Playing in the Alps!

Today we went and grabbed a bunch of pastries (an apple one, rhubarb one, pecan one and one other-had to try a variety!) for breakfast and the kids got to try marzipan penguins at this nearby German bakery. The Swiss Franc and US dollar are pretty much the same rate right now so it makes it easy. Then Chris watched the kids and I headed up skiing (two stops on the gondola and then you ride on the world's highest underground train). The funicular is crazy--it's so weird going on this diagonal train that you stand on and goes straight up the mountain.

We couldn't have asked for better weather!

Bluebird day today-the views are unreal! There was very little powder and it was mostly hard packed snow but I was just glad to be downhill skiing! I was thinking about it and I have only downhill skied one half day in the past 5 years! Towards the end of the day it started to get icy but was mostly groomer runs (which was fine by me the first day back)!

Cool outdoor bar on the slopes:

Chris headed up to the first gondola stop (The kids were free but we were too cheap to pay $50something for him to go to the top when he wasn't skiing. It was around $66 to ski for the day-not bad!) with the kids to play in the snow and then meet me for lunch:

Heading down on the gondola:

Playing in some untouched snow they discovered:

Quite the gorge:

Post nap snackie:

If only this small Swiss grocery store carried some chocolate... (Decisions, decisions...) :)

Dinner at the cafe in their matching long johns. At one point, people dressed as St. Nicholas and his helper came by and gave each of us some little chocolates. Then we realized "Oh yeah, it's St. Nick's Day today!" The Swiss tradition is to have St. Nicholas (Samichlaus) come around to public places with his helper Schmutzli (a frightening helper with a soot covered face in a monk outfit) ask kids if they have been good and if they have been saying their prayers. And then give the good kids candy. Kind of fun to experience their tradition! Chris had to go get cash to pay when they didn't take credit and a fellow came along and gave the kids a ton of Lindt chocolates so they had plenty of candy!