Way more than a Ski Trip: Snow Jam

This years Snow Jam campus vacation to Mont Tremblant, Quebec, was full of skiing, dancing and, of course, drinking. After hitting the slopes for a few hours, the party ensued at the late night dance clubs in the Mont Tremblant village. I’m not much a skier, in fact, I’ve never skied a day in my life. I went on this trip to get closer with my friends and explore a beautiful place I’d never been before; and that’s exactly what I did. While everyone else was struggling to make it down the mountain, I was exploring the beautiful village of Mont Tremblant. During the day everyone was out doing whatever they wanted, but we all came together to party the night away. There were fun themed nights at the clubs in the village that were only a short bus ride away from our “chalet.” First night was PJ night, then a lumberJack and Jill themed night, and finally, a winter wonderland theme (which was just a fancier way of saying it was a white out). We all got cheap drink specials and participated in fun pong tournaments (which my partner and I almost won...humble brag). But, the most amazing thing about the entire trip was observing how cold your body could get without getting frostbite! Temperatures fell well below freezing, yet that didn’t stop the fun. Personally, I got to explore the village alone in the freezing cold, and I found the experience to be beautifully cathartic. I know everyone else labels this trip as a wild winter version of spring break, but it’s so much more than that. I explored an entire new world, met new people, and experienced a way of life that was entirely different from my own. I got to live in a country I had never been to before and I got to experience it with some of my closest friends. I got to romanticize this French Canadian way of life with people who live that life everyday. Saturday morning I woke up, put on a light layer of my favorite mascara and a little bit of flavored lip gloss, and I went for a walk around the village and the let the cold, bitter wind pinch my face. I walked into a warm, cozy cafe and ordered myself a “chocolat chaud et croissant” and sat on an oddly comfortable wooden stool facing out towards a mountain where people from all over the world came to ski. I sat there in my turtleneck and three layered leggings and watched as a world I never even knew existed continued to revolve around something bigger than myself. In all seriousness, it was in this moment I found my new honeymoon destination. This alcohol enticing vacation turned out to be a lot more than just a drunken adventure in a foreign country; it became a fun escape from my everyday life. And it’s true, Canadians really are unapologetically nice people.

-Angelica