While in Chamonix, one of the coolest things we did was take the gondola up to Aiguille Du Midi - a mountain in the French Alps with a station at the top that gets you up close and personal with Mont Blanc. I'd done a ton of research on it since last summer, news broke that one of the cable cars broke down and tourists were stuck up there for several hours before helicopters were able to rescue them. That sounded like a dream come true for me, so I knew we had to check it out. Waiting in line with us were mountain climbers with crampons and skis and helmets and parachutes, so I knew it was going to be pretty hardcore. There are a few different stops that are included, and when all up and running, they will take you all the way over the Alps to Italy. One of the trams was down for maintenance, but we were able to get up to the station and the views were unbelievable.
You can walk through snow tunnels and massive caves that they've blown out within the mountain itself. All of the extreme climber/skier/parachuters were lined up at a gate outside of this tunnel and taking to the mountain.
There was also a little feature called "Stepping Into The Void" where you stand in a glass box on the side of the mountain with nothing on 5 sides, and they'll take your picture. You have to wear funny little slippers out there so you don't scratch it up, and even though I'm not scared of heights at all, I did get a little weezy out there.
After a few hours, we took the first gondola down to the next station where we hopped off so that I could use the restroom. When I came out, I found Brian on one knee out on the patio where he presented me with a little mountain ring and asked me to spend the rest of our lives taking epic adventures together. Everyone around us thought he was proposing so they were all watching and it was kinda funny but so sweet. What better place and time, right?! It was a good day :)
