71
Open from Mid-December to Mid-April
Chef: Jean-Pierre Jacob
Lunch set menu from 70 to 150 euros and à la carte 110 to 145 euros.
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