Thanks to my sister’s brilliant idea for a house swap one week in summer, I was able to spend some time seeing Chambery, France.
What I proclaim after this trip is: I AM AN AMBASSADOR. Say it with me, loudly and confidently. We are ambassadors, friends. Every time we venture out of our comfort zone, to a new city, country, group, we are representatives of the place from which we come. We might not like it, we might try to ignore it, but the fact is that when we walk out of our comfortable streets to new places, the people who live there are watching us, making assessments (conscious or not) based on our identities.
As someone who travels internationally frequently, and hopes to take my sons to more places abroad as soon as their ages are easier, I frequently play ambassador. I fret over how Americans are perceived and the judgments that follow us. Yes, major international news certainly shapes who we are overseas, but I can’t control that, no matter what I agree with or don’t. But what I can control is how I introduce people to the concept of “American” when I travel. Am I rude, ignorant, dismissive of their cultures? Have I taken time to educate myself and not offend? Do I smile, act friendly, and come from a place of love? I am an ambassador. The world is shrinking faster than anyone can understand, let’s wrap it up in love and understanding.
This past summer, I had the rare and unique chance to be an ambassador in the small town of Chambery, France. It took a long plane ride followed by a long train ride to get to this remote town.
Chambery is nestled in the Rhone-Alpes region; it dates back to the 11th century and much of its medieval history is well-preserved. The old castle lords over the downtown area. Because this relatively small town is nestled in the Alps, it isn’t easy to get to. They don’t receive much tourism, of the American kind, at all. I felt somewhat like an anomaly. But it was also a rare opportunity to see the French way of life devoid of Parisian filters.
We had a wonderful time exploring the town via foot. The whole reason we were in Chambery was due to a house-swap my sister and her wife did with a French family. They lived minutes from downtown via foot. We were in an old house that survived The War (the second), and it was a vacation where we immersed ourselves in living as the French do.
We spent one day following the red elephant trail around the town of Chambery. We were using a not-so-great brochure to guide us along, so we didn’t get much in the way of the historical significance of places, but we did get to see much of the town. If you visit, I suggest trying to get a guided tour if you really want to learn more about the dual-identity Chambery has.
The reason for the elephants on the stickers? Chambery is defined by the elephant. The most prominent feature in town is their elephant water fountain.
I have read that this fountain is called “the four buttless” by locals, but we didn’t get confirmation on that. The fountain was built in 1838 to honor Benoît de Boigne‘s feats when he was in India. It is quite astonishing to see and, as a girl who has always wanted a baby elephant, I quite adored it as well.
We had a wonderful time meandering through the rest of Chambery. This wasn’t my first trip to France, but it was my first time outside the confines of hugely tourist places (such as Paris and Versailles). I was reminded of so many cultural differences, some to be embraced.
For instance, I love the cafe culture. Outdoor cafes with a plethora of tables and barely any room inside abound. A perfect spot to sit, grab an espresso or a glass of wine, then head on with the day. I so wished America would adopt this. Instead, we usually cram our dining establishments into strip malls and tack as many TVs around the interior as humanly possible. It isn’t relaxing – it is overstimulating. This European cafe culture feels more indulgent and relaxed than what I feel we offer in the States.
As a big “shop local” believer, Europe is also a wonderland for me. As most understand about France, you buy local and you buy fresh. While if you drive out of downtown Chambery you do hit suburbs full of big box stores and unattractive gas stations and industry warehouses, the majority of shopping is done market-style. You truly know your butcher. Can America ever return to this model? I feel like many towns are experiencing a renaissance of sorts and trying to instill new life into this shopping style.
I also enjoy the ability to walk or bike to everything needed – pharmacy, grocery store, restaurants, bars, parks. The ease with which pedestrians can maneuver European cities is enviable.
As much as I am lauding many things French, there were some differences I am not sure I would love, even if I would presumably grow accustomed to them in time.
I had a really hard time with everything closing mid-day. We were watching my niece, who was not even two. During the times she was awake, not much was open. When she was napping or in bed, that was when life began. Even though I want my boys to be well-traveled and aware of the greater wider world, I am glad I didn’t have them this trip. Adjusting to the European timeline may have been a bit much for them.
With a babysitter lined up for my niece, we ate deliciously late and indulgent dinners while in Chambery, sitting outside, watching the French smoke around us, lit by twinkling lights. It was magical. Perhaps it would not have been as fairytale like with an overtired kid.
Travel tip: the two restaurants we very much enjoyed in Chambery were L’atelier and Cafe de Lyon. Staff was not engaging but the food made up for it.
For it is true that the French aren’t friendly, or at least they weren’t to us. Perhaps they were not the best ambassadors? We were ridiculed a few times for our attempts at establishing a relationship. They answered our questions but with the bare minimum information, no intuition or true understanding. This led us into some very precarious and stressful situations, but those are for another day and post. Either way, it is a very different model than the American “howdy y’all” vibe.
One final thing to note about this mountain town is that it is oriented towards outdoor activities. With majestic peaks surrounding Chambery and ski slopes abounding in the winter, it is hard not to embrace the outdoor and adventure culture.
We decided to hike up to the top of a mountain outcropping where there is a cross that overlooks the entire town. We were told by our host family and the Internet (and does the Internet ever lie?) that this was a quick and easy hike, and we treated it as such. I am an avid hiker and fitness fanatic, so I was not worried. But this is the Alps, and hiking in this region is much different than the East Coast of the United States (which also got us into trouble later on the trip, but more on that later).
But the hike, while it winded us and pushed us, was amazing. We saw Alpine lakes that were frigidly blue gleaming all around. We took in the runners hurling past us, their knee socks silent as they went four times our pace. We marveled at the gliders that abounded fearless and free, miles above the world. We looked 360 degrees around us at the living that has lasted for centuries, continuing to be built upon and modernized one building by one window by one plank by one sign. It felt ageless and old.
Am I glad I went? Absolutely. Chambery was a rare opportunity to live in a true French city, a place where modern French work and play and raise families over cobblestones fought over for ages by the Duchy of Savoie. Old buildings from years I can’t even imagine abut next to classic 70s architecture. Chambery is a living, breathing, growing modern and true French city, with all its opposing forces and dichotomies.
Chambery was a great location to launch us to exploring other French towns in the Alps, as well, and I’ll be sharing those in other posts. Bear in mind that living without a car in Chambery would have been an incredibly different (perhaps more difficult) experience. Still to come on this website, so stay tuned…
Read more about our visit to France, including our trips seeing Chamonix, France and Annecy, France.