Alpe d'Huez Apres Ski Report: 18th February 2010
We're in the midst of the Half-Term holidays at the moment and this usually results in quite a strange vibe on the aprés scene as the restaurants do most of their business in early sittings and the bars tend to be a little quieter as families descend on resort.
If you're here with children you'll find there are plenty of activities to keep them occupied once the lifts close for the day. There are two swimming pools in resort, an ice rink and sports centre that boasts a climbing wall, ping pong and an aerial adventure playground. On Tuesday and Thursday evenings the Eclose piste, behind the church, is floodlit slopes for sledging and there are plenty of sweetie and souvenir shops for them to spend their pocket money. Most restaurants will do two sittings during the holiday period, to allow families with young children to eat early. As always, it's imperative you book a table especially on the busiest nights of Tuesday and Wednesday.
While my week hasn't centred around entertaining children in the resort, I have managed to maintain a pretty low profile. On Saturday I met some of my friends from Les Deux Alpes who'd crossed the valley for the evening. We started with a Full English to watch the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on the big screens at Smithy's Tavern. Alpe d'Huez locals Ophélie David, Gauthier De Tessières and Sylvain Miaillier are competing in the games, while respresenting Deux Alpes are Arthur Longo, Sandrine Aubert, Marion Rolland and Gary Zebrowski. The French are passionate about the games and there's a great atmosphere wherever the footage is shown on TV.
That evening we had drinks at the Sphere Bar, followed by dinner at Lounge 21. I excused myself early but the boys made a little tour of resort via the Underground, Pacific, Sharkey's, Smithy's, Caves and Igloo. Needless to say they were looking a little bleary-eyed on Sunday when I bumped into them after an internet session at Café Agua.
Valentine's Day brought all it's usual intrigue for many seasonaires and those who hadn't organised a surprise for someone special were to be found at Smithy's Tavern for their Traffic Light Party. The slightly more forward-thinking were whisked off to dinner at the Sarenne Refuge, the Cremaillere and the beautiful P'tit Creux. The Boyfriend outdid himself and more than made up for last year's takeaway pizza with a couple of nights in the small resort of Villard de Lans, just west of Grenoble.
On Tuesday night it was back to the madness of resort as a bar crawl of 150 Danish students made their way around town. It all went without a hitch but they did seem pretty confused when they arrived at Smithy's Tavern to find the staff and customers dressed in glasses, braces and tight trousers. Maybe they hadn't seen the posters for the Geeks and Freaks night, but soon got into the swing of it. I have to admit to feeling a little under-dressed myself and made a hasty retreat downstairs to the Zoo Bar.
By Wednesday I was ready for a night out dancing. First stop was O-Bar for a quiet drink and a burger. They do lovely food here and you can even get homemade burgers and lasagna to takeaway. Vito tells me that they're doing a good trade at lunchtime, especially with the weather so cloudy and snowy this week. Next stop, Smithy's, for ex-DMC World Champion, DJ Fly. The scratch DJ was playing a warm-up set in the bar before his main gig of the night at Caves. Unfortunately he treated it as such and only started to get going as Time was called. He was supported by Deux Alpes-er DJ Kactus who played a varied hip-hop/dubstep set with a few drum 'n' bass tracks thrown in for good measure. Sweet!
For a full list of this week's events, check out our What's On Calendar. You can also find full Bar and Restaurant listings in the Dining and Going Out section of the site.
