We started off driving towards Italy for about and hour or so, and after passing through an enormous tunnel under Mont Blanc, we were there. Since Brett spent a semester of college in Italy, he very much enjoyed returning once again and speaking a little Italian.
Mont Blanc is quite a sight! At 4,808 meters, or 15,774 feet, it is the tallest mountain in Europe. It straddles the border between France and Italy, and it has a glacier that starts at the summit and descends several thousand feet down the French side. Here is a picture of Brett and Caden on the Italian side.
We thought about taking a cable car up the side of the mountain, but they wanted 70 Euros for the ride, so we just got this picture instead 
Another interesting place we visited was called Gran Saint Bernard, which is known for only one thing: it is the place of origin of the famous Saint Bernard dog, rescue hero for thousands of alpine mountaineers! It is also the border between Italy and Switzerland, and we stopped and got yet another stamp in our passports from the border guard. One thing Gran Saint Bernard has in abundance is Saint Bernard’s – stuffed of course. Tourist traps are not just an American phenomenon, and we couldn’t resist buying Caden a little stuffed rescue dog. Turns out it’s one of his most favorite toys ever, and he loves to give it kisses and talk to it. A name is surely forthcoming, but for now, it’s just “puppy”. 
So this is the first of our many adventures while at language school! We have loved traveling Europe by rail in the past, but it looks like cars are the way to go if you actually live here. It’s more affordable for one, and on top of that, it allows the traveler to see more of Europe off the beaten path, or “through the back door” for all of you Rick Steves fans out there!Also, if you haven’t seen the video tour of our apartment in France, head over to our Africa blog and check it out!
2 comments:
That is so neat! I always love going around Europe in a car. That way when you see something that looks interesting, you can just stop and see it or if you see something far away that you want to check out, you can go hunt it down...no telling what you will find...alll the neat things that regular tourists never see and all the towns people are looking at you like, "What are you doing here?" But it's always interesting and fun! Thanks for sharing the photos with us! If you want to take a trip to southern Italy for Thanksgiving, we can plan to meet somewhere with Beckie and Vivian!
Caden looks so excited to have his new puppy. The photo loves like an outdoor toy store. =-)
It sounds like you have a great time. That's wonderful!
Love ya bunches,
Mom, Nanna
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