Last Day and no Shades of Grey

Check out that blue baby!

By the end of the trip there we had pretty much
conquered every part of the ski area.  This area was by
far our favourite and we were nearly alone there too. 
Check out that view!

And so came the end of our girls ski holiday.  The last day was nothing short of magnificent.  The sky boasted various shades of bright blue, and the fresh powder that fell the night before made for an 'epic' ski day (tis Canadian ski day lingo).  Bluebird is another term we use to describe this sort of day.

We shared a lot of laughs, often at our own expense.  On the way back we reminised about some of the most amusing moments.

One of the more amusing things for me was to witness Claudia explain to the many hotel guests that "of course we had a suite, as we were not a couple or anything."  In all fairness the breakfast room was rather populated with a generous representation of men ready to take on the infamous "white ring."

Overall our trip went without one hiccup.  That was until the ride home.  After a day of skiing and evening sauna we opted for the late train home. Snacking on our Austrian treats we recapped the highlights. It wasn't before long that we noticed we were in Bregenz, instead of heading to Zurich.  We stopped a fellow who was working on the train and asked what was going on.  Certain all was okay, we were convinced the guy was merely joking when he said we were in the wrong part of the train when it separated.  

So we disembarked and made our way to the closest bar and ordered a wine.  Claudia grabbed every schedule she could find while I enjoyed the fact that a plan of hers had not panned out the way expected (I am not trusted to make plans you see).   In the end the train came.  Our luggage was heavy.  Mine particularly so with my Stroh's stash, ski boots, and the million clothes I brought but never bothered to wear.  I also had a ski bag on my shoulder.  A security guard came to my rescue and insisted he load my suitcase in the train for me.  The best part was when he couldn't do it and I had to rescue him instead.  Laughing until we cried we made our way to the restaurant car.  As we enjoyed the Swiss landscape from the window I teased Claudia about the fact her flat did not have an elevator.  The joke was on me when I can home to discover that my elevator was out of service.  

I loved this sign.  Sausage and beer breakfast.  I found it at one of the many 'huts' in the area.That is something that you would NEVER see in Canada! 

Although our plan to read a million books was thwarted by the fatigue of long, but awesome ski days and our evenings out often ended before they began with lights out at 22:30, we still feel like we did it all.  We made some new friends, we learned to ski better and even more importantly, two friends actually enjoyed each others company until the very end!  Woot!

Look, I know what to do with my poles now!  
Seems my ski lessons paid off :)

Happy Me :)   I am not sure why, but skiing makes me happy.  
I am not the best skier by an stretch of the imagination, 
but once I am on the hill the stress of life is a distant memory.

We paused to enjoy the sun while I took a couple of work calls.  
I loved my new office!

Stroh's and hot chocolate!  I fell in love.  
Claudia was emphatic that my skiing improved with each one :)

Apres ski?  When in Rome as they say…  I am not sure if the photo is blurry or we were!

We absolutely loved our stay at das Georg and plan to return soon.

The problem with the ski huts is that space is at an absolute premium,
so you make new friends with each hot chocolate whether you wish to or not!
I was the only one without sunglasses and completely blinded.

The consummate planner, I never have to bother with the where/when as Claudia likes to have all that under control.  However, when our train separated and we ended up spending a late night in Bregenz instead of home in Zurich she simply could not get her hands on enough train schedules to mull 
over with her wine

The White Ring

I must admit, I barely have the energy to think this evening - never mind write because of what is known as a "white ring".  Furthermore, I must confess that last sentence was all that I could muster energy wise as it is now 24 hours after the "white ring" and I have now nearly full enough faculties to carry on.

So now you must be wondering what he heck is a "white ring" anyway.

Did she get some sort incurable skin disease?  Does she have a goggle tan line? Is it a new Tolkien movie?

Easily summarized like this,  you are skiing all over the frigging place.  Village to village, I honestly have no clue where we went.  People come from all over the place to tackle this thing.  It is even home too what I am told is the worlds longest ski race.

 (More on the white ring here http://www.derweissering.at/HD/index_en.php). 

It began with our 'house mom' recommending a ski instructor.  Erich. What we found out when we met him is that he has skied with the likes of Hollywood stars including the likes of names like Nicole Kidman and is even a ski pal of Princess Caroline as well as godfather to one of her children.  So this made Claudia and I competitive. I mean if delicate royalty and Hollywood could keep up with Erich, then we could - no?  We dutifully attempted whatever Erich threw our way.  Claudia infinitely more graceful than I, but what I lacked in grace I made up for with enthusiastic whoohoos, and a bit of uncoordinated speed down the hill.  Both Claudia and I tried to cheat on occasion with poor form when Eric had his back turned - but he could literally hear it!

When the ski day finally concluded, we took in a little après ski at Hotel Krone and prepared to warm up for the birthday celebration (it was mine) that lay ahead.  We did well.  Two glasses of glühwien, a sauna, and the birthday celebration ended up with two fatigued females in bed by 22:00. 

But, in the end, we survived the white ring...

Après to Ski - Day 2

IWell, I have to admit - après ski Austrian style is tough to beat.  White Night was indeed worth going out to check out. 

After a late start to our evening we ended up finding the most crowded, hopping bar with the most eclectic assortment of people you could possibly imagine.  We were actually just looking for a place to have a tea - but we ended up revising our plans.  

Anyway, we had a bit of a late start but enjoyed the sunny sping ski type weather.  Overall we have been a bit overwhelmed by the level of service and effort everyone seems to put forth to make our stay a nice one.  

At last run we opted to stop in for a bit of time at the ice bar.  Not so much ice, but the dj was great.  

Yes we are dancing in a reclined position.  We were conserving energy for the run back to our hotel.  

...and now it is sauna time!