Momo Reports to you About Gondolas

Normal people should not be giddy about getting in a metal box that is suspended by a wheel or two on a wire or two and travels up from about 4000ft to over 12,000ft in just a few minutes. No. They should not. But they are. All except the very very sane. And that would be Momo.

The tour group of elderly Asians ran into the gondola (almost 50 of them) like school children being called in for ice cream with jimmies. The gondola stood no chance of remaining dignified and still. It rocked like a cradle someone was kicking after no sleep with a colic laden baby. Momo was having many thoughts and none of them had to do with why she was compelled to go with Mr. Momo in a box of steel that high up.

It probably comes as a complete surprise to you that Momo is a big old chicken. Really. A big surprise. Ok, perhaps not a surprise. But seriously, here are a couple of pictures of this gondola thing. It takes you up over the tree tops while there is still life on the ground, to a mid point where you must exit and get on a new gondola and it changes direction and shoots you straight up over the glacier to the top of this rock.

And on the top of this rock is a lookout, a restaurant, and a gift shop and a cafeteria, a couple of camping potties and strangely, an elevator in the rock that takes one up what it terms as three floors (do you think Macy's might be on the 2nd floor?) to a platform lookout where Mr. Momo stitched the first picture together. He says it is breathtaking and frankly I believe him because there is absolutely no air at that height. Momo was praying for some oxygen to be pumped into the cafeteria, but alas, none.

It is an experience not to be missed if you are game and happen to be traveling through Chamonix one day. Just be sure to make a reservation, get there early anyway and bring your own portable oxygen.

And just for fun, there are those who like to walk on glaciers and apparently fall off mountains. They are in one of these photos. Just get out the magnifying glasses and you will see those silly silly people pretending they are very cool. By the way, while everyone in the valley was wearing tee shirts, a down jacket, mittens and wind gear are important up there.

Mr. Momo rates the gondola and glacier a big fat 10 again. Momo still is trying to breath so cut her some slack. At least she went. And L&P still could care less.