where I live: St. Martin de belleville
So I quit the 9 to 5 lifestyle. Am I happy? Hell yeah. I wake up every morning with views like this to look at and I feel very happy. Not many people have the opportunity to work in such magnificant conditions. Most spend all day staring at the same computer, the same coffee machine and the same old work. Living in St. Martin de Belleville is quiet, peaceful and often breathtaking. Of course, living in a village has it's drawbacks.....mainly that everyone knows each others' business, but apart from that, I love the place.
         
french alps  
This is the view from my balcony. Yes, I said balcony. Every morning, the sun lands on my balcony and burns my eyes. Mainly due to hangovers, I like to stand outside for a while and sober up. To the left is where I work.
brewski's bar, st martin de belleville

Brewski's. Literally 10m from my room is where I work. Many a drink has been savoured in the four walls that they call Brewski's and many a stomach lining lost. The view from work keeps you smiling in the morning when I think about all those poor sods that have to work in factories day in and day out, competing in the rat race and going nowhere. Been there, done that. If I can continue my journey with half the view that this place has, I will remain a happy man.

Brewski's is a bar and restaurant - click here to visit their website.
the village of st martin de belleville

It hadn't snowed much by the time of my arrival, but here's a picture of the village from outside of Brewski's. I think the church dates back to the 1800's, but I'm not entirely sure. The village is tucked away towards the bottom of the three valleys at a height of 1400m.

I have absolutely no idea why, but when the clock strikes each hour, it strikes again about 5 minutes later. Maybe the locals are a bit forgetful....maybe.

mountain village and chalets
This pic was taken from the centre of the village near the church. The huge mountain thing you can see in the middle is lit up every night by a giant searchlight.....No wonder the Lift passes are so expensive....it probably costs about €500 a night to keep it running!
across the valley
On the second day, we walked to the otherside of the valley (heart attack) and this is the view of the village from there. Not very interesting, but the struggle down and back up the hill was. With only two main watering holes there and one of them being my place of employment, beer was in short supply.
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