On Sunday (January 3) I got to sleep in, finally, and make up for the lack of sleep in Berlin. I slept 10 hours without once waking up, something very unusual for me. Funny, I slept more in one night at home than I did the whole time I was in Berlin. The partying lifestyle certainly isn’t designed for sleeping. I went over to the neighbors to use some internet in the morning. HP had turned off the internet when they left for Italy. When I say turn off, I mean through the internet provider. It’ll come back on when we get home. I got to the neighbors just before they were about to sit down for breakfast, so they invited me to join. Food and internet: every poor 20-something’s dream, right? I left for the bus station in the early afternoon. I picked up some food for the trip at the train station and made a run to the bank for some cash. I got to the bus station a solid 25 minutes before my bus. The bus arrived early and departed on time. It wasn’t full and I had a whole row to myself. I rode down to Munich, had an hour layover, and then boarded another bus to Italy. The bus from Munich to Bozen, Italy wasn’t full either. The journey all together was about 7 hours. I was surprised that we weren’t delayed at all. HD picked me up from the bus station in Bozen and we drove the hour to Santa Cristina in the dark. I was tickled to see that all the signs are always in Italian and German, and then sometimes also English and the local dialect here. Everyone was asleep when we got back. I had a little snack and chatted with HD before going to bed.
It was an early morning on Monday. I was awake just after 7 and we ate breakfast together at 8. We were eventually out of the apartment in time for HM to take One to his ski class (Two is too little to do any classes). HD and I walked to the ticket office and bought my three day ski pass. We then went to a ski shop for me to rent skis, poles, ski boots, and a helmet. We finally made our way up to the bunny slopes for me to practice. This was also where One had his class, so we got to watch him a bit. HD didn’t really give me much direction, just kinda threw me into it. I’ve been skiing twice before, but both times were when I was 16-17 years old. I am now on the verge of my 24th birthday, so it’s been a long time. I’ve also never had formal ski lessons. I did better than I anticipated, though that’s not saying much. After practicing a bit, HD and I went down a red slope because HM assured us that it was easy. For reference, blue is a beginner slope, red is intermediate, and black is advanced. It was a struggle for me. I ended up crashing at least four times, though a few strangers stopped and helped me (albeit with a look of pity on their face). I was feeling highly discouraged. Once we made it down, it was time for lunch. We met HM and the kids at the restaurant near the slopes. I was thrilled to be sitting still for a bit. I didn’t want to try that red slope again and spent the rest of the afternoon on the bunny slopes practicing. HD took off and went down some of the black slopes. I made my way home around 3:30 and was thrilled to take off my gear. I relaxed a little before I showered and left to walk around town a little. We are in Santa Cristina, a small but adorable village. I walked up and down the main street, stopping in some of the shops along the way. I even popped into the grocery store and bought some Italian goods. I got home just in time for dinner and enjoyed some quality time with my host family. I was absolutely exhausted and was asleep before 9:30pm.
A view of St Cristina from above
Tuesday was my second day of skiing. I was dreading it all morning. We all ate breakfast together and then HD set off with the kids. HM and I walked down to the bus stop and took the bus over to another lift area. We took a bus to the base of the mountain and then took a tram up to the middle of the mountain, and finally a lift to the start of the slope. It was mostly blue with a red section at the end. I was pretty hesitant and HM could see that. She spent her time explaining to me how to do everything. She would stop me from time to time to correct something I was doing wrong or to show me how to do it better. I was absolutely grateful for her help and felt significantly better and more comfortable. I even enjoyed skiing at times! I still did crash a number of times and a couple people did stop to help me. After the second run down the blue/red slope, HM left me to go down the black one. This particular black slope is where they hold the Ski World Cup. I went and sat and watched people come in off the slope, particularly impressed with the five year olds who could already easily do it. When HM was done, we went back to the kiddie slopes to see how One was faring. HM and I ate lunch at the same restaurant and then I spent a little bit of time practicing some of the things HM taught me. I eventually went back to the slopes we were at earlier. HM stayed to watch One and to ski the red slopes there. I spent a long time watching people ski in off the mountain. I also watched the crowds walk by, enjoying hearing all the different languages and seeing all sorts of people. I decided to walk home instead of take the bus. I got back just before 3:30pm. Again, I showered and then left to wander around town. I was out for about an hour and a half and came home when I was too cold to be outside anymore. I spent the evening with the family eating dinner and bonding.
The view from the middle of the red/blue slope.
Wednesday was my last day of skiing. We were all up and out of the house shortly after 9am. HD and I took the bus to where HM and I were the day before. We rode up to the highest point on the mountain that we could go. It took us at least half an hour to get to the top. We had to take a tram and then three lifts to reach it. The view was absolutely breathtaking. I was more nervous than ever looking down at the slope in front of us, but I tried to take a minute to look around and appreciate the moment. HD then had me practice a bit, going down a certain section three times. We didn’t have too much time to waste, so we eventually skied all the way down the mountain. I think it took us just under half an hour with all the short breaks we took (and with how slow I was skiing). I was quite proud of myself when we reached the bottom because I did not crash once! When I looked at the map later, I discovered that most of the slope we skied was red. There were some sections of blue, but it was definitely more red than blue. One’s ski lessons were only half a day, so the two of us made our way back over to where his lessons were and met up with HM and Two. The five of us had lunch together. HD and One then spent some time skiing down the bunny slopes together. One wanted to show us how good he was. I eventually left and made my way back to where we were in the morning, though I didn’t go as high up. It was my last day of skiing and I didn’t want to waste it, though I also really didn’t feel like skiing anymore. I made myself go down one more time. I skied down without crashing again! I was proud, though my legs were burning. I had briefly considered doing another run, but I wasn’t sure I had the strength left. By then, it was 3pm and the day was wrapping up anyways. I decided to go home. As I was waiting for the tram back down to the base (it is not possible to ski down, you have to take the tram), the tram full of people coming up slowly made its way past me. I made eye contact with a young guy, who then proceeded to stick his tongue out at me. He was probably 17 or 18, but the interaction made me smile. I got home just after 3:30pm. Every single step was laborious. My feet have never felt freedom as they did when I took off my ski boots. Somehow the rentals I had did not fit me, but whether they were too tight or not tight enough is a mystery. Either way, I have bruises up and down the fronts and sides of my shins. HD got home soon after me, and about an hour later the five of us all left to run errands. I had to return my rental gear, HP had to buy their ski passes for Thursday, and we all had to go to the grocery store. We took our time, stopping at the playground and a little ice castle structure. We finally got home, ate dinner, and then spent the rest of the evening relaxing. Three days of skiing (poorly), and my entire body aches in places I forgot could ache. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little relieved that my days of skiing have come to an end.
The view from 2518 m (8261 ft) above!
I have to watch the kids Thursday and Friday while HP ski. I hope I can do some exploring as well!
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