Our ski weekend (that almost wasn't)
Remember the Föhn? Those crazy mountain winds? Last fall they brought us unseasonably warm and sunny weather. This weekend they almost ruined our perfect ski weekend in the mountains! When we arrived in Wengen around noon on Saturday, we had hoped to take the train up to Kleine Scheidegg or the cable car up to Männlichen for an alpine lunch and a winter hike through the snow. But we quickly learned from the hotel staff, and later confirmed with the train staff, that EVERYTHING up on the mountains was closed due to wind. That means the trains weren't running, the cable cars weren't running, the restaurants up there weren't open, and there certainly was no skiing! Fortunately, we hadn't planned to ski on Saturday anyway, so we kept our fingers crossed that Sunday would be a better day.
Instead, we spent Saturday afternoon eating a leisurely lunch at a restaurant in Wengen while watching men's downhill ski racing on TV, and strolling through town. It's such a charming place and a great place for a visit in either winter or summer. We discovered an ice rink in town where we could watch curling and do some ice skating. Unfortunately, I couldn't convince Kirk to join me on the ice, but he was happy to indulge me as I rented some skates and spent a few minutes gliding around on the ice at the base of the beautiful mountains. I hadn't skated in years, but I guess it's just like riding a bike! You never really forget how to do it. When we were kids, my sister and I used to spend hours over Christmas vacation skating on the lake while we were up at our cabin and I always really loved it. Don't worry, all you scardy-cats-- including Kirk-- it IS safe to skate on frozen lakes in Wisconsin!
Our weekend got even better when we woke up Sunday morning and discovered that the wind had died down and everything was up and running again! Skiing was back on the agenda.
We skied along side of the Eiger...
...and all the way down to the town of Grindelwald.
Who cares if the conditions weren't that great (a little icy with lots of bare patches from all the wind), or if my form wasn't the best (that's what you get when you ski just once a year). The important thing is that I skied! The atmosphere, the views, the surroundings, the weather... all of it was great. Now I can feel OK about packing my skis away for a year, satisfied that I got out on the slopes at least once this season!
We ended our weekend last night with my birthday dinner at a wonderful restaurant at a hotel in town (where we stayed last year). They even put a candle in my dessert and everyone in the restaurant sang happy birthday to me! My birthday is actually today, but I pretended it was yesterday this year because I'd much rather celebrate by skiing with Kirk in the Alps than by sitting inside our house in Basel unpacking and packing again (for tomorrow's trip to Amsterdam) while Kirk is at work and Grady is still in the kennel!
Instead, we spent Saturday afternoon eating a leisurely lunch at a restaurant in Wengen while watching men's downhill ski racing on TV, and strolling through town. It's such a charming place and a great place for a visit in either winter or summer. We discovered an ice rink in town where we could watch curling and do some ice skating. Unfortunately, I couldn't convince Kirk to join me on the ice, but he was happy to indulge me as I rented some skates and spent a few minutes gliding around on the ice at the base of the beautiful mountains. I hadn't skated in years, but I guess it's just like riding a bike! You never really forget how to do it. When we were kids, my sister and I used to spend hours over Christmas vacation skating on the lake while we were up at our cabin and I always really loved it. Don't worry, all you scardy-cats-- including Kirk-- it IS safe to skate on frozen lakes in Wisconsin!
Our weekend got even better when we woke up Sunday morning and discovered that the wind had died down and everything was up and running again! Skiing was back on the agenda.
We skied along side of the Eiger...
...and all the way down to the town of Grindelwald.
Who cares if the conditions weren't that great (a little icy with lots of bare patches from all the wind), or if my form wasn't the best (that's what you get when you ski just once a year). The important thing is that I skied! The atmosphere, the views, the surroundings, the weather... all of it was great. Now I can feel OK about packing my skis away for a year, satisfied that I got out on the slopes at least once this season!
We ended our weekend last night with my birthday dinner at a wonderful restaurant at a hotel in town (where we stayed last year). They even put a candle in my dessert and everyone in the restaurant sang happy birthday to me! My birthday is actually today, but I pretended it was yesterday this year because I'd much rather celebrate by skiing with Kirk in the Alps than by sitting inside our house in Basel unpacking and packing again (for tomorrow's trip to Amsterdam) while Kirk is at work and Grady is still in the kennel!
<< Home