Sunday’s family outing started somewhat late in the day, as Daddy MBFF had to go and vote in the mayoral elections! By the time that we had sorted out 🍏 our picnic lunch, it was already midday and by the time we ate the picnic lunch it was 14h! A true Spanish lunch hour; no wonder Mr 6 was so grumpy! But the later lunch … Continue reading An AIRE de JEUX, a MARE aux TÊTARDS and a PARCOURS ORIENTATION (Argentière)
With all of our wonderful 🧗♂️ rock climbing and Via-Ferrata routes 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, it is only natural that so many 🌳 accrobranches ® should also appear over recent years! We’ve tried out a few of them, and they are very popular with our 🐵 monkey climbing boys . . . 🌳 some tree climbing terminology: 🌳 accrobranches ® – it is a rope course … Continue reading ACCROBRANCHES ®, GRIMPE d’ARBRE & TYROLIENNES au Pays du Mont-Blanc
The short hike up to 💦 La Cascade de Bérard, located just above the village of Le Buet (near Vallorcine), is the perfect family outing on a hot ☀️ summer’s day or after 🌧 strong rain – you’ll either be refreshed or you’ll see 💦 the waterfall in its rawest, most powerful form! If you head off on this hike in late spring or in early summer, then … Continue reading FAMILY HIKES: La Cascade de Bérard (LE BUET)
All that we really need to do to enjoy art 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, is to open the window, as outside is 🖼 the most exquisite work of art of them all: 🌿 Mother Nature, Dame Nature! It is no wonder why so many 🎨 famous artists have been – and are still are – attracted to our 🏔 alpine scenery: 🍂🍃 the changing seasons, and … Continue reading OUTDOOR ART EXHIBITIONS au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
There are so many wonderful 🏔 hikes au Pays du Mont-Blanc and several of them are the perfect length for families with very young (or reluctant) walkers! I have always found (actually, I still do!) that hiking to ☕️ a mountain buvette, with the reward of 🍨 an ice cream or 🍓 a slice or fruit tart, is a great incentive to hike. As are … Continue reading FAMILY HIKES: La Cabane du Cerro (CHAMONIX)
There are 🚵♀️ some wonderful VTT routes 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc – some easily accessible, some that you need to take 🚡 a télécabine to access . . . and now we have electric bikes to make certain routes more accessible, and 🚵♀️ Fat Bikes to head out on the snow, mud or sand! Pop in to your local tourist office to pick up 🗺 … Continue reading BIKE PARKS au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
Yesterday MBFF went for 🍏 a picnic with friends (🌥 between sun and cloud!) up at 🎣 Lac de Javen in Megève. 🎣 Lac de Javen is a popular picnic spot for families in the summertime, as it is just a short hike to get there and there are plenty of activities on offer: ☕️ buvette and restaurant, 🌈 small playground, 🌈trampoline and other loisirs (later … Continue reading Where to observe TADPOLES & FROGS au Pays du Mont-Blanc
A visit to a 💦 waterfall or gorge is often an awe-inspiring and sensory experience, allowing you to appreciate nature in its wildest, purest form. It can also be a great option for a family hike, or a chance to escape ☀️ the heat of summer, with a cool breeze and brume emanating from the cascade of water. We are lucky 🗻 au Pays du Mont-Blanc as we … Continue reading WATERFALLS & GORGES au Pays du Mont-Blanc
[ NOTE: for now, in adherance with regulations, you are NOT allowed to picnic at our local lakes ] I was lying in bed last night thinking of all of the lovely places that I’d like 🍏 to go for a picnic en famille; I’ve missed this activity these last two months! A picnic gets everyone outdoors and is often accompanied by a short walk or … Continue reading MBFF’s 20 favourite PICNIC SPOTS (with small children) au Pays du Mont-Blanc!
