Morzine Apres Ski Report: 29th December 2011

And so this is Christmas, we hope you’ve had fun. On blue, black and red runs, in the Christmas day sun.

Okay okay that’s enough, we’re sure you’ve all heard enough of those cheesy Christmas tunes to last another year. But what a great week it’s been!

The Christmas Eve Parade began in the town square with white stilted angels floating through the crowds to the sound of the drum quartet. This was a rather unique sight and how they managed to walk on such tall stilts, in the ice, is a mystery!

Pere Noel then appeared, accompanied by his elves, to welcome an excited crowd, before making his way up through the main street on his reindeer drawn sleigh (or van to the realists) to the Pleney slope. From here he climbed aboard his custom made Santa skidoo and departed for Lapland with fireworks shooting off the back. The parade was then completed with a spectacular fireworks display.

There were a few minutes of sadness when the crowd dispersed but we stood still, waiting for Santa to come hurtling back down the Pleney slope. This was the rumour we’d heard but it was not to be…maybe we can make a suggestion for next year’s parade though!

So, off we headed in search of somewhere to warm up and soon arrived at the Tibetan Bar. Situated along the main street Taille de mas du Pleney, which runs from the Pleney lifts down to the tourist office, this family run bar was a great choice for an early evening drink with its big sofas, free buffet nibbles and a live band playing. While doing our bit to research New Year’s Eve parties around town we were introduced to the owner/ manager Tony. He’s a really friendly guy who seems to care a lot about his customers and making sure everyone’s having a good night. And this definitely shows by how popular the bar is.

We stayed for a few drinks then filled ourselves on some traditional French cuisine nearby. Once full of tartiflette and with the spirit of Christmas now truly upon us it was off to Dixies to meet our friends. This rather cosy bar with its open fire hosts a variety of live bands and offers a great selection of beers and lagers, including some award winning options from around the world. It is also renowned for its extensive coverage of sports matches, including all Premiership games on it’s numerous TVs throughout the bar. It is open daily from 11am until late and is located at the bottom of Rue du Bourg.

It was here when the clock struck midnight and the speakers boomed out a Christmas mega mix that we all celebrated. There was lots of hugging, singing, drinking, some kissing and all the other things we do when pure excitement takes over!

A little while later we climbed the hill back up to the Tibetan Bar, which by this time was heaving but the atmosphere was great. With yards of ale and plenty of Christmas tunes we danced and celebrated until the early hours…an altogether impressive start to Christmas.

After (apparently) seeing more snow arrive in the last few weeks than in the entire 2010-11 season, Christmas day was a scorcher. Without a cloud in sight it was the perfect day to spend celebrating with friends at a mountain side bar…and of course it was great for some skiing too!

Admittedly we had a rather leisurely start to the day, mainly as a result of a lively and late Christmas Eve. We finally managed to get out at around 11am fully adorned with Santa hats and tinsel clad ski poles. We headed up to the Grenouille bar/restaurant which is located at the top of the Super Morzine lift.

The terrace was filled with people celebrating in true Alpine style and everyway you turned another friend or acquaintance seemed to appear. This made for a fun afternoon and although we managed to tear ourselves away for a few runs we were quickly led back in for another drink. Although we have to admit that it didn’t quite feel like Christmas without our usual big family gatherings, this was an altogether different and very cool way to spend the day.

On Boxing Day we experienced our first ever Ice Hockey match, supporting the Morzine-Avoriaz Penguins against rivals Neuilly/ Marne. It was virtually a full house so the arena was buzzing and although the first third was perhaps a little lacking, with no goals or fights to speak of, we certainly weren’t disappointed in the second. As soon as they were out it was all attack and within the first five minutes, while we joined in like true French screaming ‘Allez Allez Allez’, the Penguins scored two goals! From here on it was all action with players being sent to the ‘sin bin’, the goalie getting crushed and needing to see the medic and finally in the nineteenth minute and to far less cheering, rivals Neuilly scored. The Penguins then scored once more in the final third to end in a triumphant 3-1 victory. All in all a great experience and well worth the €15, we’re already looking forward to our next installment.

For the coming week, festive events continue in and around town, so pick up a leaflet from the Office de Tourisme, but to keep you going here’s a taster: on Thursday 29th at 4.30pm there is a Sledge Race down the Pleney slope sledge run. It’s free to enter and there are prizes to be won, so all you need is a sledge and preferably some Dutch courage! On Friday 30th at 8.45pm you can check out the Exhibition Ice Hockey match at the Palais du Sport. Tickets on the door or from the Office de Tourisme in advance. On New Year’s Eve at 5pm there will be a ‘totally crazy, firey show’ in the village streets. This will be followed at 6.30pm by a Torch Lit Descent and show by the ESF instructors at Pleney and finally at 6.45pm a fireworks display.

But of course the main event that everyone’s talking about is where to be when then clock strikes midnight on New Year’s Eve and we throw our arms around friends and strangers alike to welcome in 2012. So here’s a look at what’s on where: Tibetan Bar: Entry on the door only, €20 with a free drink included. Open until around 5am with a DJ all night Cavern: Tickets €10 and must be bought in advance as will sell out. Open from 9pm-2am for ticket holders only. Free entry after 2am on a 1-in-1-out basis, no closing time. Dixies: Entry on the door only, €10 and open until around 5am. Rhodos: Bar entry free and open all night. Reservation is required for their New Year’s Eve dinner, €50 and starts at 8pm. Crepu: Free entry and open until 3-4am That’s all for another week, enjoy the skiing and brace yourselves for another massive snow dump this week! Looks like it‘s coming today and not stopping for a few days, so for those of you who can drag your sore heads out of bed on New Year‘s Day, it could a be great day of pure powder and few people!

Bon Après