Bienvenue au Tremblant

It was a long day of traveling today, first through Burlington, Vermont and then up through the southeast Canadian countryside, where I highly doubt that a word of English is ever spoken unless some hapless American tourist wanders into a farmstand and attempts to purchase some "maze sucre" in their own native tongue. It was difficult enough at a highway rest stop just north of the cosmopolitan city of Montreal to purchase a Diet Coke with American dollars.

"Blah blah blah les enfants blah blah the bar" the woman at the counter said to me.

"Parlay Voo Inglays?" I asked.

"Blah blah blah les enfants blah blah the bar" she repeated, a bit exasperated.

"Oh! The kids! The bar! Right! Merci!" I blathered, humiliated, as I quickly shepherded my kids out of the bar section of the cafe.

I really ought to have brought a French/English dictionary with me. But I did get my Diet Coke.

It's pouring rain here in Mont Tremblant . I guess my luck with the weather ran out on the Fire Island Ferry. But it doesn't matter. It is amazingly gorgeous here. But, well, duh. It's a ski resort nestled in the Laurentian Mountains, and it's summertime, so everything is green and lush. What I had always heard is that Tremblant looks exactly like a European city. But I really don't understand the comparison. What it looks like to me is exactly what it is: a quaint ski village. In fact, it kind of looks exactly like the base of The Canyons in Utah. Must have been designed by the same architect. Or owned by the same owner at some point.

Tomorrow we begin our outdoor adventures - bungee trampoline (whatever that is), luge, rock climbing (both climbing tower and escalade, also known as rapelling), horseback riding, lake fishing, mountain biking, bird watching, perhaps some hiking, perhaps some canoeing.

I only had 45 minutes to practice today: 5 of A, 5 of B, all of Standing, Ardha Badha Padma Paschimotanasana, all of the Marichyasanas through Supta Kurmasana (minus Navasana, which is the one pose in the Primary Series that has always been easy for me, so I figured, why bother) with no vinyasas in between and then one long Badha Padmasana, sans the Badha part. I think it is going to be tough to get my full practices in here, and the thought of that stresses me out a bit. But I will keep trying. It's not like I'm going to be inactive. But I really need to bend. My body doesn't feel right without the proper mix of stretching and bending. It is clearly an addiction - a physical need at this point. Mental too. But more physical.

Must practice yoga. Must. Practice. Yoga. Must. Practice. Must. Practice. Must.

YC