The French Alps are known for the amazing skiing and beautiful scenery..But they are also renowned in the winter for their après-ski. And the après-ski style isn’t always cozy when hot pants are involved. In Europe, après-ski starts before the chairlifts stop running, and goes well after dusk.
Some skiers are so dedica
ted to après-ski that they will even pack a headlamp for the drunken ski trip down the mountain and back to their chalet. Other skiers come to check out the girls in hot pants.
Après-Ski Style: Hot Pants
I always thought that hot pants literally meant a pair of hot and tight pants… I always imagined them to have red hearts on the butt and perhaps be leather, no actually, now pleather. But, arriving at our first après bar location proved me all wrong…
Hot Pants according to the Brits are actually really short shorts, so this après ski location felt more like MTV spring break in the 90s than the sophisticated and Euro-sexy images I made up in my head. This misconception reminded me of the time I studied abroad in Italy in college, where I just assumed that the Italian family that I was living with would welcome me into their home like the Prego tomato sauce commercials…Not only was there never a welcoming from the Italian mom hanging outside the window as I skipped back to their house, but the fridge had a lock on the door, and there was barely enough Nutella for one mini bread slice.
The hot pants at our après ski house however, started to win me over…Actually, not only did they start to win me over, they actually made me a bit envious. I mean I LOVE dancing, and had I known that I could pass for a French go-go dancer in the French Alps, I would have brought a pair of fresh spandex hot pants with me to join along. Instead, I had to watch with my warm wine and pretend like watching the girls in the hot pants was amusing, but nothing I wanted part of.
With Meribel mountain being mostly populated by men, I think there is a nice market for a vendor of spandex hot pants. Yes, red spandex hot pants with “Meribel” written on the bum, where the letter, i, (and perhaps some of the r and the b (depending on the size of the bum)) would sometimes get lost…Girlfriends everywhere would unwrap the holiday gift from their boyfriends in horror.
I could totally picture you pretending not to want to be a part of them, but not being able to look away for more than a few seconds… thoughts dancing in your head about what it would take to get to where they are. I’m glad you are so honest. My favorite part of that post was the letter, i (and perhaps some of the r and the b (depending on the size of the bum) would sometimes get lost. Hilarious. What about a big wedgie in small bum?
Ann, I so wanted in…there’s still time. No regrets!?