During confinement, we all had to find 🏡 walks within a 1km radius from home . . . though perhaps I was not able to go quite as far as I desired, this did encourage me to try out some of the 🏔 very local hikes, and one that we did en famille (though with much whining and shoulder support at times!) was this one: 🌳 … Continue reading FAMILY HIKES: Bois de Fessy et les Blocs de La Pesse (Sallanches)
Each new spring season, ❄️ the snow melts and the 🌷 first spring flowers peep up shyly from the lawns; this re-awakening of nature is the perfect invitation for a buggy stroll . . . Early in 🌷 the spring season there may still be too much ❄️ snow along the river paths at higher altitude in 🏔 the Pays du Mont-Blanc, but there is a lovely stretch … Continue reading BUGGY STROLLS: Parcours de l’Eau Artistique (Arve River, PASSY)
The hike to 🌼 l’Alpage de Charousse (alpage means high mountain meadow) in Les Houches is one of my favourite short hikes in the Chamonix Valley, and one that MBFF has really enjoyed en famille with two small hikers. Description of hike The main highlight of this walk is arriving at the postcard perfect meadow – 🌼 the Alpage de Charousse (1200m)- when the blue, pink … Continue reading FAMILY HIKES: l’Alpage de Charousse (Les Houches)
I woke up a few weeks back now, on my 🐿 10th Groundhog Day, and decided that I would like to take the boys to 🗺 Paris . . . They have been asking to go for a while now, and I’ve always told them that we would go once they were old enough to be able to walk a fair distance without complaining (as … Continue reading GEOGRAPHY, HISTORY & CULTURE LESSON – learning about Paris (primary level)
A few weeks ago, I began to update an 🐰 Easter weekend and Easter egg hunt article . . . I got as far as changing the Easter weekend dates and then I added some Easter events too . . . And then 🏘 CONFINEMENT arrived . . . and so that article (as well as many others!) got put on hold until 2021, and I … Continue reading EASTER CRAFT with children
I shared a short Facebook post a few weeks ago about some lesson ideas for teaching children about the 🌎 world (continents, the globe, atlases), and the specific 🦒 animals found in certain continents . . . Following on from that, and having played some more games surrounding the world and animal groups, I thought I would elaborate and write a longer article, with more … Continue reading ZOOLOGY (animal groups) & GEOGRAPHY LESSON (for 5 to 6 year olds)
I used to be a secondary school teacher . . . but I have had little experience teaching younger children (the fact that I became a secondary school teacher indeed suggests that I chose not to teach younger children!). In these days of confinement, for my own sanity, I need to have a morning routine with my boys (9 and 6 years). My CM1 boy … Continue reading ALPHABET & PHONICS LESSON – for 4 to 6 year olds
I first got really up close and personal with 🌻 Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890), his artistic genius and his personal demons, when I studied him for part of my GCSE art class (eek, 30 years ago!) . . . I made my dad sit on a decrepit old garden chair in our 🌸 springtime suburban garden, and then I painted him Van Gogh-style, with ☕️ a cup … Continue reading ART HISTORY LESSON – teaching your children about VINCENT van GOGH from your home!
It’s official in Geneva: 🌺 SPRINGTIME has ARRIVED ! The 🌳 Marronier de la Treille’s first blossom appeared this year on Sunday 8th March 2020 – and so this is seen in the Helvetian city as the first official day of 🌺 spring! (see below for more explanations). 🌷 Springtime – when 🌱 crocuses first timidly reach out to the sun from their bed of grass, when the first 🌺 almond and cherry … Continue reading SPRING & SUMMER BLOSSOMS and FLOWERS au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
Last weekend was unseasonably 🌸 springlike . . . and MBFF wanted to avoid the winter holiday crowds on our local ski pistes . . . and so I decided to plan an outing a bit further away. I get much inspiration for family visits from my boys’ outings with their garderies, and I remembered that last summer my younger son had headed up to … Continue reading PARCOURS ORIENTATION: L’Œuf de Plume La Gypaète (Le Reposoir)
MBFF has had some lovely family walks up at the ❄️ Site Nordique La Livraz in Megève. Not only is this one of 🎿 Megève’s cross-country skiing areas (there are a handful!), it is also a superb spot for ❄️ a family walk in wintertime, especially with young children or older relatives! You can pull little ones along in a 🛷 a luge and the terrain … Continue reading Site Nordique La Livraz – cross-country skiing & winter walks (Megève)
The 🌉 Passerelle Himalayenne in Plateau d’Assy, which straddles the 💦 Nant Bordon ravine and allows you to access the 💦 Lac Vert via the original route du Lac Vert, was inaugurated on the 21st December 2019 . . . and since then, MBFF has been across it (and back) THREE times! On our most recent crossing, some Tibetan prayer flags had been attached to the … Continue reading La Passerelle Himalayenne du Nant Bordon (PLATEAU d’ASSY)
If you live at altitude 🗻 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, it can be a challenge to find a suitable path for buggy walks in nature over the ❄️ winter months: snow, ice, muddy ground underfoot . . . Luckily, if you head down to the Arve Valley, then you’ll descend about 500m in altitude . . . and here you will find our 💦 two … Continue reading WINTER BUGGY STROLLS: Lac de Passy & Lacs des Ilettes
It was quite by chance in the spring of 2014 that we discovered that we could enjoy the 📷 « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » exhibition fairly close to home, right near the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc! I had always enjoyed visiting the London-based exhibition at the Natural History Museum (NB « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » competition / exhibition was developed and is produced by the Natural History Museum, London), … Continue reading « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » (Forte di Bard, ITALY)
⛷ Saint-Gervais-Mont-Blanc & Saint Nicolas de Véroce are another two of our family’s favourite ski areas in the area – some broad pistes, some pistes running through the 🌲fir trees, 🗻 panoramic views of Mont-Blanc, some great off-piste for experienced (and suitably equipped!) skiers in search of powder (especially around Saint-Nicolas de Véroce and Mont-Joly), some fun runs for children . . . And though ⛷ Saint-Gervais-Mont-Blanc … Continue reading SAINT-GERVAIS MONT-BLANC & SAINT-NICOLAS-de-VEROCE skiing
Every visit to the 🇮🇹 Aosta Valley unveils another wonder to the MBFF family . . . On one of our last visits (back in the spring of 2019!), we stumbled – quite by chance – upon 🖼 a modern & contemporary art museum IN a 🏰 20th century castle overlooking the valley! I did know that one of the 🏰 Aosta Valley castles (the valley is know … Continue reading CASTELLO GAMBA – modern & contemporary art in the Aosta Valley (ITALY)
