Sunday, 22 January 2012

Oh Oh What A Feeling, When You're Dancing On The Table!












Arpette night. What can I say? Where should I start? Where CAN I start??? I'll try here...........

It was Nick's birthday so in order to celebrate, Robyn organised a gaggle of us to get together to hit the Arpette Bar and eat some food, have some drinks and do a little dancing. All of those things happened with rather hilarious consequences! We had all pre-ordered our food which could have been either a fondue, raclette or hot rock. There were 20 of us in total and not ONE person ordered fondue. We were definitely all still full from it the Friday before! I went for the hot rock which was an excellent choice as I just couldn't face any more cheese. Only burnt my finger twice which I was impressed with. Included with our meal was a bottle of wine EACH which definitely brought a smile to our faces. After we'd stuffed our faces it was time to move into the other room where the disco was to begin...........

Now, at the Arpette Bar, it is perfectly acceptable to stand on their tables and dance around like an idiot - and that we all did very well indeed! It was even socially acceptable for the boys to take their shirts off - so that they did! I took a horrendous amount of photo's of the boys with their kit off (can you really blame me?!?!) but I put a few of the PC ones on here as to not offend any faint hearted readers! After plying us with obscene amounts of alcohol and knackering us out with all the dancing, it was time to make it down to Bar King Mad for more drinks and debauchery. Only thing is, the bar is on the piste so the only way down is to snowboard or ski...........

In lies the next problem! We were all very merry and had to 'buddy up' as to not lose anyone. Now Mum, if you're reading this, don't worry there were 'mountain police' there to help out if anything untoward happened but we all gave it a good shot! We proceeded down the mountain with a lot of cries of  "HEY BUDDY!" so we all knew where we were at but we all made it in one piece. It was a rocky start as you can see from the pics above but it was a sweet relief to make it back alive - it's very dark out there at night time you know!

After drinking more of the night away at Bar King Mad, it was time to retire to The Loft where a wonderful present was waiting for me - my brand new Salomander snowboard!! I was pretty chuffed it has to be said. Great way to end my most epic night in France so far! Here's to many more........

Thursday, 19 January 2012

I've Got My Mojo Back!







I've now left The Loft and headed back up the mountain to stay in Nancroix again before heading down the mountain for the last time and til the end of the season! To wrap up my first stint at The Loft we had a scaletrix night. Took me right back to my youth when me and my sister had a huge circuit that was permanently set up in our study. We were totally addicted. The love of the game was still very much there but unfortunately my talent for controlling my speed without flying off the race track was long gone.

My lovely friend Helen had bought me the One Direction calender for Christmas (how well she know's me!) and it is now hanging oh so proudly in The Loft. I wasn't quite expecting Charley to be so ecstatic about it but she was thrilled! Takes a One D fan to know one.....

Have been having some great days snowboarding. We're in desperate need of some fresh snow which is imminent apparently but we're getting by. I really can't complain can I! I've been getting a lot braver and have a bit more faith in my ability these days so am getting up to my old tricks again. That being said, I went in for some off piste action, went up a huge mound, flew 6ft in the air, screamed with joy then hit the deck - hard! That was my back gone for the rest of the day.

I think having a big splat was just what I needed as I then had the balls to hit the park which I had forgotten how much I enjoy. Been flying off some green kickers, getting more height each time and have been attempting to perfect my box skills. There's a rainbow rail that has my name all over it - I'm just too chicken to approach it! But give me some time and I'll be writing a post about how I've nailed it!! Watch this space.....

Sunday, 15 January 2012

Jo and Token Make Carbonara








Token and I decided that we would make a Carbonara for dinner. Problem was, neither of us can cook. We blame our Mum's for cooking so wonderfully for us that we've never really seen the need to learn. Now I know I moved out of home for 5 years and did have to fend for myself but it would normally involve something from a jar, something in a microwave or something that someone else made for me! But we manned up to the challenge and randomly picked the ingredients and managed to get them right! When we got back to The Loft, Token tried to Google a recipe but they all seemed a bit complex so we just started chucking things in the pan and hoped for the best! Our recipe included lardons, salami, creme fraiche, garlic, parmesan and tagliatelle. It was actually bloody tasty! The verdict was that next time we'll probably use a little less creme fraiche but still, our Mum's would have been very proud of our creation! Nigella and Gordon can rest assured that their jobs are safe......

Saturday, 14 January 2012

Funi, Friends and Fondue










 
There's been a lot going on this week so I thought I'd share it with you all in one post. Lets start from the top and work our way down (oooo errrr!). Been riding with some awesome people who have really pushed my riding and it has forced me to be more hardcore than I may have liked. But I've lived to tell the tale so not all bad! The top pic is of Henry aka Token who represents Funi better than anyone on the slopes. He's Funi'd up to the max! I think that this picture should be the new ad campaign for sure. Henry and Chris had found an awesome off piste natural jump which they decided to fling themselves off (vaguely successfully) but it got me off piste which was ace. Next up we have Elliot in a rather fetching wig. It actually belong's to Chris but I think it accompanies Elliot's tache quite spectacularly.....French Porn Star anyone?!?.Josh went to the charity shop and got himself an epic onesie which cost him the sum of 4euros! I think you'll agree he can pull off that look rather well......It was Willem's last day on Friday and to send himself off in style he managed to break his hand - with the impressive x-ray to prove it! But to celebrate his last night we went on a mass Loft outing for Fondue which was incredible. You really can't beat melted cheese and bread. As the Aussie guys would say - yummo!! I've been working all day today so am exhausted and am going to enjoy a day off the slopes tomorrow. I have a lot of sleep to catch up on. The Loft has broken me but in a truly amazing way.

Thursday, 12 January 2012

Killer Night








Loft life is fab. There is such a great crew of people and everyone is on top form when the drinks come out! The other night we had a 'Killer' pool tournament in which in instigator of the game conveniently won......but none of us were that bitter about it.....well.....maybe just me! Who needs a pub when you have such good drinking buddies in your own home! The next days riding proved to be another successful day and I was finally back on my snowboard after having it fixed. It's still not perfect but at least it means I can ride it again. It's so much more flexible than the one I borrowed which meant I had far more confidence in it and could play around a lot more. As usual, a day's riding turned into an evening of apres in the sunshine - this time at Bar King Mad at 1800. Very happy times. The funicular ride down delivered it's own amusements and then most people went out in Bourg afterwards. I on the other hand was knackered from the mountain so passed out instead. Must learn to man up from time to time and try and keep up with the boys......

Monday, 9 January 2012

The Night We Strained Our Hamstrings






My delayed arrival at The Loft finally happened and it was worth the wait. There's nothing like being initiated into a large group of people than getting involved in a mass drinking game! I thought I'd come over from a hard day snowboarding to enjoy a quiet glass of wine with my new hostel mates but the night had other ideas. And I wasn't disappointed! First game of the night was 'Flip Cup' and I was thrilled to see that red cups would be involved - took me back to my American adventure last year. I was officially rubbish at flip cup so it's safe to say that my side of the table didn't win.....the girls then suggested we play the 'Cereal Box Game' which I've always seen people play but never been involved in. I definitely wasn't as flexible as I thought I was! Strong effort was put in by all, especially and surprisingly by the boys! The shock winner of the game was Elliot and standing at 6ft2 it was a very impressive sight to behold. Robyn (pictured above in the lunge position) still hasn't quite recovered from the game two days on! There was then a mass house exodus to the pub and the boys proudly wore their home made badges. Great way to start my life at The Loft.