Woke up in Chamonix on a Sunday and first thing we did was search for places to stay in Florence, ‘casue the next day we were flying to Pisa. This whole Europe trip was unplanned and maybe that’s why it worked out better than expected, we just went with the flow. This was our first trip to Florence and we had no idea where to book a place to stay, so we booked a room near the Santa Maria Novella station. But the best place to stay would be right in the heart of Florence, in the old town, near the Duomo and the Arno river. So anyway, we booked our rooms in Florence then got ready for Sunday mass.
One last look out the window from our room
and we made our way downstairs to the hotel lobby and checked out.
View outside the hotel…
I had to take a picture of this Anokhi dress that I was wearing for the first time with the mountains in the background.
Check out the block print on the dress….
St. Michael’s church in Chamonix where we attended Sunday mass
which reminded me of home, in the sense, the father wouldn’t stop talking… he was going on and on in French, which is pretty much the case here almost every Sunday.
But when the bells started ringing, I couldn’t believe I was back here (after our first trip in 2013)… to hear the church bells chiming away and the mountains echoing it all back with soulful alacrity. The sound of church bells fills the air for a good five minutes after the Sunday mass and it’s unforgettable, the effect it has on you… every cell alive with the cool mountain air and the joy of being there to feel it all. (This video was taken in 2013, the one taken this year was too long to upload)
The church framed by the alps…
This Saint Bernard was just sitting there taking in the cold mountain air… so beautiful, we asked if we could pet him and the affable owner immediately nodded yes.
Walked around taking in the sights, searching for a place to have brunch…
Some cappuccino…
crepe with hot chocolate…
A chicken burger
Salad…
Ham and cheese crepe
An enchanting store with cute knick knacks and other beautiful things…
These candle holders were so pretty…
Another good look at my Anokhi dress… the others were busy trying on jackets and stuff from Mammut, cause winter is fast approaching in the countries they live in and I live in a state where the temperature never drops lower than 20 °C.
Then we took a cable car to go up the mountains
It was fascinating being out here in the open, the cold wind piercing you, reminding you that nature is extremely creative yet destructive also if you don’t follow its laws. I had no idea we would be going up a mountain and an Anokhi dress was not the right attire to wear here, it was flying all over the place at Aiguille du Midi, the mountain range we went up.
But for pictures it was pretty good…
Took the cable car back down and stopped at an ice cream place, to pick up this three scoop icecream of hazelnut, coffee and ferrero rocher … each flavour was better than the next.
Then we drove back home, almost an hour and a half drive back to Geneva. I made turkey briyani for dinner and then we all settled in for the night. This marks the end of our road trips in France and it was beyond wonderful, siblings are no doubt the best people to hang out with. You know that saying about lemons and life… well, I think when life gives you lemons, you ought to squeeze them in warm water and drink it, cause lemons are incredibly good for you.