Retour des Alpages 2010

Well, what's to say that I haven't said in previous years? This is always my favourite day in Annecy (except perhaps for the first day it snows!). The Retour des Alpages is so much fun and has become the official start of the cold weather food menus chez Giorgi (this means we can officially start eating melted cheese, although I do wait til at least November to have a fondue!)

We take a tour around rue St Claire in the morning to look at the animals and the displays. Then, we come home and eat our first raclette of the season at lunch and then pop back out to watch the parade. This year's parade was notable for some last minute bumrushers (I mean, really, who stands right in front of two little kids?) and some very close encounters with the cows (but fortunately not their horns!). But it was a lot of fun.

Raclette (my two favourite types of raclette cheese are fumée - smoked and lait cru - raw milk)


The mayor himself (again!)


The geese (still my favourites)


Those crazy cows (well, actually these weren't the ones who nearly squashed us in narrow rue Filaterie, but their horns were just as pointy)