school trip!

The search for snowy wonderland in the land of mountains continues. It seems like the streets of Toronto have got what we don't.

Last week the university organised a 'snow day' for all the students. It was decided that since there are many non-skiers we would do something that everybody could do...toboggoning. We may not have been skiing but we were still on the ski runs at one of the biggest ski areas in the area - La Tzoumaz. It was a crazy day. 99% of us had no idea what we were doing so we just just launched ourselves off the top of the mountain. There had been some questions before setting off, things like, "how do we change direction?", "how do we stop?","what happens if we fly off the side of the mountain?". Well, most of those questions were answered 850m below after our crazy descent as for most the answers came through trial and lots of error.

At the end of the day we had fondue in a chalet near the top of the mountain. But of course it wasn't the end of the day because we still had to get all the way down the hill after dinner. The "toboggoning under moonlight" plan had to be changed since clouds had got in the way. And, as any fondue connoisseur knows, a necessary accompaniment to fondue is white wine as well as a shot of kirsch as a digestif . So, there we were on a dark icy mountain, ready to slide down one more time. And sticking together as a group was also important for safety. The result...carnage, mayhem....people sliding into each other, getting entangled, losing control. It was the best part of the day. At the end of it only one tobaggon was lost to the woods, never to be found.

Going back to the lack of snow... in La Tzoumaz there was only snow on the runs and nothing in the village (altitude of 1500m). On some runs the snow was quiet slushy. At the dog sled races in Gryon- same thing. We want to go to the perfect winter village, with snow piled high on the roofs and snow crunching under our feet as we walk from coffee shop to bakery. Maybe it's just a bad year.

Away from the fun stuff, my group project(see a previous post but I don't know which one) is keeping me very busy: preparing budgets, preparing and giving presentations, meetings. We are currently trying to get the most reputable sports organization in the world along with city and canton officials to approve our decisions and make it all happen ~in mere months. It's an exciting challenge. We have also started the Sports Law module this week. Interesting but needs lots of concentration. Chocolate and coffee have been my best friends.

We're looking forward to our first visitors at the end of March....Nanna and Nannu. But for the rest of you there are still many openings in our calender. So far the one hotel in town has 3 reservations from people coming to see us. We have humble offerings as well. A bientot.