OR Living a Savoy Winter
Post II from les 3 Vallées
5 fevrier 2025
Bonjour friends and family,
We have been in les 3 Vallées for 26 days so far and have taken advantage of the fabulous skiing here for 17 days so far.
Andy and I began the day with a morning walk to our favorite patisserie, Chalet Alpain, adjacent to the gondola which we ride up on ski days. Often we end our day here so I can pick up a baguette to accompany dinner and croissants for the next morning. After breakfast our walk became a hike. On a previous stroll, we climbed up to the beautiful Baroque Notre-Dame-de-la-Vie (1633-1680), one of the most stunning churches in the region.
Today, we explored a local trail along the River Doron. We were passed by skiers who came down as we climbed up. We ended at the Saint Marcel Dam (built in 2008) which regulates the water used to produce artificial snow for the local ski areas and also includes a fish pass which allows trout to circulate in the area. A bit more up hill and we were back at our chalet.
In doing a little research about the San Marcel Dam, I came across some interesting history, including this area’s devotion to sustainability: clean energy, protecting biodiversity and water preservation. In the mid-1960’s Saint-Martin-de-Belleville was an isolated farming community. Over the previous decade, its population had declined by more than two thirds. The mayor proposed a plan to develop the area for tourism which led to the development of Les Menuires (1964-67) and Val Thorens (1973), all within the commune of Saint-Martin-de-Belleville. The gondola where we start our ski day, has been around since 2002, helping to attract tourists, while keeping Saint-Martin-de-Belleville’s ambience low-key, quaint and focused on preserving the environment.
I also read that the Savoy region had once been part of Italy. That is partly true, although Italy was not a unified Italy until the Risorgimento (unification 1861-1871) and this area became part of France in 1860. The region had been part of the Kingdom of Sardinia. In preparation for the unification of Italy, the Treaty of Turin was negotiated and both Nice and the Duchy of Savoy were ceded to France. This occurred during the reign of Napoleon III (who has been mentioned in previous Paris and Mexico City posts). The decision of the Duchy of Savoy to become part of France was voted upon in what is known to have been a “deeply flawed plebiscite,” securing that the popular vote would see this referendum pass.
This territorial transfer is why this region of the Western Alps is called Savoie. Les Belleville is a commune in the Savoie department of southeastern France, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Its capital is Lyon, reachable by train in less than three hours (after 12 miles of switchbacks to descend to the train station at Moûtiers). Two weekends ago, I made that trip to rendezvous with my friend Kenden whom I had met in Paris, September of 2023. We had a great reunion and enjoyed some of the best that Lyon has to offer, including les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse, named for “the pope of gastronomy” (1926-2018) and associated with nouvelle cuisine. We also enjoyed a pre-dinner drink at the beautiful and historic Dôme cocktail bar at Lyon’s Intercontinental Hotel, the former Grand Hôtel-Dieu, a former hospital dating back to the 12th century and gorgeously renovated.
Andy had a quiet weekend of great skiing as we were between guests. Our first visitors were Mary and Jim who decided to come for a few days of skiing between their flights to and from London. We had some beautiful days on the slopes and a most memorable dinner at our little hamlet’s resident Michelin Star restaurant, La Bouitte. Thank you for a lovely and delicious evening.
Our next guest was my jet-setting friend and cousin Sheryl who visited from Vancouver en route to Paris and St. Moritz for White Turf St. Moritz – International Horse Races on Snow (since 1907) . Our skiing together goes back to high school, when we skied freezing cold Mont Tremblant one February. Sheryl was a year ahead of me at Duke and she got me into the best dorm on campus and introduced me to amazing women, to this day, my dearest friends. This was a reunion visit for us as we had lost touch over the years (we didn’t even have each other’s email addresses) but we picked up where we left off and had a fun few days together. The highlight of Shery’s visit was our day and evening in Courchevel. There was skiing, shopping, oligarch-sighting and a Women’s World Cup slalom race, Mikaela Shifrin’s return to competition after her injury at Killington in November. It was very apparent that Mikaela is an international fan favorite and while she didn’t win, the crowd went wild for her.
More guests arrive over our next seven weeks and we are looking forward to sharing this scenic spot with our visitors and creating more memories.
À bientôt!
The Innocents Abroad, 21st Century Version 