A first time for everything

On the second day of our first family skiing holiday, our six-year-old daughter decided she didn't want to. And that was that. On the previous day she'd meekly 受託するd enrolment at a mixed-language ski school, but it had been an ill-disciplined scrum.

Rhena had fallen 繰り返して and the teachers had only spoken to her in French; unfortunately she was too shy to point out that she didn't understand.

Watching from the sidelines my heart went out to her, and when she （機の）カム away I 約束d that she wouldn't have to go through that again. So, from then on she joined Papa's ski school, which meant a notional half-hour with skis on, and the 残り／休憩（する） of the time in the cafe drinking hot chocolate.

She was happy. She loved the snow; the gear ふさわしい her - the white-and-pink boots, the salopettes, the shades ... a 動きやすい phone and another half-dozen years and she'd make testosterone-driven 十代の少年少女s bump into trees. It was just the skis. You put them on, point them downhill, stand up - and 落ちる over. And then you repeat the 過程 until you're 冷淡な, 哀れな and both you and your father are cross. So what's the point of that?

This wasn't the 判決 of the other two beginners in the family (Thomas, eight, and my wife Susanne), who were delighted with their 進歩, whooping 負かす／撃墜する at lunchtime, 紅潮／摘発するd and exhilarated, with tales of ski-school 昇進／宣伝, gradients and wipe-outs.

It's a big 危険 taking three first-timers during the school holidays, when prices go off-piste. To play it as 安全な as possible we had chosen a 完全に 入ること／参加（者）-level 一括 at an 安価な 場所, 井戸／弁護士席 known for famil ies.

Valloire, in フラン, is not one of those 目的-built 訴える手段／行楽地s where you can ski forever and then limbo dance all night. It's a cosy community in a bowl of mountains with shuttered houses gathered around a church and a market square that smells of cows, cheese and woodsmoke. The pistes are 大部分は green, blue and red, and wiggle 負かす／撃墜する through trees 支援する に向かって the village. The trees, and the topography of the valley, give 保護 from icy 勝利，勝つd.

Several of the ski-school 指導者s are ruddy-cheeked and antique, and plainly spend their summers 主要な their cattle out to pasture. A little hut in the market square serves crepes and organises snowshoe trips up into the hills to gather pine 反対／詐欺s.

Our hotel was utilitarian, a couple of steps up from a 青年 宿泊所, and the dining room 二塁打d up as a 妨げる／法廷，弁護士業 and 青年 club with snooker and （米）棚上げする／（英）提議する football. It was what First Choice 述べるs as a Club Hotel, meaning that it was a 完全にする ghetto of Brits, taken over and run every winter season by the 小旅行する 操作者 itself, and 完全にする with afternoon tea and cake. The staff were 極端に willing and friendly, but they were not 特に 井戸／弁護士席 詩（を作る）d in the hotel 貿易（する）, and I 推定する／予想するd a docu-soap TV 乗組員 to step out of the 影をつくる／尾行するs at any minute.

It soon became （疑いを）晴らす that 事実上 every （米）棚上げする／（英）提議する in the dining room was 占領するd by mirror images of ourselves: wife and two veg, most of whom were not much better than us and fully 用意が出来ている to laugh at their own 無資格／無能力. All agreed that Valloire ふさわしい them, and it didn't take long for the children to challenge each other at （米）棚上げする／（英）提議する football and snowball fights.

Watching them, you realise what sheer delight children take in snow. Rhena was happy to dig 穴を開けるs, make tunnels and struggle up a hill to slide 負かす／撃墜する; it was just a bit 失望させるing that her father had to do it with her while the メーター ticked away on my ski 雇う and 解除する pass.

Is it 価値（がある） skiing when only 75 per cent of the family e njoy it? We may wait another year, to let young memories fade, before putting it to the 実験（する） again.

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