Recent Snow Adventures

We have been having some fun in the snow around our house. The rumor that it rarely snows at the lake level is purely false. Just a couple of weeks ago, we got more that 12 in at the house, which apparently was the most snow at that level since the 60’s.
So we are making sure that we get our fill of snow while we are over here. Every weekend is either packed with skiing or snowshoeing or sometimes both. The views are amazing and sometimes the only way to see the sun after a few days is to strap on the snowshoes and head for a mountain peak. We have made it to a only a few of the great ski areas and have quite a few left to explore. So far, we’ve seen Crans Montana, Gstaad, Villars, Chamonix, Port du Soleil and Grindlewald. That’s just the tip of the snow capped alps here. They apparently close up shop after easter and with us traveling the USA in spril, we are going to have to double time it to get more in.

A lot of the snow excursions have been to simply explore out our back door. We’ve yet to conquer Rocher de Naye from the doorstep to the top and back in a day. The mountain has gotten the better of us on a few occasions. The last time after 2 feet of fresh snow, we crossed the second avalanche run out and Clara pulled the plug. We had the av-gear but it was too dicey to approach the really vertical section that late in the day. We instead practiced our snow cave building skills. Considering that was the first one that either of us had every built, the skills were pretty weak. We managed to get it big enough to have lunch in and head home.

My gut opinion at this point has been confirmed by a few expat-locals. The snow in US/Canada is better than the alps but the steeps and above the tree line skiing is better here. But when the snow is good, and the clouds break, every two planker and boarder heads for the hills because it’s epic. I’ve yet to really piece together the perfect day but I can feel it coming in the next couple weeks. It’s been an epic year for snow here, so it’s only a matter of time. We’ve yet to venture to the farther resorts, which are higher and more snow. It’s just been time and cost prohibitive at this point. The snow pack will likely last long into the summer months this year. That will make it interesting at the mountain top finish for the tour in Verbier and summer hiking.

We also ventured out to scope of a snow adventure race. We had aspirations of participating. Or maybe I just did, but I’m glad we didn’t. XC skis were the derigueur and we would have been at a serious disadvantage with only our raquettes de neige (aka snow shoes). The course was nice and the O-points were mostly on marked XC trails. It was a two day stage event, where teams had to build and sleep in an igloo at the end of day 1. We also took some notes on igloo building techniques. It turns out a snow saw would be pretty handy if not essential. We will be back next year to compete for sure.

Valentines Day Style

Living high style in Geneva, we went and staying a bonafide 5-star hotel suit and ate in a Michelin star restaurant to celebrate Valentine ’s Day and life in general. Until we become independently wealthy, that feat will not be repeated again but it was nice. 7 course truffle tasting menu with 98 Bordeaux’s was quite nice. I would have to say that we’ve done better with food for 1/3 the price at fancy restaurants in the US though.

http://www.hoteldelapaix.ch/en/

http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/europe/switzerland/geneva/restaurant-detail.html?vid=1154654630896

No pictures, sorry.... ;)

Rosie Noses While Traveling Greece

Work life got in the way of the start of this journey, I had to reroute myself from Wyoming directly to Athens to catch up with Clara. Fortunately for me, this gave her 3 hours in the airport to scope the area and make plans to get to the hotel. Typical off-season, the metro was down for repair. Note to future travelers, X95 bus runs directly to the tourist area of the city every 5 min. However, the typical directions to our hotel had us coming from the metro not the bus. We had a bit of urban nav our way to the hotel Hera, nice place and great location. Although we probably stood out as likely targets while wheeling our suitcases down alleys after dark.

The acropolis section of town is where you want to stay, filled with walk streets, outdoor cafes, and a marble stone’s throw away from the ruins. The off season travel is great because deals are abudent, crowds are sparce, but the weather is a gamble. Fortunately, I was prepared having arrived directly from the biting cold of Wyoming with thermal underwear and a balaclava. I didn’t make use of the balaclava while in Athens, I just stuck to the baklava. I did however, where the thermals most days. It probably was necessary the whole time but it just felt nice. You know what they say….
Jet lagged and sick, I persuaded Clara to spend more of the first morning in the hotel sleeping. That plan was repeated daily for most of the trip. Then we ventured out. If you visit Athens, make sure you plan to visit the tourist sites early as most close by 2-3pm. A worker strike a the Acropolis forced us to adjust our plans. But instead, we saw a wider area of the city and a MC Escher exhibit. That guy was brilliant and insane. Did you know that most of his works were wood carvings that were press printed?

Bright and early (3:45a) off to Santorini the following day for some fun in the sun. We were greeted by a very friendly inn keeper at the Galatia Villas, in Fira. He allowed us to check in early and stay late the following day. If you go, I would put in a good word for that place. We took the a long walk 10-15km from Oia back to Fira along a old stone path. We picked up what we dubed the three amigos, which in reality were feral dogs that thought we would feed them. Almost from the start, they followed us all the way back. It was amazing at times, but a little strange. You can see them in a number of pictures from that walk. The views from the cliff of the stacked houses overlooking the dormant volcano caldera were inspiring. Along that walk, we realized that at the top of every hill was a small white washed chapel, unlike Switzerland where hill tops are adorned with small hotels and restaurants.

The following day, we set out on what was planned to be another walkabout across the island. This time starting from the opposite end at the ancient city (ruin) of Thera. The Gods were angry at us apparently as we approached the ruins atop the mountain, they whipped up a fury of 50 kph winds and strong rain that derailed that plan. A few hasty pictures and a quick descent, put us back at the sea. We warmed ourselves at a great restaurant, Nicolea’s. I’m not sure if anyone’s told the Greeks yet but smoking is bad for you and your neighbor. For that matter, no one’s told the Swiss in Vaud either, but I digress. Every restaurant, airport, hotel, or other confined space, was hot boxed in a way that only a Phillip Morris employee could appreciate. We were lucky to have the winds subside long enough to fly back to Athens later that night.
We stayed in the Sofatel by Athens airport that night. I was cursing yet another goofy Euro “shower” with a odd hose with no attachment until I noticed water coming from a rain shower head in the celing. There was much rejoicing. The last day in Athens, we got a sort of early start. The concierge confirmed the strike was over and off to the sacred rock we went. The sun was out and so were the throngs of other tourists. It didn’t matter to use because I’m sure the crowds were thinner and temperatures lower than at the height of the season in summer. The Acropolis was all it is cracked up to be. It’s hard to look at a pile of rocks and get a feel for the pinnacle of Greek. The archeologists have done a good job rebuilding just enough and providing 3D renderings what it might have looked like. The collective will required to build such structures with primitive tools up on that rock surely rivals any historic feats of construction. We also wandered that Agora, which was a market back in the day. They’ve rebuilt a Stoa, large multistory collanade, where 20 shops would have once stood. It is a ancient version of a stip mall. Who knew the Greeks invented that too? If Starbucks could go back in time, they would make a killing.

Great times in Athens, check out the pictures on our Picasa.