FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX: Our First Day On The Slopes

Tuesday, 25 December 2012

Our First Day On The Slopes

I am so tired...but so happy! It was a busy day. We woke up to a sunny day and had to hurry through breakfast because we slept in! The children were dropped off at the various kids club with minimal fuss and we had half an hour to ourselves to chill before our own ski lessons. We finally headed down to the ski room and skied the short distance out to the meet up point. Both Malcolm and I were very happy that we did not have to put boots, helmets, gloves, goggles and skis on for the three children...

The resort was roughly about one third of the way up the slopes. So we had to ski down part of a blue run to reach the gondola which would take us higher up to the "better" flat areas. Our last ski effort was well over 10 years ago so it was somewhat of a challenge! The three instructors were patient, friendly and encouraging but definitely did push us past our comfort levels. We were split into three groups of differing abilites after a brief assesment. After spending the morning refining basic techniques, our instructer started on our way to learning how to get our skis parallel. To be safe, the instructors determined that we should catch the gondola down to the bottom and catch the shuttle back to the resort. I discovered why later. In the afternoon, he took us down a blue run which ran past our resort. I was not comforted to hear him say that parts of the run are more like a red run. In the end, he told me to just be brave, lean forward and use that leg. I made it down the slope without falling over or collecting any other skier in front me. Phew! It was a LONG run. We made it down once and by the time we reached the resort, it was 4pm.

The children's area with their skis ready to go

We were assessed at the top, at the end of a long gondola ride up the mountain

In the gondola on the way down...

Simple lunch was provided neat the ski in area at the resort so serious skiers didn't have to go inside for lunch

The 4-5 year olds being taken for lunch

It was time to pick up the children for the Christmas festivities. Thankfully, all three loved skiing and the kids club. When we picked up the children, their ski suits, beanies and gloves were in their locker ready for more skiing tomorrow! As most Europeans celebrate Christmas on the eve, there were many events scheduled for the evening. First stop was the lounge for snacks, hot chocolates and mocktails. Then it was onto the slopes to welcome Santa Claus to the resort as he skied down the mountain. It really was a fun evening.

Malcolm and I took the time before dinner to go through the story of Advent as presented by Paul Tripp and to read the associated reflections and bible readings. We felt that it was important for the children to remember why Christmas is important. We finished with a quick prayer and went to dinner. Both Malcolm and I were astounded to find dinner even better than the night before. There were these huge crab claws which were so sweet and juicy! I should mention at this point that the dining rooms were extremely well run. We've had meals early, late and in the middle of the available time but never found ourselves "stressed" looking for a table nor find food running out at the buffet. We noticed that the plates and tables were always cleared very quickly and new guests showed into the appropriate room where tables were available. Well done Club Med. We broke our own promise to ourselves of not overfill our stomaches with food and rolled yet again to our rooms. It was a lovely touch to find gifts in our rooms from Club Med. Malcolm and I have just finished watching Captain America and doing laundry. Time for bed for a very special day tomorrow.