by Perrin

For the past three weeks I have been on a trip to France with a program called Overland. Each day we hiked in the morning and then went to french class in the afternoon, and we camped on the weekends. For the last two days we were in Paris and explored the city. Here are some pictures of the trip!  [email readers: view the post in a browser to see all of the photos – only some come through in email]

We stayed in a town called Chamonix which is at the base of Mont Blanc-the tallest mountain in Europe. The surrounding mountains are gorgeous and the views from our hikes were incredible.

As always, click any photo to see a larger version.

We took a gondola up to the top of Aguille du Midi which is 1000 meters lower than Mont Blanc and looked out over the mountains of Italy. A building was constructed right onto the steep cliffs of the peak and we saw parts being brought in by helicopters for more construction. Hard core mountain climbers with ropes and lots of gear were hiking right below and next to us, possibly attempting to summit Mont Blanc.

Most of the hikes looked over the town of Chamonix. It was gorgeous!

I’m glad to be back but will definitely miss the Alps and the once in a lifetime experience that I had there.